Margaret Farrow

Margaret A. Farrow (born November 28, 1934) is an American Republican politician who was the 42nd Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin (the first woman to hold the office), as well as serving in both houses of the state legislature. She was born and raised in Kenosha, Wisconsin, and attended Rosary College in River Forest, Illinois for one year before receiving her B.A. from Marquette University.[1][2] She is a former member of the UW System Board of Regents.[3]

Margaret Farrow
Member of the UW System Board of Regents
In office June 18, 2013 - December 7, 2017
Governor	Scott Walker
Preceded by	Judith Crane
42nd Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin
In office May 9, 2001 – January 6, 2003
Governor	Scott McCallum
Preceded by	Scott McCallum
Succeeded by	Barbara Lawton
Member of the Wisconsin State Senate from the 33rd District
In office January 2, 1989 – May 9, 2001
Preceded by	Susan Engeleiter
Succeeded by	Ted Kanavas
Member of the Wisconsin State Assembly from the 99th District
In office January 6, 1986 – January 2, 1989
Preceded by	John M. Young
Succeeded by	Frank Urban
Personal details
Born	(1934-11-28) November 28, 1934 Kenosha, Wisconsin, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	John Farrow
Profession	Teacher, Realtor

Career

Elected office (1971–2003)

Farrow served on the Elm Grove, Wisconsin Board of Appeals from 1971–1974 and the Village Board from 1976–1987, spending the last five years of her tenure as president. After her time with the Village Board, Farrow was elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly, and later the Wisconsin State Senate, from a district comprising most of Waukesha County, Wisconsin.[4][5] The first female lieutenant governor of Wisconsin, Farrow was appointed to the position after then-Lieutenant Governor Scott McCallum was elevated to the office of governor upon the departure of Gov. Tommy Thompson to join the administration of George W. Bush in January 2001.[6]

As Lieutenant Governor, she served as chair of the Governor's Work-Based Learning Board, co-chair of the Governor's Task Force on Invasive Species, and chair of the Wisconsin's Women's Council. Farrow authored and served as vice chair of the SAVE Commission and was appointed by Governor Tommy Thompson to serve on the Governor's Blue-Ribbon Commission on State-Local Partnerships for the 21st Century.[7] Farrow also served on the Governor's Blue Ribbon Task Force on Passenger Rail.[8]

McCallum and Farrow ran for a full four-year term in 2002, but their Republican ticket lost the race to Democrat Jim Doyle.[9][10]

Post-Lieutenant Governor

Farrow was publicly touted by Mark Neumann as the best candidate to take on Democrat Russ Feingold in 2004. Without putting her name forward for consideration, she won a straw poll at the 2003 Republican State Convention.[11] During the 2008 campaign, she was a member of the "Palin Truth Squad" for the McCain Campaign.[12]

She is chairman of the board of directors of WisconsinEye Public Affairs Network, Inc., which produces the Wisconsin equivalent of C-SPAN.[13] In 2010, WCAN (Waukesha County Action Network), the advocacy organization Farrow had created, combined with the Waukesha County Chamber of Commerce to create the Waukesha County Business Alliance, a county-wide chamber of commerce representing over 1,100 member businesses in southeastern Wisconsin. Farrow currently serves on the Board of Directors as well as the Policy Board of the Waukesha County Business Alliance.[14]

Farrow and her husband are now residents of Pewaukee, Wisconsin. In 2010, her son Paul Farrow was elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly and then to the Wisconsin State Senate in 2012.[15] In 2013, she was appointed by Governor Scott Walker to serve on the University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents.[16] On December 7, 2017, she announced her immediate retirement from the UW System Board of Regents, stepping down before her term expired in 2020.[3]

See also

• List of female lieutenant governors in the United States

References

1. "Margaret A. Farrow – University Honors – Marquette University". www.marquette.edu. Retrieved July 5, 2017.
2. "Farrow, Margaret A. 1934". Wisconsinhistory.org. Archived from the original on June 11, 2011. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
3. Herzog, Karen (December 7, 2017). "Former Lt. Gov. Margaret Farrow, 83, retiring from UW System Board of Regents". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved December 7, 2017.
4. "The State: The state of Wisconsin 1987–1988 blue book: Biographies and pictures". digicoll.library.wisc.edu. Retrieved July 5, 2017.
5. "Margaret Farrow". Wisconsin Public Radio. Retrieved July 5, 2017.
6. "Margaret Farrow". Urban Milwaukee. Retrieved July 5, 2017.
7. "UW-Platteville welcomes UW System Board of Regents member Farrow". Retrieved July 5, 2017.
8. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on November 7, 2014. Retrieved November 7, 2014.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
9. "CNN.com – Doyle wins Wisconsin governor's race – Nov. 6, 2002". edition.cnn.com. Retrieved July 5, 2017.
10. "James Doyle (Wisconsin) – Ballotpedia". Retrieved July 5, 2017.
11. Ruth Conniff. "July 4, 2003: The Patriot". The Isthmus, October 13, 2011. Accessed February 9, 2015.
12. Associated Press: Madison / Farrow named to 'Palin Truth Squad'. September 10, 2008.
13. "Login". www.wiseye.org. Retrieved July 5, 2017.
15. Jesse Garza (November 2, 2010). "Farrow wins in 98th Assembly District". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
16. Wendy Strong. "Farrow among Walker appointments to UW Board of Regents". Milwaukee Business Journal, June 11, 2013.

External links

• Appearances on C-SPAN

Political offices
Preceded by Scott McCallum	Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin 2001 – 2003	Succeeded by Barbara Lawton
Wisconsin State Senate
Preceded by Susan Engeleiter	Wisconsin State Senator – 33rd District 1989 – 2001	Succeeded by Ted Kanavas
Wisconsin State Assembly
Preceded by John M. Young	Wisconsin State Representative – 99th District 1986 – 1989	Succeeded by Frank Urban