Bennet, Michael, 1964-

<p>Michael Bennet has represented Colorado in the United States Senate since 2009. Widely recognized as a pragmatic and independent thinker, he is driven by a deep-seated obligation to create more opportunity for the next generation. Michael has built a reputation of taking on Washington dysfunction and working with Republicans and Democrats to address our nation’s greatest challenges – including education, climate change, immigration, health care, and national security.</p>

<p>Before his appointment to the Senate in 2009 and subsequent election to a full six-year term in 2010, Michael served as Superintendent of Denver Public Schools, where he led a bold and inclusive reform effort that improved student achievement, helped turn around failing schools, and brought a halt to a seemingly endless cycle of annual budget cuts.</p>

<p>Prior to his time at the Denver Public Schools, Michael was widely credited with balancing a historic budget deficit and implementing innovative reforms as Chief of Staff to then-Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper. In that role, he also implemented innovative reforms that made city government more responsive to the needs and concerns of the greater Denver community.</p>

<p>Michael's experience saving jobs and turning around failing companies has also served him well in the U.S. Senate. As Managing Director at the Anschutz Investment Company, Michael managed the successful restructuring of more than $3 billion in corporate debt.</p>

BENNET, Michael F., a Senator from Colorado; born in New Delhi, India, November 28, 1964; B.A., Wesleyan University, Middletown, Conn., 1987; J.D., Yale Law School, 1993, editor-in-chief of the Yale Law Journal; counsel to U.S. deputy attorney general 1995-1997; special assistant U.S. attorney, Conn., 1997; managing director, Anschutz Investment Co. 1997-2003; chief of staff to mayor of Denver, Colo., 2003-2005; superintendent, Denver Public Schools 2005-2009; appointed January 21, 2009, to the United States Senate for the term ending January 3, 2011, to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Kenneth L. Salazar; took the oath of office on January 22, 2009; elected as a Democrat to the U.S. Senate in 2010; reelected in 2016 for the term ending January 3, 2023; chair, Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (2013-2014); was an unsuccessful candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020.

<p>Michael Farrand Bennet (born November 28, 1964) is an American businessman, lawyer, and politician serving as the senior United States Senator from Colorado, a seat he has held since 2009. A member of the Democratic Party, he was appointed to the seat when Senator Ken Salazar became Secretary of the Interior. Bennet previously worked as a managing director for the Anschutz Investment Company, chief of staff to Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper, and Superintendent of Denver Public Schools.</p>

<p>Bennet is the son of Douglas J. Bennet, a former State Department official and president of Wesleyan University. Early in his career, Bennet worked for Ohio Governor Richard Celeste. He went on to receive his Juris Doctor degree from Yale Law School, after which he worked as a law clerk and later as Counsel to the U.S. Deputy Attorney General in the Bill Clinton administration.</p>

<p>Bennet became superintendent of the Denver public school system in July 2005. In late 2008 he was speculated to be a candidate for Obama's United States Secretary of Education. He was appointed by Governor Bill Ritter to fill the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Ken Salazar when Salazar became Secretary of the Interior in January 2009. Bennet was elected in the 2010 Senate election, defeating Republican Ken Buck. He chaired the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) for the 2014 cycle and was reelected to the Senate in 2016.</p>

<p>On May 2, 2019, Bennet announced his candidacy for the Democratic nomination for President of the United States. He dropped out of the race on February 11, 2020, after a poor showing in the New Hampshire primary.</p>