Janet Cowell

Janet Cowell (born July 19, 1968) is the former North Carolina State Treasurer, serving from 2009 to 2017, and is the first woman to hold that position in North Carolina. She was previously a two-term member of the Raleigh City Council and a two-term Democratic member of the North Carolina Senate, representing Wake County.

Janet Cowell
27th Treasurer of North Carolina
In office January 10, 2009 – January 1, 2017
Governor	Bev Perdue Pat McCrory
Preceded by	Richard Moore
Succeeded by	Dale Folwell
Member of the North Carolina Senate from the 16th district
In office January 1, 2005 – January 1, 2009
Preceded by	Eric Miller Reeves[1]
Succeeded by	Josh Stein[2]
Personal details
Born	July 19, 1968 Memphis, Tennessee, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Education	University of Pennsylvania (BA, MIS, MBA)

Cowell with family in 2009

Early life and education

Cowell was born in Memphis, Tennessee.[3] She graduated from the University of Pennsylvania (BA), Penn's Wharton School of Business (MBA), and the Lauder Institute (Master's in International Studies).

Career

Cowell previously worked as an analyst with HSBC and Lehman Brothers, coming to Raleigh, North Carolina in 1997.[4] While in Raleigh she was also a consultant with SJF Ventures[5] as well as Sibson & Co. and, in 2000, went to work for the Common Sense Foundation.[6]

Political career

In 2001 Cowell decided to run for Raleigh City Council. She was elected to one of the At-large seats along with Neal Hunt.[7] She was re-elected with Hunt to the At-large seats in 2003.[8]

In 2004, Cowell ran for the District 16 State Senate seat held by the retiring Eric Miller Reeves. Cowell won the Democratic party primary with 49% of the vote over Jack Nichols, Carter Worthy and Mike Shea.[9] She went on to face Republican nominee Mark Bradrick, an insurance appraiser and Desert Storm veteran, and Libertarian Jason Mara in the general election.[10] Cowell won the seat with 59% to 38% for Bradrick and 3% for Mara.[11] She was completely unopposed in her 2006 re-election campaign.[12]

As State Treasurer

Cowell announced that she would seek the Democratic nomination for North Carolina State Treasurer in July 2007.[5] She faced Michael Weisel, a Raleigh attorney, and David Young, a Buncombe County Commissioner, in the primary election,[13] winning the nomination with 46.43% of the vote.[14] In the 2008 general election, Cowell defeated the Republican nominee, businessman and former State House member Bill Daughtridge, 53.62% to 46.38%.[15] She was re-elected in 2012 over Republican Steve Royal, 53.83% to 46.17%.[16]

On October 13, 2015, Cowell announced that she would not seek reelection or election to any other office in 2016.[17]

Awards and honors

In 2012, Cowell was recognized as a "rising state and local leader" by The NewDEAL.[18]

In July 2013, Cowell was ranked #21 globally on the Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute's Public Investor 100.[19]

Electoral history

North Carolina State Senate 16th District Democratic Primary Election, 2004
Party	Candidate	Votes	%
Democratic	Janet Cowell	5,367	49.03
Democratic	Jack Nichols	2,641	24.13
Democratic	Carter Worthy	2,136	19.51
Democratic	Mike Shea	802	7.33

North Carolina State Senate 16th District Election, 2004
Party	Candidate	Votes	%
Democratic	Janet Cowell	45,396	59.44
Republican	Mark Bradrick	28,995	37.97
Libertarian	Jason Mara	1,979	2.59

North Carolina State Senate 16th District Election, 2006
Party	Candidate	Votes	%
Democratic	Janet Cowell (inc.)	30,330	100.00

North Carolina Treasurer Democratic Primary Election, 2008
Party	Candidate	Votes	%
Democratic	Janet Cowell	585,012	46.43
Democratic	David Young	456,272	36.21
Democratic	Michael Weisel	218,713	17.36

North Carolina Treasurer Election, 2008
Party	Candidate	Votes	%
Democratic	Janet Cowell	2,179,665	53.62
Republican	Bill Daughtridge	1,885,724	46.38

North Carolina Treasurer Democratic Primary Election, 2012
Party	Candidate	Votes	%
Democratic	Janet Cowell (inc.)	630,151	76.63
Democratic	Ron Elmer	192,134	23.37

North Carolina Treasurer Election, 2012
Party	Candidate	Votes	%
Democratic	Janet Cowell (inc.)	2,313,877	53.83
Republican	Steve Royal	1,984,827	46.17

References

1. https://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=84939
2. https://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=286701
3. Beckwith, Ryan Teague (August 13, 2007). "Janet Cowell". Raleigh News & Observer. Archived from the original on February 12, 2012. Retrieved December 19, 2012.
4. "Biography - Janet Cowell". Information Management Network. Archived from the original on September 5, 2012. Retrieved December 19, 2012.
5. Beckwith, Ryan Teague (July 5, 2007). "Cowell for Treasurer". Raleigh News & Observer. Archived from the original on February 7, 2012. Retrieved December 19, 2012.
6. Geary, Bob (June 27, 2001). "Fresh Start". IndyWeek. Retrieved December 19, 2012.
7. "Municipal and Run-off Election". Wake County, North Carolina. Retrieved December 19, 2012.
8. "Official Summary". Wake County Board of Elections. Retrieved December 19, 2012.
9. "2004 Primary Election Results" (PDF). North Carolina State Board of Elections. Retrieved December 19, 2012.
10. Hood, John (October 29, 2004). "A NC Senate Election Checklist". Carolina Journal. The John Locke Foundation. Retrieved December 19, 2012.
11. "2004 General Election Results" (PDF). North Carolina State Board of Elections. Retrieved December 19, 2012.
12. "2006 General Election Results" (PDF). North Carolina State Board of Elections. Retrieved December 19, 2012.
13. Beckwith, Ryan Teague (October 26, 2007). "Young raises $180,000". Raleigh News & Observer. Archived from the original on December 22, 2013. Retrieved December 19, 2012.
14. "2008 Primary Elections". North Carolina State Board of Elections. Retrieved December 19, 2012.
15. "2008 General Election". North Carolina State Board of Elections. Retrieved December 19, 2012.
16. State Board of Elections - November 6, 2012 General Election
17. "NC treasurer Janet Cowell won't seek re-election in 2016". Retrieved October 13, 2015.
18. Christensen, Rob (June 12, 2012). "Cowell gets national recognition". Raleigh News & Observer. Archived from the original on January 29, 2013. Retrieved December 19, 2012.
19. http://www.swfinstitute.org/public-investor-100/janet-cowell/ Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute

External links

• North Carolina Treasurer's website
• Questions raised by Cowell's fiscal responsibility
• Profile at Vote Smart