Don Sundquist Bio, Wiki, Death, Age, Education, Networth, Family and More

Governor of Tennessee

First term

In 1994, Sundquist ran for governor of Tennessee in the race to replace the Democratic incumbent, Ned McWherter, who was term-limited. He easily won the nomination, winning over 80% of the vote in the primary, and faced the Democratic nominee, Nashville mayor Phil Bredesen, in the general election. Bredesen criticized Sundquist for voting against a minimum wage increase while voting for a congressional pay raise. Sundquist accused Bredesen of flip-flopping on issues such as public funding for abortion and school privatization. On election day, Sundquist won, 807,104 votes to 664,252.

During his first term, Sundquist focused on government efficiency and welfare reform. He signed the "Families First" bill in 1996, which reduced the number of families on welfare from 70,000 to 30,000. He also signed a series of crime-related measures which called for tougher sentences and more focus on victims' rights. In 1996, Sundquist eliminated the state's scandal-ridden Public Service Commission, replacing it with the Tennessee Regulatory Authority. That same year, he created the Department of Children's Services.

Second term

In 1998, Sundquist easily won renomination, defeating Memphis realtor Shirley Beck-Vosse, 258,786 votes to 28,951. In the general election, he easily defeated his Democratic opponent, John Jay Hooker, 669,973 votes to 287,790. Shortly after winning reelection in November 1998, Sundquist implemented the ConnectTen program, which made Tennessee the first state in the nation to connect its schools and libraries to the Internet.

During his second term, Sundquist set out to raise more revenue for the state, which had traditionally been one of the lowest-tax jurisdictions in the country. He was concerned that the sales tax, which the state relied upon for much of its revenue, was too unstable, and prevented the state from competing with other Southern states in education and infrastructure. His tax reform plan therefore included a state income tax, the proposal of which had long been a third rail in Tennessee state politics. Many of his political allies turned against him, and anti-income tax street demonstrations were held in Nashville. In July 2001, demonstrators vandalized Sundquist's office, and broke windows in the state capitol when the legislature was considering the income tax measure.

Post-governorship

In 2002, toward the end of Sundquist's second term, a Nashville television station, NewsChannel 5, uncovered evidence businesses owned by Sundquist's friends were illegally given no-bid contracts by the state. In December of that year, the FBI raided the offices of Education Networks of America (ENA), founded by Sundquist's friend, Al Ganier, as part of an investigation into whether or not Ganier used his relationship with Sundquist to obtain millions of dollars worth of state contracts (including the ConnectTenn contract). Ganier eventually pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of unauthorized use of a computer.

In May 2004, a Labor Department employee, Joanna Ediger, was convicted of rigging a $2 million state contract for Workforce Strategists, a company owned by another Sundquist friend, John Stamps. The following year, Stamps pleaded guilty to four counts of tax evasion and one count of making false statements. U.S. District Judge Karl Forester said Sundquist was the "impetus" for the investigations, although he was never implicated in any wrongdoing, nor were any senior members of his administration.

In July 2005, Sundquist was named head of a national panel on improving Medicaid. The panel was appointed by HHS Secretary Michael Leavitt.

He served as state vice chair of the John McCain presidential campaign team in 2008.

Lobbying career

After leaving office, he became a lobbyist and worked for the firm he co-founded, Sundquist Anthony, now known as the Sundquist Group.

Archive

Sundquist's papers are archived at the University of Tennessee Libraries

Honors

Order of the Rising Sun, 2nd Class, Gold and Silver Star (2018)