Grace Schwab
{{Short description|American politician}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = Grace Schwab
| image =
| caption =
| state_senate = Minnesota
| district = 27th
| term_start= January 3, 2001
| term_end= January 6, 2003
| preceded = Pat Piper
| succeeded = district redrawn
| party = Republican Party of Minnesota
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1963|08|03|mf=y}}
| birth_place = Tallahassee, Florida
| alma_mater = Minnesota State University, Mankato
| occupation = Legislator
|spouse = {{Unbulleted list
|Steve Ray Schwab
(divorced 2005)
| Thomas "Tom" Eugene Keliher
(July 2008–Present)
}}
|children = {{Unbulleted list
| Gracie Schwab
| Katelyn Schwab
| Eric Schwab
| Mike Keliher (Step-child)
| Andy Keliher (Step-child)
| Matt Keliher (Step-child)
| Katie Keliher (Step-child)
}}
| residence = Albert Lea, Minnesota
}}
Grace Elizabeth Stabell Schwab Keliher (born August 3, 1963) is a Minnesota politician and former member of the Minnesota Senate. A member of the Republican Party of Minnesota, she represented District 27, which includes all or portions of Freeborn and Mower counties in the southeastern part of the state.
Early life, education, and career
Born Grace Elizabeth Stabell in Tallahassee, Florida, Keliher graduated from New Ulm High School in New Ulm, Minnesota. She attended college at Minnesota State University, Mankato in Mankato, Minnesota, graduating with her Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in 1986. For 10 years, she served on the Albert Lea School Board.
Minnesota Senate
=Elections=
Keliher was elected to the Senate in 2000. She ran for reelection in 2002 and lost to Dan Sparks by seven votes after an automatic recount.{{cite web|url=http://www.leg.state.mn.us/legdb/fulldetail.asp?ID=10597 |title=Minnesota Legislators Past & Present – Legislator Record – Schwab, Grace Elizabeth |publisher=Leg.state.mn.us |date= |accessdate=2015-01-28}}
{{Election box begin | title=2002 Minnesota State Senator- Senate 27{{cite web | url=http://minnesotaelectionresults.sos.state.mn.us/20021105/ElecRslts.asp?M=LG&LD=27 | title=Results for State Senate District 27 | publisher=Minnesota Secretary of State | accessdate=January 28, 2015 | url-status=dead | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150808093000/http://minnesotaelectionresults.sos.state.mn.us/20021105/ElecRslts.asp?M=LG&LD=27 | archivedate=August 8, 2015 }}}}
{{Election box candidate with party link
|party = Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party
|candidate = Dan Sparks
|votes = 15091
|percentage = 45.54
|change =
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link
|party = Republican Party of Minnesota
|candidate = Grace Schwab (Incumbent)
|votes = 15084
|percentage = 45.52
|change =
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link
|party = Independence Party of Minnesota
|candidate = Terry Kelley
|votes = 2066
|percentage = 8.90
|change =
}}
{{Election box end}}
{{Election box begin | title=2000 Minnesota State Senator- Senate 27{{cite web | url=http://minnesotaelectionresults.sos.state.mn.us/20001107/ElecRslts.asp?M=LG&LD=27 | title=Results for State Senate District 27 | publisher=Minnesota Secretary of State | accessdate=January 28, 2015 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150204221048/http://minnesotaelectionresults.sos.state.mn.us/20001107/ElecRslts.asp?M=LG&LD=27 | archive-date=February 4, 2015 | url-status=dead }}}}
{{Election box candidate with party link
|party = Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party
|candidate = Pat Piper (incumbent)
|votes = 14971
|percentage = 47.27
|change =
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link
|party = Republican Party of Minnesota
|candidate = Grace Schwab
|votes = 16697
|percentage = 52.73
|change =
}}
{{Election box end}}
=Committee assignments=
For the 82nd Legislative Session, Schwab was part of the:
- Crime Prevention
- Education
- Education Subcommittee: Early Childhood-Grade 12 Education Budget Division
- Education Subcommittee: Workforce Education
- Taxes
- Taxes Subcommittee: Income and Sales Tax Budget Division
- Transportation
=Tenure=
Keliher was sworn in on January 3, 2001. On April 6, 2001, she was appointed to the Minnesota Chicano Latino Affairs Council (Board of Directors).{{Cite web|url=https://www.albertleatribune.com/2001/04/schwab-part-of-latino-affairs-council/|title=Schwab part of Latino affairs council|date=April 9, 2001|website=Albert Lea Tribune}} Schwab's first legislative action was authoring a bill that raised the standards for school bus drivers and provided more protection for children.{{Cite web|url=https://www.albertleatribune.com/2001/04/schwabs-first-bill-signed-into-law/|title=Schwab's first bill signed into law|date=April 25, 2001|website=Albert Lea Tribune}}
Lawsuit
Malcolm W. Prinzing accused Keliher of theft. Prinzing had put a sign on the property of Northbridge Mall in Albert Lea in opposition to a school levy. Keliher saw the sign and spoke to the manager of the mall about it. She and the manager removed letters from the sign to make it more neutral. Prinzing went after her in her 2002 reelection campaign, calling her a thief. He took her to court and lost. The jury awarded Keliher $150,000 for defamation. Prinzing appealed to the Minnesota Court of Appeals, but the court upheld the decision.{{Cite web|url=https://law.justia.com/cases/minnesota/court-of-appeals/2006/opa050398-0307.html|title=Malcolm W. Prinzing, Appellant, vs. Grace Stabell Schwab, Respondent.|website=Justia Law}}
Personal life
Keliher was married to Steve Ray Schwab. They have three children and divorced in 2005. In 2008, she married Thomas "Tom" Eugene Keliher. She has four stepchildren.{{Cite web|url=https://www.lrl.mn.gov/legdb/fulldetail?id=10597|title=Schwab, Grace Elizabeth – Legislator Record – Minnesota Legislators Past & Present|website=www.lrl.mn.gov}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
{{MN-legdb|10597}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Schwab, Grace}}
Category:School board members in Minnesota
Category:Women state legislators in Minnesota
Category:Republican Party Minnesota state senators
Category:Politicians from Albert Lea, Minnesota
Category:Politicians from Tallahassee, Florida
Category:Minnesota State University, Mankato alumni