Penny Severns
| Penny Severns | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Illinois Senate from the 51st district |
|
|
In office January 1987 – February 1998 |
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| Preceded by | James H. Rupp |
| Succeeded by | Kevin Kehoe |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
January 21, 1952 Decatur, Illinois |
| Died |
February 21, 1998 (aged 46) Decatur, Illinois |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Domestic partner | Terry Mutchler (1993-1998) |
| Residence | Decatur, Illinois |
| Alma mater | Southern Illinois University |
| Profession | Politician |
Penny Severns (1952–1998) was a member of the Illinois Senate who represented the 51st Senate District from 1987 until her death in March 1998.
Severns was born January 21, 1952 in Decatur, Illinois. After graduating high school, she attended Southern Illinois University's Carbondale campus. While in college, at the age of 20, she served as an alternate delegate to the 1972 Democratic National Convention, the then youngest person elected to serve in that role. In 1974, she graduated with a bachelor's degree in political science and international relations.
In 1977, Severns served for two years as a special assistant to the administrator of the Agency for International Development. In this capacity she traveled to Nepal, India and Thailand where she audited the United States' mission in those countries and represented the agency during the negotiations of the Camp David Accords. While in Washington, Severns was also resident associate at the Smithsonian Institution. After leaving the State Department Severns took a job with the Decatur-based Archer Daniels Midland.
In 1980 she ran for Congress against Edward Rell Madigan, but lost in a year that heavily favored the Republican Party. In her second attempt for public office, she won a seat on the Decatur City Council with the largest number of votes in the city's history.
In 1986, she ran for the Illinois Senate against ten-year incumbent James Rupp and won in one of the few upset races for the Illinois General Assembly that year. Though Rupp was the earlier favorite, a combination of a media savvy candidate, a well planned campaign strategy, keeping the focus on chosen issues and targeting of rural areas that Rupp had neglected were credited with the success of her campaign.
In the Senate, she held the position of Minority Caucus Whip. She also served as minority spokesperson of the Revenue Committee and on the Executive Committee and Legislative Audit Commission. She rose to become the senior Democrat on the Appropriations Committee and was the first woman to ever be appointed chief budget negotiator. She was viewed as an advocate for working families, breast cancer awareness and who helped in the preservation of the Dana-Thomas House in Springfield. In 1989, Senator Severns was selected from a nationwide group of legislators to participate as a fellow at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government. Her work there earned her a position to study public policy with the National Council of State Legislatures.
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