James R. Bennett
| James R. Bennett | |
|---|---|
James R. Bennett in 2014
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| 49th & 52nd Secretary of State of Alabama | |
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In office 2013–2015 |
|
| Governor | Robert J. Bentley |
| Preceded by | Beth Chapman |
| Succeeded by | John Merrill |
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In office 1993–2003 |
|
| Governor |
Jim Folsom, Jr. Fob James Don Siegelman |
| Preceded by | Billy Joe Camp |
| Succeeded by | Nancy Worley |
| Member of the Alabama Senate | |
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In office 1983-1993 |
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| Member of the Alabama House of Representatives | |
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In office 1978-1983 |
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| Personal details | |
| Born |
January 3, 1940 Red Oak, Iowa |
| Died | August 17, 2016 (aged 76) |
| Political party |
Republican [1998-2016] Democratic [up to 1998] |
| Spouse(s) | Andrea Bennett |
| Residence | Birmingham, Alabama |
James R. "Jim" Bennett (January 3, 1940 – August 17, 2016) was a Republican politician from Alabama. From 1978 to 1983, he served as a member of the Alabama House of Representatives and as a member of the Alabama Senate between 1983 and 1993. He went on to serve as Secretary of State of Alabama, from 1993 to 2003 and from 2013 to 2015.
Born in Iowa in 1940, Bennett graduated from Grundy County High School, Tracy City, Tennessee, in 1957. He moved to Alabama shortly after to study at Jacksonville State University, from which he received a Bachelor of Science degree in 1962. He was a member of the Epsilon Nu Chapter of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia. From 1961 to 1971, Bennett was a reporter for the Birmingham Post-Herald. During his time as a reporter, he found himself in Birmingham in 1963, where he witnessed the use of fire hoses, directed by Bull Connor, on civil rights protesters. In 1969, he was selected for a national award by the American Political Science Association for his reporting on public affairs, before completing his master's degree at the University of Alabama in 1980.
From 1978 to 1983, he served as a member of the Alabama House of Representatives. Prior to his appointment as Alabama's 49th Secretary of State, he served from 1983 to 1993 as a member of the Alabama Senate. He became secretary of state of Alabama, having been appointed to fill a vacancy in 1993 and subsequently elected to two terms in his own right in 1994, representing as a Democrat, and 1998, as a Republican.
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