Leslie Rutledge

Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas since 2023

Leslie Carol Rutledge (born June 9, 1976) is an American politician and lawyer. Since 2023, she has been the 21st lieutenant governor of Arkansas under Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders. She is a member of the Republican Party.

Leslie Rutledge
21st Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas
Assumed office
January 10, 2023
GovernorSarah Huckabee Sanders
Preceded byTim Griffin
56th Attorney General of Arkansas
In office
January 13, 2015 – January 10, 2023
GovernorAsa Hutchinson
Preceded byDustin McDaniel
Succeeded byTim Griffin
Personal details
Born
Leslie Carol Rutledge

(1976-06-09) June 9, 1976 (age 47)
Batesville, Arkansas, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)
Boyce Johnson (m. 2015)
Children1
EducationUniversity of Arkansas (BA, JD)

Rutledge was also the 56th attorney general of Arkansas from 2015 to 2023. She was the first woman and first to be elected to the position of attorney general in the state's history.[1]

Personal life change

Rutledge was born in Batesville, Arkansas. She studied at the University of Arkansas and at University of Arkansas at Little Rock. In 2015, she married Boyce Johnson. They have one daughter.

Political career change

Rutledge ran for the re-election to office of Attorney General against the Democratic nominee Mike Lee in 2018. She led with almost 62% of the vote and was re-elected.[2]

During February 2021, Rutledge proposed a bill called the Gender Integrity Reinforcement Legislation for Sports Act which would ban transgender athletes from playing with the girls' sports teams in K–12 schools.[3]

Rutledge described herself as a defender of the Second Amendment and of freedom of religion. She is also pro-life.[4] Rutledge also opposes rights for lesbians, gays, bisexual and transgender people.[5] As the Arkansas Attorney General, Rutledge and her office filed notice was appealing the decision from a Washington County judge to deny the state's request for a preliminary injunction against Fayetteville's anti-discrimination ordinance.[6]

Gubernatorial campaign change

Rutledge and Sarah Huckabee Sanders started their campaigns to become the first female Governor of Arkansas in late 2020. Both Rutledge and Huckabee planned their runs in the 2022 election, scheduled to happen on November 8, 2022.[7] However, Rutledge dropped out of the governor's race in November 2021 to run for lieutenant governor.[8] Rutledge won the Republican nomination for lieutenant governor in May 2022.

References change

  1. "Meet Leslie". Attorney General's Office. Archived from the original on July 16, 2021. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
  2. "Leslie Rutledge is Re-elected the Arkansas' Attorney General". KATV. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
  3. "Arkansas' AG Introduces a Bill to Ban Transgender Athletes from the Girls' School Sports". KATV. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
  4. "Arkansas Lawmakers are Pushing a New Pro-Life Bill Hoping to Reach the U.S. Supreme Court". KTBS. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
  5. "Arkansas Asks that a City's LGBTQ Rights Ordinance Be Blocked". NBC News. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
  6. "Northwest Arkansas City Asks the Court to Block City's LGBT Protections". KY3. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
  7. "Rutledge for the Governor". Make Arkansas First. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
  8. De Millo, Andrew (November 10, 2021). "Arkansas attorney general Rutledge drops bid for governor". Associated Press. Retrieved November 10, 2021.