| Since 1990 (18 years); also 1976-80 (total 22 years living in NC) |
|
Candidate Biography (submitted by campaign):
Dr. Michael Munger was born in Florida in 1958. He grew up on an orange farm, near what is now Disney World. But when he was growing up, there were only dirt roads, chickens, and lots of tractors.
Mike received his B. A. in Economics from Davidson College in 1980. He continued his studies at Washington University in St. Louis, MO, completing a PhD in Economics in 1984.
Following his graduate training, he worked as a staff economist at the Federal Trade Commission in the first Reagan Administration. His first teaching job was in the Economics Department at Dartmouth College, followed by appointments in the Political Science Department at the University of Texas (Austin, 1986-1990) and the University of North Carolina (Chapel Hill, 1990-7). At UNC, he served as Director of the Master of Public Administration Program, training city and county managers.
Dr. Munger moved to Duke in 1997, and was promoted to Full Professor in 2000. He also became chair of the Political Science Department in 2000, and still serves in that post. Mike also has joint appointments in the Economics and Public Policy departments at Duke. Prof. Munger's academic research has focused on the policy process, campaign finance, and regulation.
In addition to more than 80 articles and papers published in professional journals and edited volumes, Prof. Munger has published four books. The most recent is Analyzing Policy: Choices, Conflicts, and Practices (2000, W.W. Norton).
Mike is married to Donna Gingerella, a Raleigh attorney. They have two teenage boys. In his spare time, he has coached baseball and soccer, for ages 10 through 18. |
|
Candidate Statement:
I have spent much of my adult life preparing to administer the state of North Carolina, though I didn't realize that until about five years ago. North Carolina has been my home for more than 20 of my 50 years, and it is the greatest state in the Union. I want to give something back, and as Governor I have a lot to give.
While I was working at UNC-Chapel Hill, I served as Director of the Master of Public Administration Program, where I worked to develop tomorrow's leaders in city, county, state, and federal government positions. I have worked closely with a number of North Carolina government agencies and offices, and have a strong relationship with city and county managers around the state. As MPA Director, one of my jobs was to visit city or county administration offices, and talk with key officials about their needs, and the needs of their citizens.
A theme that often came up, when I talked to citizens and to city officials, was a sense of dissatisfaction with government. I can lead our government back toward its proper, limited role. My two main goals are two: First, I want to reform our system of education, by encouraging more choices for parents. Second, I want to restore our roads and infrastructure, taking power out of the hands of the few powerful developers and politicians that run it now, and returning power to the people.
|
