John Hickenlooper Quick Facts | CNN Politics



cnn

Here's a look at the life of John Hickenlooper, former governor of Colorado and former 2020 Democratic presidential candidate.

Birthdate: February 7, 1952

Place of birth: Narberth, Pennsylvania

Birth name: John Wright Hickenlooper Jr.

Father: John Hickenlooper Sr., steel mill executive

Mother: Anne (Morris) MacDonald

Marriages: Robin Pringle (2016-present); Helen Thorpe (divorced)

Children: with Robin Pringle: Jack (December 8, 2022); with Helen Thorpe: Teddy

Education: Wesleyan University, BA in English, 1974; Wesleyan University, Master of Geology, 1980

Religion: Quaker

He suffers from prosopagnosia, or face blindness, a medical condition that makes it difficult to remember or recognize faces.

He is the first geologist to become governor.

He plays a fictional senator in “Casino Jack,” a film by his cousin George Hickenlooper, a filmmaker who died in 2010.

Hickenlooper struggled in school due to dyslexia.

1981-1986 – He works as an exploration geologist for Buckhorn Petroleum.

1988 – Wynkoop Brewing Company, Colorado's first brewery, opens.

2003-2011 – He serves as mayor of Denver.

August 24, 2007 – Hickenlooper is selling his stake in Wynkoop Brewing and its associated restaurants to his managers and employees.

January 11, 2011-January 8, 2019 – He serves as governor of Colorado.

December 4, 2012 – He is named vice president of the Democratic Governors Association.

March 20 2013 – Enacts three gun control measures, including one that will require universal background checks for gun sales.

March 17, 2016 – Launches Skillful, an online service to help people without degrees find skills-based jobs, alongside LinkedIn co-founder Allen Blue and Zoe Baird, CEO of the Markle Foundation.

March 4, 2019 – In a video titled “Standing Tall,” Hickenlooper announces that he will run for president in 2020.

August 15, 2019 – He ends his candidacy for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination.

August 22, 2019 – He announces his candidacy for the Senate.

June 5, 2020 – The Colorado Independent Ethics Commission rules that Hickenlooper twice violated ethics laws in 2018. A conservative group's complaint claims Hickenlooper violated the state's gift ban while he was governor. Hickenlooper is subsequently fined nearly $3,000 and is not expected to appeal the ruling.

November 3, 2020 – Hickenlooper is elected to the United States Senate from Colorado, defeating Republican incumbent Cory Gardner.

August 19, 2021 – In a statement, Hickenlooper announces that he tested positive for a breakthrough case of Covid-19 after experiencing mild symptoms.

scroll to top