Mark Schauer

Mark Schauer
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan's 7th district
In office January 3, 2009 – January 3, 2011
Preceded by	Tim Walberg
Succeeded by	Tim Walberg
Member of the Michigan Senate from the 19th district
In office 2003–2009
Preceded by	Phil Hoffman
Succeeded by	Mike Nofs
Member of the Michigan House of Representatives from the 62nd district
In office 1997–2002
Succeeded by	Mike Nofs
Born	October 2, 1961 (1961-10-02) (age 49) Howell, Michigan
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Christine Schauer
Residence	Battle Creek, Michigan
Alma mater	Albion College (BA 1984), Western Michigan University (MA 1987), Michigan State University (MA 1997, Ph.D. candidate)
Profession	Public administration
Religion	Protestant
Website	Congressman Mark Schauer

Mark Schauer (born October 2, 1961) is the former U.S. Representative for Michigan's 7th congressional district. He is a member of the Democratic Party.

He was previously a member of the Michigan Senate, where he served as the Minority Leader, and the Michigan House of Representatives.

Schauer was defeated by Tim Walberg, the same man he defeated in 2008, in 2010. He will depart Congress in January 2011.

Contents 1 Early life, education and career 2 Michigan Legislature 3 U.S. House of Representatives 3.1 Committee assignments 4 Political campaigns 4.1 2008 4.2 2010 5 Electoral history 6 Personal life 7 References 8 External links

[edit] Early life, education and career

Schauer was born in Howell, Michigan, the son of Robert and Myra Schauer. He was valedictorian of his high school class and graduated summa cum laude^[1] from Albion College in 1984, where he was a member of Tau Kappa Epsilon, Phi Beta Kappa and the Gerald R Ford Institute for Public Policy at Albion College.

Schauer worked as an urban planner for the Calhoun County Planning Department, 1984–1987, while he completed a Master's Degree in Public Administration from Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo. A few years after graduating in 1987, he accepted a position in program development for the Community Action Agency in Battle Creek. Shortly afterwards, the director left for another position and Schauer was selected to run the CAA, which then consisted of 200 employees, had a 21-member board of directors and offered a broad range of programs for the poor, including home weatherization, a foster grandparent program, food assistance and the local Head Start Program for children.^[2]

Schauer was also a founding board member of Battle Creek Habitat for Humanity in 1988 and was honored for fifteen years of service by being named the "2003 Public Official of the Year" by Habitat for Humanity of Michigan.^[3] Schauer has also been actively involved in the supporting the Food Bank of South Central Michigan and the Urban League of Battle Creek.^{[1] [4]} He also serves on the board of directors of the Kids 'N' Stuff Children's Museum in Albion. He was a coordinator of the Calhoun County Human Services Coordinating Council, 1992-1997.^[4]

In 1993, Schauer ran for a seat on the Battle Creek City Commission and lost by 200 votes. However, he was later appointed to fill an unexpired term and was then elected to a full term in 1995. He earned a Masters Degree in Political Science from Michigan State University in 1997, where he is currently a Ph.D. candidate in Political Science and Urban Studies.

[edit] Michigan Legislature

In 1996, Schauer was elected to the Michigan House of Representatives from the state's 62nd District and was re-elected in 1998 and 2000. He served as the Assistant Democratic Leader for the House from 1999-2000. In 2002, Schauer was elected to the Michigan Senate, representing the 19th District, and served as the Democratic Floor Leader from 2003-2006. After being re-elected to the Senate in 2006, Schauer was selected by his Democratic colleagues to be the Senate Minority Leader.

[edit] U.S. House of Representatives

[edit] Committee assignments

• Committee on Agriculture
  • Subcommittee on Conservation, Credit, Energy, and Research
• Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
  • Subcommittee on Aviation
  • Subcommittee on Highways and Transit (Vice Chair)
  • Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials

[edit] Political campaigns

[edit] 2008

In August 2007, Senator Schauer formed a finance committee to challenge freshman Representative Tim Walberg,^[5] who was identified as a top target by the DCCC.^[6] Schauer was considered a top contender for the Democratic nomination and his announcement resulted in David Nacht, who had raised $160K in the first quarter, to drop out of the race.^[7] In September 2007, former State Senator Jim Berryman also dropped out of the Democratic race.^[8]

Schauer defeated Walberg with 48.8% of the vote. He is the second Democrat to represent this district since World War I; the district had been numbered as the 2nd District prior to the 1990s round of redistricting.

[edit] 2010

Schauer was challenged by Republican nominee Tim Walberg, Libertarian nominee Greg Merle, US Taxpayers nominee Eugene Aughney, and Green Party nominee Richard Wunsch.

Schauer was endorsed by Michigan's largest newspaper, the Detroit Free Press.^[9]

Schauer's reelection bid was considered to be a toss-up by aggregate polling.^[10] Likewise, nonpartisan polling showed the race as a dead heat.^[11]

In the final days before the election, former President Bill Clinton headlined a rally for Schauer in Battle Creek, MI.^[12]

Schauer was defeated by Walberg on November 2, 2010.^[13]

[edit] Electoral history

• 2008 Election for the U.S. Representative - Michigan's 7th District

Name	Percent
Mark Schauer (D)	48.8%
Tim Walberg (R) (Inc.)	46.5%

• 2006 Election for the Michigan State Senate - 19th District

Name	Percent
Mark Schauer (D) (Inc.)	61.2%
Elizabeth Fulton (R)	38.8%

• 2002 Election for the Michigan State Senate - 19th District

Name	Percent
Mark Schauer (D)	55.14%
Mickey Mortimer (R)	44.86%

• 2000 Election for the Michigan State House - 62nd District

Name	Percent
Mark Schauer (D) (Inc.)	67.10%
George Perrett (R)	32.90%

• 1998 Election for the Michigan State House - 62nd District

Name	Percent
Mark Schauer (D)	63.78%
Mark Behnke (R)	36.21%

[edit] Personal life

Schauer lives in Battle Creek with his wife, Christine Schauer and his three stepchildren. In June, 2007, Schauer, along with state senators Liz Brater and Gilda Jacobs, and state representative Robert Jones, endorsed Senator Hillary Clinton for U.S. President.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Mark Schauer for U.S. Congress official campaign site
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
• Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
• Biography at WhoRunsGov.com at The Washington Post
• Congressional profile at GovTrack.us
• Congressional profile at OpenCongress
• Appearances on C-SPAN programs
• Issue positions and quotes at On The Issues
• Financial information at OpenSecrets.org
• Staff salaries, trips and personal finance at LegiStorm.com
• Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
• Campaign contributions at the National Institute for Money in State Politics

United States House of Representatives
Preceded by Tim Walberg	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan's 7th congressional district 2009-2011 – present	Succeeded by Tim Walberg
United States order of precedence
Preceded by Tom Rooney R-Florida	United States Representatives by seniority 417th	Succeeded by Aaron Schock R-Illinois

Persondata
Name	Schauer, Mark
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	October 2, 1961
Place of birth	Howell, Michigan
Date of death
Place of death