Melinda Schwegmann
| Melinda Schwegmann | |
|---|---|
| 49th Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana | |
|
In office January 13, 1992 – January 8, 1996 |
|
| Governor | Edwin Edwards |
| Preceded by | Paul Hardy |
| Succeeded by | Kathleen Babineaux Blanco |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
October 25, 1946 Austin, Texas |
| Nationality | United States |
| Political party | Republican (2003–present) Democratic (1982–2003) |
| Spouse(s) | John F. Schwegmann |
| Relations | John G. Schwegmann (father-in-law) |
| Children | Three children |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
Melinda B. Schwegmann (born October 25, 1946) was the lieutenant governor of Louisiana from 1992–1996 – the first woman to hold the position. She made an unsuccessful run for governor of Louisiana in 1995. In 1997, she won a special election to the Louisiana State House of Representatives, District 98, from the Orleans Parish Lakefront, a predominantly African American area, previously represented for fifteen years by a conservative Republican Garey Forster. Schwegmann was elected to a full House term in 1999. In 2003, she relinquished the House seat, which was dismembered by reapportionment. Formerly a member of the Democratic Party, that same year she switched affiliation to the Republican Party in a fruitless effort to regain the lieutenant governor's position.
Melinda Schwegmann was born in Austin, Texas. Prior to her entry into politics, she was a teacher and a real estate developer. She attended Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, but her bachelor's degree in education is from the University of New Orleans. She is an alumna of Phi Mu Fraternity. She is married to former Public Service Commissioner John F. Schwegmann (born 1945) of Metairie in Jefferson Parish. She is the mother of three children and, as of 2006, the grandmother of two. Mrs. Schwegmann is a past president of the Louisiana Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. She was also a board member of the defunct Schwegmann Giant Supermarket chain, which was started by her late father-in-law John G. Schwegmann (1911–1995) of Metairie. John G. Schwegmann was a former state representative, state senator, and public service commissioner. John F. Schwegmann succeeded his father as chairman of the supermarket board and as a member of the PSC. The junior Schwegmann was elected to the PSC in 1981 and served until his defeat in 1996. John F. Schwegmann began his political career as a Democrat but switched to Independent designation in 2002.
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