Jeb Bush
Jeb Bush | |
|---|---|
 Bush in 2015 | |
| 43rd Governor of Florida | |
| In office January 5, 1999 – January 2, 2007 | |
| Lieutenant | Frank Brogan Toni Jennings |
| Preceded by | Buddy MacKay |
| Succeeded by | Charlie Crist |
| Secretary of the Florida Department of Commerce | |
| In office January 6, 1987 – September 9, 1988 | |
| Governor | Bob Martinez |
| Preceded by | Wayne Mixson |
| Succeeded by | Bill Sutton |
| Personal details | |
| Born | John Ellis Bush February 11, 1953 Midland, Texas, U.S. |
| Party | Republican |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 3, including George |
| Parents | |
| Relatives | Bush family |
| Education | University of Texas at Austin (BA) |
| Signature |  |
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Personal Governor of Florida
Presidential campaign |
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John Ellis "Jeb" Bush (born February 11, 1953) is an American politician and businessman who served as the 43rd governor of Florida from 1999 to 2007. He is the second son of former president George H. W. Bush and former first lady Barbara Bush, and a younger brother of former president George W. Bush. A member of the Republican Party, he was an unsuccessful candidate for president of the United States in the 2016 Republican primaries.
Bush was born into the prominent Bush family in Midland, Texas, and grew up in Houston. He graduated from Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, and attended the University of Texas at Austin, where he earned a degree in Latin American affairs. In 1980, Bush moved to Florida and pursued a career in real estate development. In 1987, he became Florida's secretary of commerce, serving this role until 1988, when he joined his father's successful campaign for the presidency.
In 1994, Bush made his first run for office, losing the election for governor by less than two percentage points to the incumbent Lawton Chiles. Bush ran again in 1998 and defeated lieutenant governor Buddy MacKay with 55 percent of the vote. He ended up succeeding MacKay after Chiles died in office 23 days shy of his retirement. He ran for reelection in 2002, defeating Bill McBride and winning with 56 percent, to become Florida's first two-term Republican governor. During his eight years as governor, Bush pushed an ambitious Everglades conservation plan, supported caps for medical malpractice litigation, launched a Medicaid privatization pilot program, and instituted reforms to the state education system, including the issuance of vouchers and promoting school choice.
Bush announced his presidential candidacy on June 15, 2015. He suspended his campaign on February 20, 2016, shortly after the South Carolina primary, and finished sixth out of 17 contesters by both delegates number and popular vote. He endorsed Senator Ted Cruz on March 23, 2016, and was critical of Donald Trump during the 2016 campaign, remaining so during Trump's presidencies.