J. B. Van Hollen

J.B. Van Hollen (born John Byron Van Hollen February 19,1966 in Chetek, Wisconsin) is the Attorney General of the State of Wisconsin. He was elected to the office in November 2006 and took office on January 2, 2007, succeeding Democrat Peg Lautenschlager.

Van Hollen graduated from St. Olaf College in 1988 with an undergraduate degree in Political Science and Economics. He earned his law degree two years later from the University of Wisconsin Law School.

J.B. is a Freemason, and was raised to the sublime degree of Master Mason in 1985 and has been very active in Masonic activities since then. In 2007 he was elected the Grand Master of Masons in Wisconsin serving until June 2008. He was the second Wisconsinite to be both Attorney General and Grand Master simutaneously.

In 1993, Governor Tommy Thompson appointed Van Hollen District Attorney in Ashland County, where he served for six years. He was subsequently called to service again when Governor Thompson appointed him to serve as Bayfield County District Attorney. In August 2004 he crashed his plane while trying to land at the Waunakee airport. He did not know how to turn on the runway lights and overshot it and landed east in an open area before crashing into a homeowners fence.

Van Hollen won the Republican nomination for Attorney General in 2006 over then-Waukesha County District Attorney Paul Bucher. In the general election, Van Hollen narrowly defeated Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk, who had previously bested Lautenschlager in the Democratic primary.

In September 2008, Van Hollen sued the Wisconsin state elections agency to force the Government Accountability Board to check voter registrations for accuracy. Van Hollen said that the motivaton for the lawsuit was that illegal Wisconsin votes could sway the presidential election. Election experts said that the lawsuit could have the effect of suppressing eligible voters. [Mark Pitsch and Jason Stein, [http://www.madison.com/wsj/topstories/304321 Van Hollen sues state accountability board over registration checks] "Wisconsin State Journal"]

Electoral history

Election box candidate with party link
party = Republican Party (US)
candidate = J.B. Van Hollen
votes = 1,062,657
percentage = 50.2
change = Election box candidate with party link
party = Democratic Party (US)
candidate = Kathleen Falk
votes = 1,053,586
percentage = 49.8
change =

References

External links

* [http://www.doj.state.wi.us/ag Attorney General's Office]
* [http://www.VanHollenForAG.com Van Hollen's Campaign Website]