Chris Coons : Net Worth, Family, Wife, Education, Children, Age, Biography and Political Career

Christopher Andrew Coons is an American lawyer and politician serving as the junior us Senator from Delaware since 2010. A member of the Democratic Party, Coons served because the county executive of latest Castle County from 2005 to 2010.

Raised in Hockessin, Delaware, Coons graduated from Amherst College in Massachusetts, where he joined Delta Kappa Epsilon Fraternity. He received graduate degrees from Yale Divinity School and Yale school of law. He visited work as a volunteer relief worker in Kenya, where he had taken classes within the University of Nairobi, later returning to the U.S. to figure for the Coalition for the Homeless in ny. He spent a while as a legal clerk in ny before returning to Delaware in 1996, where he spent eight years as in-house counsel for a materials manufacturing company. within the interim he worked for several nonprofit organizations.

Coons served as president of the New Castle administration from 2001 to 2005 and county executive of latest Castle County from 2005 to 2010. He balanced the county budget with a surplus in financial year 2010 by cutting spending and raising taxes, and therefore the county maintained a AAA evaluation . Coons contested the 2010 Senate special election for Delaware. He defeated the Republican nominee, Christine ODonnell, to succeed Ted Kaufman, who had been appointed to the seat when Joe Biden resigned to become vice chairman of the us . He was elected to a term in 2014. Coons is that the chair of the Senate ethics panel. His other committee assignments include Appropriations, Foreign Relations, Judiciary, and little Business and Entrepreneurship. He previously served as ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on African Affairs and therefore the refore the Judiciary Subcommittee on Bankruptcy and the Courts.

Coons was the co-chair for the 2019 National Prayer Breakfast. He previously co-chaired the 2017 National Prayer Breakfast, and co-chairs the weekly Senate Prayer Breakfast. The ny Times called Coons an "effective" emissary of Joe Biden to former and current Republican lawmakers in Bidens 2020 campaign for president.

Coons was born in Greenwich, Connecticut, the son of Sarah Louise "Sally" and Kenelm Winslow "Ken" Coons. His ancestry includes English and Irish. Coons grew up in Hockessin, Delaware, where he attended the general public Yorklyn grade school and later H.B. DuPont secondary school. His parents struggled financially and divorced within the mid 1970s. He and his two brothers lived with their mother for a couple of years until 1977, when his mother married Robert W. Gore, the President of W. L. Gore and Associates.

He graduated from the private Tower Hill School then Amherst College in 1985 with a Bachelor of Arts in chemistry and politics . While in college, he was a member of Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity and a U.S. Senate intern. In 1983, Coons was awarded the Truman Scholarship. During his junior year of school , he studied abroad at the University of Nairobi in Kenya through St. Lawrence Universitys Kenya Semester Program. In 1992, he earned a academic degree in ethics from Yale Divinity School and a J.D. degree from Yale school of law . In 2018, Delaware State University named Coons as an Honorary Doctor in Humane Letters.

In 1999, he was awarded the Governors Outstanding Volunteer Award for his work with the "I Have a Dream" Foundation, the Governors Mentoring Council, and therefore the United Way of Delaware.

Chris Coons Net Worth

Chris Coons Net Worth is $8.94 Million.

Chris Coons Family

Coons was born in Greenwich, Connecticut, the son of Sarah Louise "Sally" and Kenelm Winslow "Ken" Coons. His ancestry includes English and Irish. Coons grew up in Hockessin, Delaware, where he attended the general public Yorklyn grade school and later H.B. DuPont secondary school. His parents struggled financially and divorced within the mid 1970s. He and his two brothers lived with their mother for a couple of years until 1977, when his mother married Robert W. Gore, the President of W. L. Gore and Associates.

Coons is married to the previous Annie Lingenfelter. they need three children, twins Mike and Jack, and daughter Maggie, and that they sleep in Wilmington, Delaware. Coons is Presbyterian, his wife is Catholic, and that they attend St. Anns Roman Catholic Church within the city. Coons describes himself as "someone who is, privately, fairly religious," though he has never thought "that must be an enormous a part of campaigning."

Chris Coons Wife and Children

Coons is married to the previous Annie Lingenfelter. they need three children, twins Mike and Jack, and daughter Maggie, and that they sleep in Wilmington, Delaware. Coons is Presbyterian, his wife is Catholic, and that they attend St. Anns Roman Catholic Church within the city. Coons describes himself as "someone who is, privately, fairly religious," though he has never thought "that must be an enormous a part of campaigning."

Chris Coons Career and Achievement

After college, Coons worked in Washington, D.C., for the Investor Responsibility research facility , where he wrote a book on South Africa and therefore the U.S. divestment movement. He then worked as a volunteer for the South African Council of Churches and as a relief worker in Kenya, before returning to the U.S. to figure for the National Coalition for the Homeless in ny . In 1992, he earned a J.D. degree from Yale school of law , and a academic degree in ethics from Yale Divinity School.

Coons clerked for Judge Jane Richards Roth on the us Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, then worked for the National "I Have a Dream" Foundation in ny. After returning to Delaware in 1996, Coons began his eight-year career as in-house counsel for W.L. Gore & Associates, Inc., Newark, Delaware-based makers of Gore-Tex fabrics and other high-tech materials. There he was liable for the ethics educational program , federal relations, e-commerce legal work, and for general commercial contracting.

He has also worked for several nonprofits, including the Coalition for the Homeless, the education-oriented "I Have a Dream" Foundation, and therefore the South African Council of Churches. Coons has served on several boards including Delaware Innovation, the Bear/Glasgow Boys & Girls Club, and therefore the Delaware College of Art & Design.

Coons is on the Board of Selectors of Jefferson Awards for Public Service.

Coons first became involved in politics performing on behalf of Republican politicians. As a 17-year-old, in 1980, he independently campaigned for Ronald Reagans presidential run. He also worked on Bill Roths U.S. senate race in 1982. During college, he switched from being a Republican to a Democrat and in 1988, Coons became the problems director for the U.S. senate race of Democratic Delaware Lt. Gov. Shien Biau Woo. He was a delegate from Wilmington to the 1996 Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

His first elected office was president of the New Castle administration, elected in 2000 and serving four years before being elected county executive in 2004. He was the endorsed candidate of the New Castle County Democratic Party in 2008, and was re-nominated by the party on September 9, 2008. Coons was re-elected on November 4, 2008, unopposed within the election . In his six years in office as county executive, Coons balanced the budget with a surplus in financial year 2010 by cutting spending and raising taxes. As New Castle county executive, Coons raised taxes despite having campaigned on a promise to not increase them. New Castle County maintained a AAA evaluation throughout his tenure.

U.S. Senate

Elections

2010

Coons ran within the 2010 special election for the U.S. Senate seat then held by Democrat Ted Kaufman, who was appointed after Joe Biden resigned to require office as vice chairman . Kaufman had been appointed as a placeholder, and didnt run within the special election. Coons was unopposed within the Democratic primary, and expected to face Republican Congressman and former Governor Mike Castle within the election . He was considered a decided underdog in thanks to Castles moderate profile and longstanding popularity within the state, but the dynamics of the race were significantly altered when Christine ODonnell, a considerably more conservative Republican who had been Bidens opponent in 2008, upset Castle within the Republican primary.

In the first post-primary polls, Rasmussen Reports showed Coons with a double-digit lead over ODonnell, describing this as a "remarkable turnaround" as long as the race had leaned Republican before ODonnells primary victory. within the first week of October, Fairleigh Dickinson Universitys PublicMind Poll showed Coons with a 17-point lead, 53%-36%, over ODonnell, which 85% of self-identified Democratic voters had united behind Coons, while only 68% of Republican voters endorsed ODonnell. Days before the election, a second Fairleigh Dickinson poll showed Coons leading 57% to 36% among likely voters, and 72% to twenty among voters who described themselves as moderates. As polls closed at 8 p.m. Eastern civil time , multiple news sources announced that Coons had defeated ODonnell supported poll data. Final results gave Coons on the brink of a 17-point margin over ODonnell, with 56.6% of the vote to her 40%.

During the campaign, an issue arose about a piece of writing Coons wrote in 1985 for his college newspaper titled "Chris Coons: The Making of a Bearded Marxist". In it, he described his transformation from a Republican to what Fox News described as a "Democrat suspicious of Americas power and ideals." Dave Hoffman, a Coons campaign spokesman, said the title of the article was designed as a humorous take-off on a joke Coonss college friends had made about how his time outside the country had affected his outlook. "After witnessing crushing poverty and therefore the consequences of the Reagan Administrations constructive engagement with the South African apartheid regime, he rethought his politics , returned to the America he loved and proudly registered as a Democrat," Hoffman said during a statement to Politico.

According to Fox News, Coons was "targeted by Republicans" over the 25-year-old piece. Coons downplayed the article, also as controversial past statements by ODonnell, saying that voters were curious about current issues like job creation and therefore the debt and not "particularly curious about statements that either folks made 20 or 30 years ago." David Weigel wrote in Slate, "If the party Express slings the bearded Marxist nonsense, I doubt itll work."

2014

Coons was elected to his first term by defeating Republican challenger Kevin Wade and Green Party candidate Andrew Gross on November 4, 2014. Wade, an engineer and businessman, also ran against U.S. Senator Tom Carper in 2012. Coons won 55.8% of the favored vote (130,655 to Wades 98,823 and to Groffs 4,560).

2020

In the 2020 Democratic primary, Coons easily defeated technology executive Jessica Scarane, a progressive challenger endorsed by groups like fresh Congress. within the election, Coons faced Republican nominee Lauren Witzke, a controversial conservative activist and conspiracy theorist calling for a ten-year immigration moratorium. Coons and Witzke took part during a digital debate hosted by the Jewish Federation of Delaware, during which they debated the merits lately Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and therefore the Black Lives Matter movement, also as Witzkes comments about the QAnon conspiracy theory. within the November election, Coons defeated Witzke, 59-38%.

Tenure

2010s

On November 15, 2010, Coons was sworn in as Delawares newest senator by vice chairman Joe Biden, the previous occupant of Coonss Senate seat. Joe Manchin of West Virginia was sworn in on an equivalent day, though he took a plus in seniority over Coons, because the former governor of West Virginia.

The Affordable Care Act (commonly called Obamacare) had already been passed when Coons took office, but he has voted against repealing it, emphasizing that seniors in Delaware would need to pay higher prescription prices if it had been repealed. during a May 8, 2017, appearance on Morning Joe, Coons predicted the ultimate product of the Republican health care bill wouldnt be produced until after the 2018 midterm elections. In September 2017, Coons said the Graham-Cassidy bill, meant to exchange the Affordable Care Act, would be playing "Russian roulette with the American health care system."

On abortion, Coons has received a 100% rating from the Planned Parenthood Action Fund and a 0% rating from the National Right to Life Committee.

In June 2013, after the death of Democratic Senator Frank Lautenberg of latest Jersey, Coons was appointed to his seat on the influential Appropriations Committee, becoming the primary senator from Delaware to serve on the committee in 40 years. As a result, he gave up his seat on the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.

In October 2013, Coons announced the formation of the inaugural Senate Chicken Caucus within the us Senate. He stated, "I hope that the Senate Chicken Caucus will give Americas chicken producers a platform to raised inform legislators about the industrys vital contributions to our economy, and promote policy solutions that help their businesses grow and thrive."

On December 11, 2013, Coons introduced the Victims of kid Abuse Act Reauthorization Act of 2013 (S. 1799; 113th Congress), a bill that might reauthorize the Victims of kid Abuse Act of 1990 and would authorize funding through 2018 to assist maltreatment victims. Coons said that "we have a responsibility to guard our youngsters from violence and abuse."

In March 2014, Coons voted against President Obamas nomination of civil rights lawyer Debo Adegbile for Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights, albeit he believed that Adegbile would are "an asset to the Department of Justice ." He stated that voting for a nominee "who would face such visceral opposition from enforcement on his first day on the job" was troubling and therefore the vote was "one of the foremost difficult I even have taken since joining the Senate". Obama described the Senates vote against Adegbile as "a travesty supported wildly unfair character attacks against an honest and qualified employee ." An letter to Coons from students, faculty and alumni of the Yale Law and Divinity Schools, of which Coons is an alumnus, criticized his vote as "alarm[ing]" and "signal[ing] a scarcity of respect for the elemental American judicial principle that each one parties have a right to zealous representation."

Coons was mentioned as a possible replacement for the late Justice Antonin Scalia in February 2016.

In April 2017, after President Trump tweeted that North Korea had "disrespected the needs of China & its highly respected President" with a recent missile launch, Coons said Trump understood China was his sole "constructive path forward on North Korea" but that diplomacy wouldnt run through tweeting.

In July 2017, Coons voted in favor of the Countering Americas Adversaries Through Sanctions Act that placed sanctions on Iran along side Russia and North Korea.

In April 2018, following the FBI raid on the bedroom and offices of Trumps personal attorney, Michael Cohen, Coons, Cory Booker, Lindsey Graham, and Thom Tillis introduced new legislation to "limit President Trumps ability to fireside special counsel Robert Mueller". Termed the Special Counsel Independence and Integrity Act, the legislation would allow any special counsel, during this case Mueller, receive an "expedited judicial review" within the 10 days following being dismissed to work out whether the dismissal was appropriate. If not, the special counsel would be reinstated. At an equivalent time, consistent with Capitol Hill , the bill would "codify regulations" that a special counsel might be fired only by a senior Department of Justice official, while having to supply reasons in writing.

2020s

In November 2020, Coons was named a candidate for Secretary of State within the Biden Administration. Biden ultimately chose Antony Blinken to steer the State Department, telling Coons, "I need you within the Senate." Coons is seen as among President Bidens closest allies within the Senate and is poised to broker political power during Bidens presidency.

During the 2021 storming of the us Capitol, Coons was evacuated from the Senate chambers, along side other Senators and staff. He said there have been "some scary and chaotic moments" during the attack. When the Senate reconvened to certify the body vote count, Coons involved Trumps removal, saying he "poses a true and present threat to the longer term of our democracy". He involved the invocation of the Twenty-Fifth Amendment to the us Constitution the day after the event on morning America. that very same day, January 7, he involved Republicans Josh Hawley and Ted Cruz, who both supported the insurrection, to resign from the Senate.