Pat Shortridge is a Minnesota lobbyist, former Chair of the Republican Party of Minnesota and founder of Conservative Solutions Project.
Pat Shortridge | |
|---|---|
| Chair of the Republican Party of Minnesota | |
| In office December 31, 2011 – April 6, 2013 | |
| Preceded by | Tony Sutton |
| Succeeded by | Keith Downey |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Winona, Minnesota |
| Political party | Republican Party of Minnesota |
| Alma mater | Macalester College |
| Occupation | lobbyist |
Early life and education edit
Shortridge was born in Winona, Minnesota. He attended Macalester College.[1]
Political career edit
After graduating from Macalester College, Shortridge became an intern, then paid staffer, of Texas Representative Dick Armey,[1] eventually working for him for eleven years.[2] He left Armey's employment in 2001 to become a lobbyist for Enron, a position he held for approximately six months before the company went into bankruptcy as a result of the Enron scandal.[1][3]
After the brief position at Enron, Shortridge returned to Minnesota to work for Representative Mark Kennedy for five years.[2] He ran Kennedy's campaign in the 2006 senate election, which Kennedy lost by over 20 percentage points to DFL candidate Amy Klobuchar.[4]
In 2011, Minnesota Republican chairman Tony Sutton abruptly departed among controversy.[5][6] Shortridge was elected by 350 party delegates at a meeting on December 31 in St. Cloud, Minnesota over two other candidates.[4] The Republican Party of Minnesota faced a debt of over $2 million at the time of Shortridge's election, which he managed to reduce significantly during his first year as chairman.[7] He has insisted that he would only serve out the remainder of Sutton's term which expires on April 6, 2013, when party delegates will select a new chair.[8] He was succeeded by Keith Downey.[9]
Personal life edit
Shortridge resides in Lino Lakes, Minnesota.[1]
References edit
- ^ a b c d "Minnesota's new GOP chair thinks ideas can trump turmoil". StarTribune.com. 2012-01-08. Retrieved 2013-03-22.
- ^ a b "True North - Pat Shortridge". Looktruenorth.com. Archived from the original on 2013-02-08. Retrieved 2013-03-22.
- ^ The Big E (2011-12-21). "Former Enron lobbyist Pat Shortridge perfect for MN GOP Party Chair". Mnprogressiveproject.com. Retrieved 2013-03-22.
- ^ a b "Pat Shortridge elected Minn. GOP Chair after party's tumultuous year | Minnesota Public Radio News". Minnesota.publicradio.org. 2011-12-31. Retrieved 2013-03-22.
- ^ "Chairman's spending decisions on insiders helped lead to GOP debt".
- ^ "GOP activists are questioning state chairman".
- ^ "MNGOP debt shrinks, but turmoil persists". Politics in Minnesota. Retrieved 2013-03-22.
- ^ Brucato, Cyndy (2013-03-19). "Farewell event for GOP Chair Pat Shortridge is part tribute, part party critique". MinnPost. Retrieved 2013-03-22.
- ^ Stassen-Berger, Rachel E. (April 6, 2013). "Minnesota Republican Party elects a new chair". Star Tribune. Retrieved April 6, 2013.