William Jennings Jefferson (D)
About The Candidate
- Office Sought: Representative, Louisiana (2)
- Birth Date: March 14, 1947
- Occupation: Lawyer
- Religion: Baptist
- Web site: http://www.house.gov/jefferson
Education
- Georgetown University, LLM
- Harvard University, JD
- Southern University, BA
William J. Jefferson was born in Lake Providence, La., and resides in New Orleans. He received a bachelor's degree from Southern University in Baton Rouge, La., in 1969, a law degree from Harvard University Law School in 1972, and a Master of Laws in Taxation from Georgetown University in 1996.
He served in the Army Reserve from 1969 to 1978. Jefferson was a legislative assistant to U.S. Sen. Bennett Johnston from 1973 to 1974, and a U.S. District Court clerk from 1972 to 1973. He practiced law from 1976 to 1990.
He was elected to the state Senate in 1979 and served from 1980 to 1990.
Jefferson was first elected to the U.S. House in 1990. He ran unsuccessfully for governor in 1995.
Jefferson and his wife, Andrea, have five children.
© The Washington Post Company
