Tom Miller (politician)

Thomas John Miller (born August 11, 1944) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the 33rd and current Attorney General of Iowa. After the defeat of West Virginia Attorney General Darrell McGraw in 2012 when running for reelection, Miller became the longest continuously serving State Attorney General in the United States, having been in office since 1995. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served in the same position from 1979 to 1991 as the state's 31st Attorney General.

Tom Miller
31st and 33rd Attorney General of Iowa
Assumed office
January 6, 1995
GovernorTerry Branstad
Tom Vilsack
Chet Culver
Kim Reynolds
Preceded byBonnie Campbell
In office
January 12, 1979 – January 11, 1991
GovernorRobert Ray
Terry Branstad
Preceded byRichard C. Turner
Succeeded byBonnie Campbell
Personal details
Born (1944-08-11) August 11, 1944
Dubuque, Iowa, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Children1 son
EducationLoras College (BA)
Harvard University (JD)
WebsiteGovernment website

Early life and education

Miller was raised in Dubuque, Iowa to parents Elmer and Betty Miller. His father was a longtime county assessor. He graduated from Wahlert Catholic High School in Dubuque, earned his undergraduate degree at Loras College in Dubuque, and completed his law degree at Harvard Law School in 1969.[1][2]

Early career

Miller served as an AmeriCorps VISTA volunteer in Baltimore for one year and as a legislative assistant to U.S. Representative John Culver of Iowa. He worked for the Baltimore Legal Aid Bureau, and taught at the University of Maryland School of Law.

In 1973, Miller returned to northeast Iowa and opened a law practice in McGregor, Iowa. He served as the city attorney for McGregor and Marquette, Iowa for five years. In 1974, he won the Democratic nomination for Attorney General of Iowa, but lost the general election to Republican incumbent Richard C. Turner.

Attorney General

Miller was first elected Attorney General of Iowa in 1978, defeating Richard Turner in a rematch. He was re-elected in 1982 and 1986. In 1990 Miller ran for governor and lost to Donald Avenson in the Democratic primary. After that loss, Miller worked in private practice with the Des Moines office of the Faegre & Benson law firm. He was again elected Attorney General in 1994, and was re-elected in 1998, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2014, and 2018. Miller is serving his tenth four-year term as of 2019, and is the longest-serving state attorney general in U.S. history.[3]

Electoral history
Iowa Attorney General Election, 1974
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Richard C. Turner 458,196 52.22
Democratic Tom Miller 419,270 47.78
Iowa Attorney General Election, 1978
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Tom Miller 442,895 55.59
Republican Richard C. Turner 351,251 44.09
Socialist Steve Wilson 2,519 0.32
Iowa Attorney General Election, 1982
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Tom Miller (inc.) 577,277 59.45
Republican Walter Conlon 388,284 39.98
Libertarian Dean Heyne 2,811 0.29
Socialist Brent Lee Vanderlinden 2,692 0.28
Iowa Attorney General Election, 1986
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Tom Miller (inc.) 545,653 64.44
Republican James Davis 295,203 34.86
Petition Eddie Collins 5,922 0.70
Iowa Governor Democratic Primary Election, 1990
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Donald Avenson 79,022 39.47
Democratic Tom Miller 63,364 31.65
Democratic John Chrystal 52,170 26.06
Democratic Jo Ann Zimmerman 4,475 2.24
Democratic Darold Powers 1,167 0.58
Iowa Attorney General Election, 1994
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Tom Miller 509,045 53.33
Republican Joe Gunderson 431,997 45.26
Natural Law Jay Marcus 13,477 1.41
Iowa Attorney General Election, 1998
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Tom Miller (inc.) 603,523 65.45
Republican Mark Schwickerath 298,528 32.37
Natural Law Nancy Watkins 20,104 2.18
Iowa Attorney General Election, 2002
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Tom Miller (inc.) 612,167 61.61
Republican Dave Millage 364,480 36.68
Libertarian Edward Noyes 16,607 1.67
Write-ins Write-ins 409 0.04
Iowa Attorney General Election, 2006
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Tom Miller (inc.) 748,181 100.00
Iowa Attorney General Election, 2010
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Tom Miller (inc.) 607,779 53.62
Republican Brenna Findley 486,057 42.88
Write-ins Write-ins 797 0.07
Iowa Attorney General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Tom Miller (inc.) 616,711 53.99
Republican Adam Gregg 481,046 42.11
Write-ins Write-ins 1,249 0.11
Iowa Attorney General Election, 2018
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Tom Miller (inc.) 880,531 76.51
Libertarian Marco Battaglia 262,131 22.78
Write-ins Write-ins 8,237 0.72

References
  1. "Attorney General Tom Miller Biography". Iowa Department of Justice. Retrieved April 5, 2013.
  2. "About Attorney General Tom Miller". Iowa Department of Justice. Retrieved February 25, 2020.
  3. "Final Candidate Listing by Office : November 6, 2018 General Election : Iowa Secretary of State's Office" (PDF). Sos.iowa.gov.
Legal offices
Preceded by
Richard C. Turner		 Attorney General of Iowa
1979–1991		 Succeeded by
Bonnie Campbell
Preceded by
Bonnie Campbell		 Attorney General of Iowa
1995–present		 Incumbent
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