- For the Australian jurist, see Bruce McPherson (Australian judge)
Bruce Harvey McPherson was born in Melmoth, South Africa on 23 September 1936. He graduated from Cambridge in 1959, then moved to Brisbane, Australia in 1960. He was admitted to the Queensland Bar in 1965 and became Queen's Counsel in 1975, after marrying his second wife, Isobel Jacqueline Marie...
.
Bruce A. McPherson (born January 7 1944) is a
CaliforniaCalifornia is the most populous state in the United States, and the third largest by area. California is the second most populous sub-national entity in the Americas, behind only São Paulo, Brazil...
politicianA politician or political leader is an individual who is involved in influencing public decision making. This includes people who hold decision-making positions in government, and people who seek those positions, whether by means of election, coup d'état, appointment, electoral fraud, conquest,...
who was the 30th
California Secretary of StateThe Secretary of State of California is the chief elections officer of that U.S. state. The Secretary of State is also responsible for the California State Archives, as well as chartering corporations. The Secretary of State is elected to four year terms, concurrent with the other constitutional...
, sworn in March 30 2005. He was nominated to replace former Secretary of State
Kevin ShelleyKevin Francis Shelley is a California politician, who was the 28th California Secretary of State from January 6, 2003, until his resignation on March 4, 2005.-Early life:...
, who resigned on March 4. McPherson, a
RepublicanThe Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the Grand Old Party or the GOP, despite being the younger of the two major parties. In the U.S...
from
Santa Cruz CountySanta Cruz County is a county located on the Pacific coast of the U.S. state of California, just south of the San Francisco Bay Area. The county forms the northern coast of the Monterey Bay. . As of 2006 its population was 249,705. The county seat is Santa Cruz...
, served his term as Secretary until January 8 2007. He was confirmed unanimously by both
DemocraticThe Democratic Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. It is the oldest political party in continuous operation in the United States and it is one of the oldest parties in the world. In the U.S...
-controlled houses of the
California State LegislatureThe California State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of California. It is a bicameral body consisting of the lower house, the California State Assembly, with 80 members, and the upper house, the California State Senate, with 40 members...
after being nominated to replace Shelley, a Democrat, by
GovernorThe Governor of California is the highest executive authority in the California state government, whose responsibilities include making annual "State of the State" addresses to the California State Legislature, submitting the budget, and ensuring that state laws are enforced.The position was...
Arnold SchwarzeneggerArnold Alois Schwarzenegger is an Austrian American bodybuilder, actor, businessman, and politician, currently serving as the 38th Governor of the state of California....
.
- For the Australian jurist, see Bruce McPherson (Australian judge)
Bruce Harvey McPherson was born in Melmoth, South Africa on 23 September 1936. He graduated from Cambridge in 1959, then moved to Brisbane, Australia in 1960. He was admitted to the Queensland Bar in 1965 and became Queen's Counsel in 1975, after marrying his second wife, Isobel Jacqueline Marie...
.
Bruce A. McPherson (born January 7 1944) is a
CaliforniaCalifornia is the most populous state in the United States, and the third largest by area. California is the second most populous sub-national entity in the Americas, behind only São Paulo, Brazil...
politicianA politician or political leader is an individual who is involved in influencing public decision making. This includes people who hold decision-making positions in government, and people who seek those positions, whether by means of election, coup d'état, appointment, electoral fraud, conquest,...
who was the 30th
California Secretary of StateThe Secretary of State of California is the chief elections officer of that U.S. state. The Secretary of State is also responsible for the California State Archives, as well as chartering corporations. The Secretary of State is elected to four year terms, concurrent with the other constitutional...
, sworn in March 30 2005. He was nominated to replace former Secretary of State
Kevin ShelleyKevin Francis Shelley is a California politician, who was the 28th California Secretary of State from January 6, 2003, until his resignation on March 4, 2005.-Early life:...
, who resigned on March 4. McPherson, a
RepublicanThe Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the Grand Old Party or the GOP, despite being the younger of the two major parties. In the U.S...
from
Santa Cruz CountySanta Cruz County is a county located on the Pacific coast of the U.S. state of California, just south of the San Francisco Bay Area. The county forms the northern coast of the Monterey Bay. . As of 2006 its population was 249,705. The county seat is Santa Cruz...
, served his term as Secretary until January 8 2007. He was confirmed unanimously by both
DemocraticThe Democratic Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. It is the oldest political party in continuous operation in the United States and it is one of the oldest parties in the world. In the U.S...
-controlled houses of the
California State LegislatureThe California State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of California. It is a bicameral body consisting of the lower house, the California State Assembly, with 80 members, and the upper house, the California State Senate, with 40 members...
after being nominated to replace Shelley, a Democrat, by
GovernorThe Governor of California is the highest executive authority in the California state government, whose responsibilities include making annual "State of the State" addresses to the California State Legislature, submitting the budget, and ensuring that state laws are enforced.The position was...
Arnold SchwarzeneggerArnold Alois Schwarzenegger is an Austrian American bodybuilder, actor, businessman, and politician, currently serving as the 38th Governor of the state of California....
. He lost his bid for a full term to Democrat
Debra BowenDebra Bowen is a California politician from the Democratic Party. She has been California Secretary of State since January 8 2007. Prior to becoming Secretary of State, she was a member of the California State Legislature from 1992 to 2006. In March 2008, she was given the Profile in Courage Award...
in November 2006.
Previously, McPherson was a
State AssemblymanThe California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature. There are 80 members in the Assembly, representing an approximately equal number of constituents, with each district having a population of at least 420,000...
from 1993 to 1996 and a
State SenatorThe California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature. There are 40 State Senators. The state legislature meets in the state capital, Sacramento. The Lieutenant Governor is the ex officio President of the Senate and may break a tied vote...
from 1996 to 2004, when he retired due to
term limitA term limit is a legal restriction that limits the number of terms a person may serve in a particular elected office. Term limits are found usually in presidential and semi-presidential systems as a method to curb the potential for dictatorships, where a leader effectively becomes "president for...
s. McPherson was defeated in the 2002 election for
Lieutenant Governor of CaliforniaThe Lieutenant Governor of California is a statewide constitutional officer elected separately from the Governor who serves as the "vice-executive" of California. The Lieutenant Governor of California is elected to serve a four year term and can serve a maximum of two terms...
by incumbent
Cruz BustamanteCruz Miguel Bustamante is an American politician. He was the 45th Lieutenant Governor of California, a former Speaker of the State Assembly and a member of the Democratic Party...
. Prior to his political career, he worked as the editor of the
Santa Cruz SentinelThe Santa Cruz Sentinel is a daily newspaper published in Santa Cruz, California, covering Santa Cruz County, California, and owned by MediaNews Group Inc....
, a newspaper owned by his family. He and his wife have a daughter, Tori Kistler. Their son, Hunter, was murdered in a 2001 San Francisco street
robberyRobbery is the crime of seizing property through violence or intimidation. At common law, robbery is defined as taking the property of another, with the intent to permanently deprive the person of that property, by means of force or fear. Precise definitions of the offence may vary between...
.
Electoral history
- 2006 Race for California Secretary of State
- Debra Bowen
Debra Bowen is a California politician from the Democratic Party. She has been California Secretary of State since January 8 2007. Prior to becoming Secretary of State, she was a member of the California State Legislature from 1992 to 2006. In March 2008, she was given the Profile in Courage Award...
(D), 48.4%
- Bruce McPherson (R), (inc.) 44.8%
External links