Marian Orr

Marian Orr (born 1970) is an American politician who is the current mayor of Cheyenne, Wyoming, and is the first woman to serve in that post.[1][2][3]

Marian Orr
55th Mayor of Cheyenne, Wyoming
Assumed office
January 3, 2017
Preceded byRick Kaysen
Personal details
Born1970 (age 49–50)
Casper, Wyoming, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Children2
EducationUniversity of Wyoming (BA)

Early life

Orr graduated from the University of Wyoming with a degree in communications in 1992.[4]

Career

She was elected mayor of Cheyenne in 2016 with 56% of the vote.[5]

Broadband internet

As mayor she has gained national attention for her efforts to bring high-speed broadband internet to parts of Cheyenne without access.[6] She successfully sought to have the fees normally charged by the city government for public right-of-way access suspended.[7] Orr pushed for a bill in the state legislature which would have provided funding for municipalities to set up publicly owned ISPs.[8] However, after input from internet company lobbyists, the language of the bill was changed to only fund public-private partnerships, basically ensuring that municipalities would not be able to get funding from the bill.[8] Telecom companies have an interest in preventing competition from publicly owned internet which likely would be cheaper.[8] After hearing how the bill was modified, Mayor Orr pledged to keep fighting to get public internet for Cheyenne.[8]

Controversy over meeting with Governor

Orr received national coverage when she met with the Governor of Wyoming, Mark Gordon over a proposed visit from a Taiwanese delegation. She accused him of swearing at her saying “F--- you, mayor” and using “his physical presence in an aggressive and threatening manner”.[9] Gordon had wanted to cancel the visit, however Orr proposed keeping it.[10] Gordon called Orr to apologize for his language but stated publicly that her claims about his physical behavior were mischaracterized.[11][12] Orr stated that the reason she felt she had to publicize the Governor's behavior was that "(w)e can't be silent to bad behavior from men treating women that way. It's unacceptable."[13]

Personal life

She is married to journalist Jimmy Orr. He served as White House Internet Director from 2001-2004.[14] On December 20, 2019, Orr’s husband was arrested on suspicion of domestic violence against her. As of December 24, 2019 he had been released from custody of the Laramie County jail and charged with domestic battery. As a condition of his bond release, he is not allowed to have any contact with her or to go within one block of their residence.[15]

gollark: The electoral college? No.
gollark: Obamium?
gollark: That's hardly a few. I don't think there are good replacements for fossil fuel-type things for planes right now.
gollark: Well, it seems like you just claimed to before.
gollark: What are you defining as "few" here?

References
  1. "Biography | Cheyenne, WY - Official Website". www.cheyennecity.org. Retrieved 2019-08-17.
  2. Gruver, Mead (2019-06-03). "Wyoming mayor: Governor cursed, slammed fists in meeting". AP NEWS. Retrieved 2019-08-17.
  3. Ballard, Caroline. "Two Women Vie To Become Cheyenne's First Female Mayor". www.wyomingpublicmedia.org. Retrieved 2019-08-17.
  4. "Cheyenne's First Female Mayor | April 2017 | Vol. 18, No. 3". www.uwyo.edu. Retrieved 2019-08-17.
  5. Ballard, Caroline. "Marian Orr Wins Cheyenne Mayoral Race". www.wyomingpublicmedia.org. Retrieved 2019-08-17.
  6. "Mayor Proposes Fiber Optic Fee Moratorium in Cheyenne, Wyo". www.govtech.com. Retrieved 2019-08-17.
  7. Watson, Tennessee. "Competition Will Increase Internet Speed And Reliability, Says Cheyenne Task Force". www.wyomingpublicmedia.org. Retrieved 2019-08-17.
  8. Rogers, Kaleigh (2018-03-12). "Big Telecom Convinced Wyoming's Politicians to Rewrite a Community Broadband Bill". Vice. Retrieved 2019-08-17.
  9. Gruver, Mead (2019-06-03). "Wyoming mayor: Governor cursed, slammed fists in meeting". AP NEWS. Retrieved 2019-08-17.
  10. "Tsai's US visits keep Taiwan in spotlight and send message to Beijing". South China Morning Post. 2019-07-20. Retrieved 2019-08-17.
  11. Gruver, Mead (2019-06-03). "Wyoming mayor: Governor cursed, slammed fists in meeting". AP NEWS. Retrieved 2019-08-17.
  12. "Wyoming governor accused of screaming "F--k you, mayor" at female Republican". Washington Examiner. 2019-06-04. Retrieved 2019-08-17.
  13. Beck, Bob. "Cheyenne Mayor Accuses Governor Of Intimidating Behavior". www.wyomingpublicmedia.org. Retrieved 2019-08-17.
  14. "Jimmy Orr, White House Internet Director, 2001-2004 (Text Only)". georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov. Retrieved 2019-08-17.
  15. https://www.laramieboomerang.com/news/cheyenne-mayor-s-husband-pleads-not-guilty-to-domestic-battery/article_3ffa7651-c7e7-5799-b51d-1bd90b2239b3.html. Missing or empty |title= (help)
Political offices
Preceded by
Rick Kaysen		 Mayor of Cheyenne
2017–present		 Incumbent
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