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Jeremiah Wilson " Jay" Nixon (born February 13, 1956) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 55th governor of Missouri from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 40th Missouri Attorney General from 1993 to 2009 and as a Missouri state senator from 1987 to 1993.
Born and raised in the city of De Soto, Nixon attended the University of Missouri and graduated with a degree in political science. He first entered politics at age 30 after he was elected to the Missouri Senate to represent Jefferson County. After an unsuccessful campaign for the U.S. Senate, he was elected Missouri Attorney General in 1992 and reelected in 1996. Following another failed U.S. Senate bid, he was reelected attorney general twice more in 2000 and 2004, serving a total of four terms, the longest tenure for an attorney general in state history.
In 2008, Nixon was elected governor in a landslide victory over Republican congressman Kenny Hulshof, and he was reelected in 2012. He was term limited in 2016 and was succeeded by Republican Eric Greitens. As of 2024, he is the most recent Democrat to serve as the governor of Missouri. After leaving public office he joined the Dowd Bennett law firm in St. Louis.
Nixon graduated with honors from the University of Missouri with a degree in political science. Senator to seek office. The Star-Herald. October 15, 1987. He worked at various construction jobs before receiving his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Missouri School of Law.Lindecke, Fred W. (April 19, 1988). Nixon Tests Oratory At Jackson Day Rally. St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
In April 1987, Nixon expressed interest in running for the United States Senate in the 1988 election. Some members of the Missouri Democratic Party considered him a worthy candidate, given his upset victory for the state senate, but some remained critical of his lack of political experience. Nixon made his decision official when he announced his candidacy on October 6.Lindecke, Fred W. (October 7, 1987). Jay Nixon Files To Run Against Danforth In '88. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. He was endorsed by the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare (NCPSSM); Nixon welcomed the endorsement, but opponents criticized him for accepting an endorsement from a group "that has been roundly condemned by Missouri newspapers for using scare tactics and misleading information".Ball, Karen (June 25, 1988). Nixon backing prompts assault. Columbia Daily Tribune. Nixon lost the general election to Republican incumbent John Danforth by a wide margin. During the campaign, Danforth outspent Nixon 5–1 through Political Action Committees (PACs). Wretched Campaign Excesses. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. November 11, 1988.
In 1989, Nixon sponsored a bill that would mandate businesses with at least 25 employees to give pregnant workers maternity leave, but the Senate voted 17–16 against the bill. Leave Bill Backed For Maternity. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. March 8, 1989. CAPITAL BRIEFS. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. March 16, 1989. Nixon re-introduced the legislation in 1990, and although the Senate approved the bill,Young, Virginia (May 27, 1990). Bill Gives Leaves To Mothers. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Governor John Ashcroft vetoed it. Ashcroft vetoes maternity leave measure. The Kansas City Star. July 14, 1990. Nixon was reelected in November 1990, defeating Richard Ford, a Republican from Cedar Hill.Mosley, Jim (November 7, 1990). Shneider, Drick, McCarthy, Nixon Re-elected. St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
In 1998, Nixon again unsuccessfully ran for the U.S. Senate, losing in the general election to Kit Bond. During his tenure as Attorney General, Nixon oversaw the state's involvement in the court settlements that ended mandatory urban busing in St. Louis and Kansas City's public schools. Nixon opposed the states desegregation programs, arguing that it would be a drain on states resources. This angered African-American leaders in the state, who refused to endorse him. Bond, a Republican, would go on to win a third of black voters, per exit polling.
During the 2000 election season, Nixon filed a writ of prohibition to prevent Edward Joseph Manley III, a candidate for Jefferson County sheriff, from appearing on the Democratic primary ballot. He argued that Manley's 1980 conviction for assault disqualified him from running for the position as per state law. Nixon wants felon removed from ballot. Columbia Daily Tribune. April 30, 2000. Circuit court judge M. E. Williams, who had overseen the charges against Manley, ruled in favor of Nixon and removed Manley from appearing on the ballot.Rowden, Tim (May 8, 2000). Judge orders sheriff candidate Manley off the primary ballot. St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Nixon argued to reinstate Missouri's campaign contribution limits to the United States Supreme Court in Nixon v. Shrink (2000), which was successful on his part.
In 2003, Nixon filed lawsuits against EchoStar and Xentel, two out-of-state businesses that allegedly made telemarketing calls to Missouri residents in violation of the state's "no call law". Suits filed under no-call law against two firms. The Springfield News-Leader. August 28, 2003.Suhr, Jim (August 28, 2003). Missouri sues Florida company, alleging violations of no-call law. The Naples Daily News. Associated Press. The following year, a state judge ordered Xentel to pay $75,000 to the state of Missouri, which they did. However, the company continued to call consumers within the state. In 2008, Xentel agreed to settle the lawsuit and paid Missouri $80,000. Firm will pay $80,000 on Missouri No-Call law. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. February 5, 2008.
The Missouri Information Analysis Center (MIAC) issued a report titled "The Modern Militia Movement" on February 20, 2009, informing the Missouri State Highway Patrol of several groups of people who could possibly be linked to domestic militia groups. According to the report, these groups included white Christians, supporters of third-party presidential candidates Ron Paul, Bob Barr, and Chuck Baldwin, as well as opponents of gun control, illegal immigration, abortion, the Federal Reserve System, and the Internal Revenue Service. Following a joint letter from Paul, Barr, and Baldwin condemning the report, Nixon and the MIAC issued an apology concerning the report and stated that it will no longer be displayed on any official state websites.
Nixon won the Democratic nomination on August 5, the same day Kenny Hulshof won the Republican nomination.Young, Virginia (August 7, 2008), Hulshof, Nixon promise change, St. Louis Post-Dispatch Pre-election polling showed Nixon regularly leading Hulshof, and he eventually opened up a 20-point lead two days before the election. Public Policy Polling On November 4, Nixon defeated Hulshof by a margin of 19 points. The election coincided with the 2008 presidential election, and despite Nixon's landslide win, Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama lost Missouri to Republican John McCain.
Nixon took office amid the Great Recession, and to combat this he focused on creating jobs, investing in education, and strengthening the state's economy while keeping the budget in balance. In January 2009, Nixon proposed keeping the same funding level to public universities on behalf of the schools not increasing their tuition fees, which was generally met favorably.Tang, Didi (January 24, 2009). MSU applauds Nixon decision about funding. The Springfield News-Leader. Nixon also negotiated four tuition freezes for students at public higher education institutions.
In July 2009, Nixon traveled to Iraq after the Department of Defense invited him to meet with U.S. soldiers. For security reasons, he did not disclose which military base he was staying at, other than it was in Kuwait.Livengood, Chad (July 20, 2009). Nixon makes surprise Iraq trip. The Springfield News-Leader. He traveled to Germany that same month before returning to Missouri on July 22. State's top 3 leaders now out of state. The Springfield News-Leader. July 22, 2009. Upon taking office, Nixon "began cutting spending almost immediately and has made repeated reductions to the budgets passed by the Legislature in subsequent years." In 2010, Nixon was called the state's budget "cutter-in-chief" by the Associated Press for his efforts to reduce spending and right-size state government. Some of Nixon's budget restrictions drew criticism and in 2011 Missouri State Auditor Tom Schweich filed suit arguing that Nixon lacked the constitutional authority to restrict spending. Schweich's lawsuit was dismissed by the Missouri Supreme Court in 2013 but the following year the Missouri General Assembly passed and voters approved Amendment 10, granting legislators the ability to overrule a governor's budget restrictions.
Nixon drew praise for his handling of EF-5 tornado that struck Joplin on May 22, 2011. The Associated Press in 2011 called him "a ubiquitous commander of disasters."
Aiming to revitalize the state's automotive manufacturing industry, Nixon created an Automotive Jobs Task Force and in 2011 called a special session of the General Assembly to pass the Missouri Manufacturing Jobs Act. On October 21, 2011 Ford confirmed that it would make a $1.1 billion investment in its Kansas City Assembly Plant and add 1,600 jobs at the facility. On November 4, 2011 General Motors announced plans for a $380 million investment in its Wentzville plant outside St. Louis. The St. Louis Post Dispatch editorialized that "key to both Ford and GM agreeing to expand in the state were incentives championed in last year's Legislative special session by Gov. Jay Nixon, a Democrat, and the then-leaders of the House and Senate, Ron Richard and Charlie Shields, both Republicans."
Nixon's second term came with crisis following the August 9, 2014, shooting death of 18-year-old Michael Brown by Darren Wilson, a police officer with the Ferguson police department. Brown's death sparked Ferguson unrest throughout the city. Nixon declared a state of emergency on November 17 and called in the National Guard to help restore peace and order. However, the violence continued after Wilson was not indicted by a grand jury. On November 27, Nixon reportedly rejected calls for a new grand jury to decide whether to charge Wilson over Brown's killing. His gubernatorial , which were routinely in the 50s, fell dramatically during the crisis, and by December his approval rating stood at just 28 percent.Kraske, Steve (December 6, 2014). POLITICAL NUMBERS SPEAK VOLUMES. The Kansas City Star.
Following the death of State Auditor Tom Schweich, Nixon appointed Boone County Treasurer Nicole Galloway to fill the post in 2015. Galloway later won a full term as state auditor in the 2018 general election. On August 2, 2016, Michael Barrett, director of the Missouri State Public Defender System, called on Nixon to act as a public defender in a criminal assault case. Nixon's communications director, Scott Holste, questioned the authority of Barrett to do so. The appointment followed a July 2016 legal action in which Barrett et al. challenged the constitutionality of restricting funds for indigent defense.
In an open letter to Nixon, Barrett cited Missouri Revised Statues Section 600.042.5(1) as well as the 6th and 14th amendments to the United States Constitution as reasons for the controversial action. Barrett blamed Nixon for the underfunding and understaffing of the public defender system and chose to appoint him because he was "the one attorney in the state who not only created the problem, but is in a unique position to address it." According to Barrett, the funding for "resources that assist with delivering legal services" had increased between 5 and 6% since 2009, while costs over the same period had increased 18%. The case load had increased over 12% in the past year. According to a 2008 report by the National Legal Aid & Defender Association, Missouri ranks 49th in per capita legal aid spending. Ruth Petsch, Jackson County Missouri's chief public defender, cited the lack of funding for inadequate defense and 9 to 12 month delays in adjudication for indigent persons who often remain in jail and are unable to maintain active employment during that time.
From November 2015 to November 2016, Missouri added 57,100 jobs, more than all eight of its neighboring states.
Nixon represented televangelist Jim Bakker in his lawsuit filed by Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt for allegedly selling false cures for the 2019-20 strains of coronavirus.
Nixon was seen as a potential candidate for the U.S. Senate election in 2022, with support from national party leaders such as Chuck Schumer. Ultimately, Nixon declined to run.
In 2023, Nixon was recruited by the organization No Labels to secure ballot access in all 50 states.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± |
| Democratic | Jay Nixon (incumbent) | 270,140 | 85.99 | |
| Democratic | William Campbell | 25,775 | 8.20 | |
| Democratic | Clay Thunderhawk | 18,243 | 5.81 |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± |
| Democratic | Jay Nixon | 304,181 | 85.0 | |
| Democratic | Daniel Carroll | 53,835 | 15.0 |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± |
| Democratic | Jay Nixon | 200,339 | 66.5 | |
| Democratic | James Askew | 57,364 | 19.1 | |
| Democratic | Daniel Dodson | 19,257 | 6.4 | |
| Democratic | Bob Buck | 14,774 | 4.9 | |
| Democratic | Andrew Ostrowski | 9,389 | 3.1 |
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