Jon S. Corzine

Jon Corzine was a Democratic member of the U.S. Senate from 2001-2006. He resigned in January 2006 after being elected governor of New Jersey in November 2005. 


 * Honorary Trustee, World Trade Center Memorial Foundation

Bio
Corzine was born on January 1, 1947, and grew up on a small family farm in the central Illinois town of Willey's Station. His father farmed and sold insurance; his mother was a public school teacher. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1969 and enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserves. He remained in the reserves until 1975, rising to the rank of sergeant in his infantry unit. 

After his active duty in the Marine Corps, Corzine began a career in finance, working as a portfolio analyst at the Continental Illinois National Bank in Chicago. He enrolled in the graduate business school of the University of Chicago in 1970, first attending classes at night. He received his MBA in 1973, and then worked at a regional bank in Columbus, Ohio. 

In 1975, Corzine was recruited by Goldman Sachs, the New York investment firm, and he and his family moved to New Jersey. He was named a partner at Goldman Sachs in 1980, and became chairman and chief executive officer in 1994. He left Goldman Sachs in May 1999 after converting the investment firm from a private partnership to a public company. 

During Corzine's tenure at Goldman Sachs, the business magazine Fortune named Goldman Sachs one of the 10 best companies to work for in the United States. Corzine was named by Time magazine as one of the top 50 technology executives in the country in 1997. 

Congressional career
Corzine was elected to the U.S. Senate in November 2000 by beating Republican Bob Franks. In the Senate, Corzine was a member of the Banking Committee, the Intelligence Committee, and the Budget Committee. He co-authored the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, a piece of legislation designed to crack down on corporate corruption. He was a sponsor of the Start Healthy, Stay Healthy Act, which expanded health care coverage to children and pregnant women. Corzine supported tighter gun control laws, outlawing racial profiling, and subsidies for Amtrak. He was the chief sponsor, along with Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kan.), of the Darfur Accountability Act, which would apply sanctions on the Sudanese government and create a framework for addressing the genocide occurring in the Darfur region. He was also one of 23 senators to oppose the resolution authorizing President Bush to use force in Iraq. 

Iraq War
Corzine voted against the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq in Oct. 2002.

Governor of New Jersey
In 2005, Corzine announced his candidacy for the governorship of New Jersey. He campaigned on a comprehensive ethics proposal, revamping the state’s property tax system, building a stronger economy, and improving education and healthcare. He defeated Republican Doug Forrester in November 2005, and was sworn in as New Jersey’s 54th Governor on January 17, 2006. 

Resources

 * Official biography of Jon S. Corzine
 * Our Campaigns - Jon S. Corzine