Robert Lee Holden Jr. (born August 24, 1949) is an American politician who served as the 53rd Governor of Missouri from 2001 to 2005. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the State Treasurer of Missouri from 1993 to 2001 and represented the 136th district in the Missouri House of Representatives from 1983 to 1989. Since leaving public office, Holden has worked at Webster University, where he founded the Holden Public Policy Forum, and serves as the president and chairman of the United States Heartland China Association.
Early life
Even though he was born in Kansas City, Missouri, on August 24, 1949, Holden was raised on a farm near Birch Tree. He attended a one-room school and earned his bachelor's degree in political science at Missouri State University (then known as Southwest Missouri State), where he was a member of the Alpha Phi Omega service fraternity. He also attended the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, where he took courses specifically tailored for government executives. Holden met his wife Lori Hauser during his first campaign for the Missouri General Assembly and together, they have two boys, Robert and John D.
His brother, Calvin Ray Holden, is a Greene County Circuit Court judge.
Political career
From 1975 to 1981, Holden worked in the office of State Treasurer James Spainhower, and worked on Spainhower's 1980 campaign for Governor. From 1983 to 1989, Holden was a member of the Missouri House of Representatives. During his tenure, he became chair of the appropriations committee. In January of 1988, he announced his campaign for State Treasurer of Missouri against incumbent Republican Wendell Bailey. Holden's race was considered to be one of the few potentially competitive races for Democrats that year, and Bailey was seen as the most vulnerable Republican up that year. Holden lost by over 40,000 votes in a close contest. After this loss, Holden worked as the chief of staff to U.S. Congressman Dick Gephardt. In 1992, Holden made another bid, and this time was successful. Holden served as State Treasurer from 1993 to 2001.
Governor of Missouri
In the 2000 election, Holden was expected to face a tough primary against Lieutenant Governor Roger B. Wilson. But in March of 1998, Wilson declined a bid, mostly to spend more time with family, but also due to fundraising troubles against Holden. Holden narrowly defeated Republican Congressman Jim Talent.
Holden was inaugurated as governor in January 2001. His inauguration was the most elaborate and expensive in state history. The ceremony cost $1 million, of which $125,000 was paid from state government funds. Months after, there was still a remaining debt of $417,000. Although Holden's inauguration ceremony received public financing equal to that of Missouri's previous two Governors, a perception that the inauguration was overly extravagant emerged and became a theme in opposition to his administration.
Not long after his inauguration, Holden faced a challenge from the new legislature. In special elections held weeks after his inauguration, Republicans won control of the state senate. However, in spite of this, Holden was able to get some legislative accomplishments. Later that year, when Holden called a special session, the legislature passed a bill, which created a new prescription drug benefit for seniors. But the relationship would grow more troubled, with Holden at one point having three vetoes overridden in a year, the same number of vetoes among all Missouri governors post-Civil War.
Holden was pro-gun, but due to some negative effects that he felt proposed legislation would have on Missouri gun owners, and due to the results of a 1999 referendum, he vetoed a concealed-carry bill passed by the Missouri General Assembly. This was short-lived because his veto was overridden by both the Missouri House of Representatives and Senate and the concealed-carry bill passed into law in 2003. Several Republican legislators who had initially voted against the bill, such as Michael Gibbons of Kirkwood, switched sides to override Holden's veto.