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Jared Polis
Jared Polis (D) is the 43rd governor of the state of Colorado who also served as a Colorado State Board of Education member and a U.S. Representative from Colorado’s 2nd district.
Associations:
Armenian National Committee of America-Western Region
Humane Society Legislative Fund
Human Rights Campaign
National Education Association
party
Democrat
jurisdiction
State of Colorado
service dates
January 8, 2019 - Present
gender
Male
Personal Moments
1975
Jared Schultz (later Polis) is born in Boulder, Colorado
Schultz was born to parents Stephen and Susan Polis Schultz, co-founders of book publisher Blue Mountain Arts.
1996
Graduates from Princeton University
With a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science, Jared Polis graduated from Princeton University.
1998
Establishes online florist company
An entrepreneur from the start, Polis founded a virtual florist company, ProFlowers, in La Jolla, California.
1999
Family Business
Jared and his parents sold their online greeting card site, BlueMountainArts, for an estimated $780 million with Jared taking $160 million.
2005
Sells ProFlowers
Polis sold ProFlowers for $477 million in 2005.
2003
Wins education award
Due to his education reform efforts as a member of the Colorado Board of Education, Jared Polis won the Pacesetter Award in Education.
2020
Engaged to Long Term Partner
Polis gets engaged to his long term partner, Marlon Reis, and becomes the first U.S. Governor to be engaged to a same-sex partner.
2021
Gets Married
Polis and Marlon Reis get married.
Campaign History
2000
Polis elected to Board of Education
Marking the beginning of his political career, Jared Polis was elected to the Colorado Board of Education, where he served until 2007.
2006
Begins campaign finance reform advocacy
Polis served as a co-chair of the Coloradans for Clean Government working to pass an amendment that would restrict lobby funding to politicians.
2007
Polis advocates for school infrastructure improvements
Jared Polis served as a co-chair for the Building for Our Future campaign that helped raise funds and awareness to improve Colorado’s aging educational infrastructure.
2008
Elected to U.S. House of Representatives
Polis became the U.S. representative for Colorado’s second district after competitive primary and general elections.
2018
Polis elected as governor of Colorado
Elected with 52% of the vote, Polis was elected the 43rd governor of Colorado, becoming the first openly gay governor elected in the country.
2022
Running for re-election and wins
Polis is running for re-election in Colorado and his largest campaign contributor was himself, allocating some $11,138,000.00 for political purposes. Polis wins the general election and remains governor of Colorado.
Position on Key Issues
Environment
As governor of a natural resource-rich state, Jared Polis is greatly concerned with combating climate change. One of his largest promises made as governor so far is to transform Colorado’s energy grid to be made of completely renewable energy sources by 2040.
Education
As a former Board of Education member, one of Polis’ main concerns as governor has been the state’s education system. Polis signed a bill in 2020 ensuring free full-day Kindergarten for all students in Colorado in hopes to help bridge academic gaps between richer and poorer students.
Healthcare
Polis and his administration have made accessible healthcare a priority during his tenure as governor. Governor Polis passed a bill in 2020 ensuring that all Colorado residents can take paid medical and family leave in an attempt to encourage Coloradans to obtain the care they need without fear of losing pay while sick.
Key Issues:
Environment
Education
Healthcare