Juanita Millender-McDonald

{{Infobox officeholder

|name = Juanita Millender-McDonald

|image = Juanita Millender-McDonald 109th pictorial.jpg

|office = Chair of the House Administration Committee

|term_start = January 3, 2007

|term_end = April 21, 2007

|predecessor = Vern Ehlers

|successor = Bob Brady

|state1 = California

|district1 = {{ushr|CA|37|37th}}

|term_start1 = March 26, 1996

|term_end1 = April 22, 2007

|predecessor1 = Walter Tucker

|successor1 = Laura Richardson

|state_assembly2 = California

|district2 = 55th

|term2 = December 7, 1992 - April 15, 1996{{cite web|title=Juanita McDonald Resignation letter|url=https://clerk.assembly.ca.gov/sites/clerk.assembly.ca.gov/files/archive/DailyJournal/1995/vol_4.pdf#page=120|website=clerk.assembly.ca.gov}}

|preceded2 = Richard Polanco

|succeeded2 = Richard Floyd

|birth_name=Juanita Millender

|birth_date = {{birth date|1938|9|7}}

|birth_place = Birmingham, Alabama, U.S.

|death_date = {{death date and age|2007|4|22|1938|9|7}}

|death_place = Carson, California, U.S.

|party = Democratic

|spouse = James McDonald

|children = 5

|education = Los Angeles Harbor College
University of Redlands (BA)
California State University, Los Angeles (MA)
University of Southern California (PhD)

}}

Juanita Millender-McDonald (September 7, 1938 – April 22, 2007) was an American politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1996 until her death in 2007, representing California's 37th congressional district, which includes most of South Central Los Angeles and the city of Long Beach, California. She was a member of the Democratic Party.

On December 19, 2006, Millender-McDonald was named Chairwoman of the House Committee on House Administration for the 110th Congress. She was the first African-American woman to chair the committee. She was also a member of the Congressional Black Caucus and of the New Democrat Coalition and was considered a front-runner for the job of Secretary of Transportation if John Kerry had been elected President in 2004.{{cite news | url = https://www.theguardian.com/uselections2004/comment/story/0,14259,1165744,00.html?=rss| title= Plum positions | first = Albert & John | last = Scardino | work = The Guardian | date = 2004-03-09 | access-date =2007-04-23 }}

Biography

Millender-McDonald was born in Birmingham, Alabama. She was educated at Los Angeles Harbor College;{{cite web|title=Faces of Our Community - Notable Alumni|url=http://californiacommunitycolleges.cccco.edu/Newsroom/NotableAlumni.aspx|website=californiacommunitycolleges.cccco.edu|publisher=California Community Colleges Chancellor's Office|access-date=24 August 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170824052420/http://californiacommunitycolleges.cccco.edu/Newsroom/NotableAlumni.aspx|archive-date=24 August 2017|url-status=dead}} at the University of Redlands, from which she received a business degree; and at California State University, Los Angeles, from which she earned a masters in educational administration; and the University of Southern California, from which she completed her doctorate in public administration.

She worked as a teacher, a textbook editor, and later as director of a nonprofit organization working for gender issues. She was a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority.[http://aka1908.com/news/millender-mcdonald/ Sorority Mourns Loss of California Rep. Millender-McDonald — Accessed on April 24, 2007] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070530122104/http://aka1908.com/news/millender-mcdonald/ |date=May 30, 2007 }} Millender-McDonald served as a member of the City Council of Carson, California and was a member of the California State Assembly (after beating two sitting incumbent Democrats that had been reapportioned into the same Carson based assembly district in 1992) before entering the House.

She was first elected to the House in a March 1996 special election to replace Congressman Walter Tucker, who resigned due to corruption charges and was later sentenced to 27 months in prison. While she won a difficult nine-candidate primary in her first election run (fellow assembly member Willard Murray came in a close second) she did not face any serious opposition in any of her reelection campaigns.

In Congress, she was known for her commitment to protecting international human rights. Millender-McDonald worked to aid victims of genocide and human trafficking. In 1996, she also led an inquiry into allegations that the CIA was working with cocaine traffickers to fund Contra rebels in Nicaragua.{{cite news |last=Holley |first=Joe |date=April 23, 2007 |title=Obituaries: California Congresswoman Juanita Millender-McDonald |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/22/AR2007042201358.html |newspaper=The Washington Post |location=Washington D.C. |access-date=April 28, 2007}}

Within a week of her requesting a leave of absence to deal with her illness, on April 22, 2007, Millender-McDonald died in hospice care,{{cite news|url=https://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070422/ap_on_go_co/congresswoman_dies |title=California Rep. Millender-McDonald dies |first=Erica |last=Werner |work=Yahoo! News |date=2007-04-22 |access-date=2007-04-22 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070424074447/http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070422/ap_on_go_co/congresswoman_dies |archive-date=2007-04-24 |url-status=dead }}{{cite news|url=http://www.thehill.com/leading-the-news/rep.-millender-mcdonald-dies-aide-says-2007-04-22.html |title=Rep. Millender-McDonald dies, aide says |first=Mike |last=Soraghan |date=2007-04-22 |access-date=2007-04-22 |work=The Hill |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070423235114/http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/rep.-millender-mcdonald-dies-aide-says-2007-04-22.html |archive-date=April 23, 2007 }} succumbing to colon cancer at the age of 68 at her home in Carson. She left a husband, James McDonald, Jr., and five adult children.

Successor

File:Houseadministration.jpg at a hearing of the House Administration Committee.]]

Congresswoman Millender-McDonald's seat was vacant until Laura Richardson won the August 21, 2007, special election. Under California law, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger announced a special election date of June 26, and because no candidate received more than 50% of the total vote, the candidates with the most votes in their respective parties participated in an August 21 runoff. In the June Primary, State Senator Jenny Oropeza lost to State Assemblywoman Laura Richardson, with Richardson continuing to the August special election, when she defeated Republican John M. Kanaley, Libertarian Herb Peters, and Green Daniel Brezenoff.{{clear|right}}

Electoral history

class="wikitable" style="margin:0.5em ; font-size:95%"

|+ {{ushr|California|37

}: Results 1996–2006{{cite web|url=http://clerk.house.gov/member_info/electionInfo/index.html |title=Election Statistics |access-date=2008-01-10 |publisher=Office of the Clerk of the House of Representatives |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070725184700/http://clerk.house.gov/member_info/electionInfo/index.html |archive-date=2007-07-25 }}

!|Year

!|Democrat

!|Votes

!|Pct

!|Republican

!|Votes

!|Pct

!|3rd Party

!|Party

!|Votes

!|Pct

|1996

|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |{{nowrap|Juanita Millender-McDonald}}

|{{Party shading/Democratic}} align="right" |87,247

|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |85%

|{{Party shading/Republican}} |{{nowrap|Michael E. Voetee}}

|{{Party shading/Republican}} align="right" |15,399

|{{Party shading/Republican}} |15%

|1998

|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |Juanita Millender-McDonald

|{{Party shading/Democratic}} align="right" |70,026

|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |85%

|{{Party shading/Republican}} |{{nowrap|Saul E. Lankster}}

|{{Party shading/Republican}} align="right" |12,301

|{{Party shading/Republican}} |15%

|2000

|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |Juanita Millender-McDonald

|{{Party shading/Democratic}} align="right" |93,269

|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |82%

|{{Party shading/Republican}} |Vernon Van

|{{Party shading/Republican}} align="right" |12,762

|{{Party shading/Republican}} |11%

|{{Party shading/Independent}} |Margaret Glazer

|{{Party shading/Independent}} |Natural Law

|{{Party shading/Independent}} align="right" |4,094

|{{Party shading/Independent}} align="right" |4%

| |*

|2002

|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |Juanita Millender-McDonald

|{{Party shading/Democratic}} align="right" |63,445

|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |73%

|{{Party shading/Republican}} |{{nowrap|Oscar A. Velasco}}

|{{Party shading/Republican}} align="right" |20,154

|{{Party shading/Republican}} |23%

|{{Party shading/Libertarian}} |Herb Peters

|{{Party shading/Libertarian}} |Libertarian

|{{Party shading/Libertarian}} align="right" |3,413

|{{Party shading/Libertarian}} align="right" |4%

|2004

|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |Juanita Millender-McDonald

|{{Party shading/Democratic}} align="right" |118,823

|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |75%

|{{Party shading/Republican}} |Vernon Van

|{{Party shading/Republican}} align="right" |31,960

|{{Party shading/Republican}} |20%

|{{Party shading/Libertarian}} |Herb Peters

|{{Party shading/Libertarian}} |Libertarian

|{{Party shading/Libertarian}} align="right" |7,535

|{{Party shading/Libertarian}} align="right" |5%

|2006

|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |Juanita Millender-McDonald

|{{Party shading/Democratic}} align="right" |80,716

|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |82%

|{{Party shading/Republican}} |(no candidate)

|{{Party shading/Republican}} align="right" |

|{{Party shading/Republican}} |

|{{Party shading/Libertarian}} |Herb Peters

|{{Party shading/Libertarian}} |Libertarian

|{{Party shading/Libertarian}} align="right" |17,246

|{{Party shading/Libertarian}} align="right" |18%

*Write-in and minor candidate notes: In 2000, Herb Peters received 3,150 votes.

References

External links

[https://archive.today/20121216105300/http://herndon1.sdrdc.com/cgi-bin/can_detail/H6CA37222 Federal Election Commission – Juanita Millender-McDonald] campaign finance reports and data
[http://www.ontheissues.org/CA/Juanita_Millender-McDonald.htm On the Issues – Juanita Millender-McDonald] issue positions and quotes
[https://web.archive.org/web/20070930035504/http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/summary.asp?CID=N00006811 OpenSecrets.org – Juanita Millender-McDonald] campaign contributions
[http://www.joincalifornia.com/candidate/5964 Juanita Millender-McDonald Political History] profile
[https://web.archive.org/web/20061215164131/http://www.vote-smart.org/bio.php?can_id=BC030264 Project Vote Smart – Representative Juanita Millender-McDonald (CA)] profile
{{YouTube|UT5MY3C86bk|Video of meeting with J M McDonald (chair), CIA Director John Deutch, and Mike Ruppert}} allegation of CIA drug dealing
[http://www.joincalifornia.com/candidate/5964 Join California Juanita Millender-McDonald]
{{C-SPAN|91309}}