Jeb Bush

Jeb Bush
Bush in 2015
43rd Governor of Florida
In office January 5, 1999 – January 2, 2007
Lieutenant	Frank Brogan Toni Jennings
Preceded by	Buddy MacKay
Succeeded by	Charlie Crist
Secretary of Commerce of Florida
In office January 6, 1987 – September 9, 1988
Governor	Bob Martinez
Preceded by	Wayne Mixson
Succeeded by	Bill Sutton
Personal details
Born	John Ellis Bush (1953-02-11) February 11, 1953 (age 71) Midland, Texas, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Columba Garnica Gallo ​ ​ (m. 1974)​
Children	3, including George
Parents	George H. W. Bush Barbara Bush
Relatives	Bush family
Alma mater	University of Texas, Austin (BA)
Occupation	Politician author philanthropist real estate developer businessman
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This article is part of a series about Jeb Bush
Political positions Electoral history Governor of Florida Elections 1994 1998 2002 Governorship Terri Schiavo case Presidential campaign 2016 presidential campaign primaries Act of Love Right to Rise Immigration Wars
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John Ellis "Jeb" Bush (born February 11, 1953) is an American politician and businessman who served as the 43rd governor of Florida from 1999 to 2007. A member of the Bush political family, he was an unsuccessful candidate for president of the United States in the 2016 Republican primaries.

Bush, who grew up in Houston, was the second son of former President George H. W. Bush and former First Lady Barbara Bush, and a younger brother of former President George W. Bush. He graduated from Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, and attended the University of Texas at Austin, where he earned a degree in Latin American affairs. In 1980, he moved to Florida and pursued a career in real estate development. In 1986, Bush became Florida's Secretary of Commerce. He served until 1988. At that time, he joined his father's successful campaign for the Presidency.

In 1994, Bush made his first run for office, losing the election for governor by less than two percentage points to the incumbent Lawton Chiles. Bush ran again in 1998 and defeated lieutenant governor Buddy MacKay with 55 percent of the vote. He ended up succeeding MacKay after Chiles died in office 23 days shy of his retirement. He ran for reelection in 2002, defeating Bill McBride and winning with 56 percent, to become Florida's first two-term Republican governor. During his eight years as governor, Bush pushed an ambitious Everglades conservation plan, supported caps for medical malpractice litigation, launched a Medicaid privatization pilot program, and instituted reforms to the state education system, including the issuance of vouchers and promoting school choice.

Bush announced his presidential candidacy on June 15, 2015. He suspended his campaign on February 20, 2016, shortly after the South Carolina primary, and endorsed Senator Ted Cruz on March 23, 2016.