Gretchen Whitmer

Gretchen Whitmer
Whitmer in 2023
49th Governor of Michigan
Incumbent
Assumed office January 1, 2019
Lieutenant	Garlin Gilchrist
Preceded by	Rick Snyder
Vice Chair of the Democratic National Committee
Incumbent
Assumed office January 21, 2021 Serving with Tammy Duckworth, Ken Martin, Keisha Lance Bottoms and Christine Pelosi
Chair	Jaime Harrison
Preceded by	Grace Meng
Prosecuting Attorney of Ingham County
In office July 21, 2016 – December 31, 2016
Preceded by	Stuart Dunnings III
Succeeded by	Carol Siemon
Minority Leader of the Michigan Senate
In office January 1, 2011 – January 1, 2015
Deputy	Steve Bieda
Preceded by	Mike Prusi
Succeeded by	Jim Ananich
Member of the Michigan Senate from the 23rd district
In office March 21, 2006 – January 1, 2015
Preceded by	Virgil Bernero
Succeeded by	Curtis Hertel Jr.
Member of the Michigan House of Representatives
In office January 1, 2003 – March 21, 2006
Preceded by	Michael C. Murphy
Succeeded by	Mark Meadows
Constituency	69th district
In office January 1, 2001 – January 1, 2003
Preceded by	Laura Baird
Succeeded by	Judy Emmons
Constituency	70th district
Personal details
Born	Gretchen Esther Whitmer (1971-08-23) August 23, 1971 (age 53) Lansing, Michigan, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouses	Gary Shrewsbury ​ (divorced)​ Marc Mallory ​ (m. 2011)​
Children	2
Education	Michigan State University (BA, JD)
Signature
Gretchen Whitmer's voice Gretchen Whitmer on the implementation of the Inflation Reduction Act in Michigan Recorded February 14, 2024

Gretchen Esther Whitmer (born August 23, 1971) is an American lawyer and politician serving since 2019 as the 49th governor of Michigan. A member of the Democratic Party, she served in the Michigan House of Representatives from 2001 to 2006 and in the Michigan Senate from 2006 to 2015.

Whitmer was born and raised in Michigan. She graduated from Forest Hills Central High School, Michigan State University, and the Detroit College of Law. Her political career began in 2000 when she was elected to the Michigan House of Representatives. In 2006, she won a special election to the state senate, serving in that chamber until 2015, and became its first female Democratic leader from 2011 to 2015. In 2013, Whitmer gained national attention for a floor speech during a debate on abortion in which she shared her experience of being sexually assaulted. For six months in 2016, she was the prosecutor for Ingham County. Whitmer was elected governor in 2018, defeating Republican nominee Bill Schuette, the state attorney general.

Whitmer has identified herself as a progressive. As governor, she has focused on healthcare and infrastructure legislation. In February 2020, she was selected to give the Democratic response to then President Donald Trump's 2020 State of the Union Address. In October 2020, the Federal Bureau of Investigation thwarted a far-right militia group's kidnapping plot against Whitmer.^[1][2] Since January 2021, Whitmer has served as one of the vice chairs of the Democratic National Committee. She was reelected as governor in 2022, defeating Republican nominee Tudor Dixon.