Some people spend their entire lives working towards a position of choice, like an item on their bucket list that they need to review. For most of these people, a position of ministry is nothing more than a place to quench their ego’s thirst and line their pockets. For others, they are in such positions because they have been called to them. A position of personal responsibility to serve and make their part of the world a better place. Kirsten Gillibrand is one of these two groups of voters.
Who is Kirsten Gillibrand?
Kirsten Gillibrand is an American lawyer and politician. She is an acting United States Senator from New York and has been in office since her appointment in January 2009. Kirsten’s future in law and politics was pretty much guaranteed the moment she was born to Douglas Paul Rutnik and Polly Edwina Noonan. Kirsten’s parents are lawyers before they divorced. Her maternal grandmother founded the Albany Democratic Women’s Club. Kirsten attended Dartmouth College and majored in Asian Studies. She passed the bar exam in 1991.
Her legal career has always been intertwined with her having to serve as a civil servant. She joined the Manhattan-based law firm Davis Polk & Wardwell in 1991. During her time at Davis Polk, Kirsten worked pro bono on many cases, defending abused women and children. Kirsten’s time at Davis Polk is considered a controversial point in her career, when she defended tobacco company Philip Morris, but she insists she has been able to defend so many cases pro bono.
At Davis Polk, Kirsten Passion didn’t serve to stop taking pro bono cases. Following in her grandmother’s footsteps, she became involved in a Democratic Party program, the Forum for Women’s Leadership. It was a group that led her to Hillary Clinton’s 2000 campaign in the US Senate in 1999. Both women became friends, and Clinton became something of a mentor to Kirsten. In 2006, like her mentor, she brought her passion for public service to the ballot box.
Gillibrand ran for New York’s 20th congressional district in 2006 under the leadership of the Democratic Party against John E. Sweeney, who was a three-time Republican incumbent at the time. Despite the fact that Kirsten was a traditionally Republican district and a tough race, she received support from other Democratic Party officials and stalwarts, including Bill and Hillary Clinton. Kirsten won the election with 53% of the vote.
After President-elect Barack Obama appointed Clinton as Secretary of State in 2008, it became necessary to replace her seat in the United States Senate. Kirsten was chosen by New York Governor David Paterson to fill the seat. This caused mixed feelings among New York Democrats and the media. She was sworn in on January 26, 2009 and was the youngest senator of the 111th Congress.
In the Senate, Kirsten transitioned from the moderate conservative, for which she held a liberal, progressive position during her time in the House of Representatives. She was a prominent figure in overturning the US military’s policy towards LBGT soldiers. She has introduced several bills to the US Senate and served on several committees. She is an author who published her memoir Beyond the Limits: Raise Your Voice, Change the World in 2014.
Kirsten Gillibrand is considered one of the most viable Democratic Party candidates for the presidency of 2020.
Her Husband & Family Life
Kirsten and her husband Jonathan Gillibrand, a venture capitalist, met on a blind date. The couple have two sons, the eldest born in 2003 and the second son born in 2008. The family resides in Washington DC due to Kirsten’s tenure as a Senator but has a home in Brunswick, New York.
What is her net worth?
According to OpenSecrets, Kirsten Gillibrand is worth $498,502. She has investments in the pharmaceutical and healthcare sectors that come with her salary as a US Senator.