John Hickenlooper

**John Wright Hickenlooper** (born February 7, 1952) is an American politician. He is the junior United States Senator from Colorado since 2021. He was the 42nd Governor of Colorado from January 11, 2011 to January 8, 2019. Hickenlooper is a Democrat. He was the mayor of Denver, Colorado from 2003 to 2011.

Hickenlooper announced his candidacy for President of the United States on March 4, 2019. He ended his campaign on August 15, 2019. A few days later, he announced his candidacy for the United States Senate challenging incumbent Senator Cory Gardner. In June 2020, he won the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate race. In November 2020, he won the election. At 68, Hickenlooper became the oldest first-term senator to represent Colorado.

## Early life, education and career

Hickenlooper was born in Narberth, Pennsylvania. He was raised by his mother after his father died young.  He is a graduate of Wesleyan University. At Wesleyan, he earned a B.A. in English in 1974 and a master’s degree in geology in 1980.

Before becoming mayor in July 2003, he was a geologist and then a businessperson. Hickenlooper owned several restaurants in the late 1980s. He was one of the founders of the original Wynkoop Brewing Company brewpub. This was the first brewpub in Colorado.

### Campaign for the homeless

Hickenlooper has wanted more homeless services since becoming mayor in 2003. He talked about his "10 year plan to end homelessness" at the U.S. Conference of Mayors in Washington, D.C..

### Marijuana legalization

In 2006, Denver became the first major American city to make legal the private use of marijuana by people over age 21. Hickenlooper was against the marijuana legalization initiative. When the voters approved it 53.49%-46.51%, he said that the vote "reflect[s] a genuine shift in people's attitudes." Currently the Denver Police say the initiative does not overrule the state law, the Colorado Revised Statutes (CRS). Hickenlooper agrees with the Denver Police. The CRS currently treats marijuana possession much like driving faster than the speed limit. The penalty is fines of up to $100 and no jail time.

## 2020 presidential campaign

Hickenlooper formally announced his candidacy for President of the United States on March 4, 2019. He released a campaign video titled “Standing Tall”. Before announcing his campaign, Hickenlooper was widely seen as a possible candidate for President in 2020. Hickenlooper formally launched his campaign on March 7, 2019 in Denver. After failing to obtain over 1% in polls, Hickenlooper dropped out of the race on August 15, 2019.

## 2020 Senate run

In August 2019, it was revealed that Hickenlooper ended his presidential bid to run for the United States Senate in 2020 against incumbent Senator Cory Gardner. In a poll for potential Democratic candidates for the Colorado Senate, Hickenlooper was the front-runner with 61%. On August 22, 2019, Hickenlooper announced his candidacy for the Senate. In June 2020, he won the Democratic nomination. On November 3, 2020, Hickenlooper was declared the winner of the Senate race.

## Personal life

Hickenlooper's ex-wife, Helen Thorpe, is a writer. Her work has been published in _The New Yorker_, _New York Times Magazine_, _George_, and _Texas Monthly_. They lived in Denver's Park Hill neighborhood with their son, Teddy. Hickenlooper told the _Philadelphia Inquirer_ that he and Thorpe attend Quaker meetings and try to live by Quaker values.

## Other websites

- Hickenlooper for Governor  _official campaign site_
- Profile at CityMayors.com

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## Infobox (officeholder)

- **image**: John Hickenlooper, official portrait, 117th Congress.jpeg
- **jr/sr**: United States Senator
- **state**: Colorado
- **term start**: January 3, 2021
- **alongside**: Michael Bennet
- **predecessor**: Cory Gardner
- **order1**: 42nd Governor of Colorado
- **lieutenant1**: Joseph García (U.S. politician), Joe García
Donna Lynne
- **term start1**: January 11, 2011
- **term end1**: January 8, 2019
- **predecessor1**: Bill Ritter
- **successor1**: Jared Polis
- **office2**: Chair of the National Governors Association
- **term start2**: July 13, 2014
- **term end2**: July 25, 2015
- **deputy2**: Gary Herbert
- **predecessor2**: Mary Fallin
- **successor2**: Gary Herbert
- **office3**: 43rd List of mayors of Denver, Mayor of Denver
- **term start3**: July 21, 2003
- **term end3**: January 11, 2011
- **predecessor3**: Wellington Webb
- **successor3**: Bill Vidal
- **birth name**: John Wright Hickenlooper Jr.
- **birth place**: Narberth, Pennsylvania, U.S.
- **party**: Democratic Party (United States), Democratic
- **spouse**:

- **children**: 1
- **relatives**: Andrew Hickenlooper (great-grandfather)
Bourke B. Hickenlooper (great-uncle)
George Hickenlooper (cousin)
- **education**: Wesleyan University (Bachelor of Arts, BA, Master of Science, MS)