Jason Kander

Jason Kander (born May 4, 1981) is an American lawyer and politician. A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected Secretary of State of Missouri in 2012, serving from 2013 to 2017. He previously served as a state representative. He was an intelligence officer in the Army National Guard, achieving the rank of Captain. He was the Democratic nominee for the United States Senate, narrowly losing the 2016 Senate election to Republican incumbent Roy Blunt. Kander is also the founder of an organization called "Let America Vote", a campaign dedicated to ending voter suppression and gerrymandering. In 2017, he became a CNN contributor.

Kander was born on May 4, 1981, in Overland Park, Kansas, the son of Janet and Steve Kander. He was raised in a Jewish household. He graduated from Bishop Miege High School in 1999, and attended American University. After 9/11, he enlisted in the Army National Guard. While earning his law degree at Georgetown University, he earned his commission through the University's ROTC battalion. After completing his law degree, he volunteered for a tour in Afghanistan, where he served as a lieutenant.

When he returned home, Kander took a position as an instructor at the Missouri Army National Guard's Officer Candidate School at Fort Leonard Wood.

In 2010, Kander was named one of 10 finalists for the Army Reserve Association's Maj. Gen. Strom Thurmond Outstanding Junior Officer of the Year Award. He was discharged honorably at the rank of Captain in 2011.

Missouri House of Representatives

Kander was elected to the Missouri House of Representatives in 2008.

In 2010, Kander worked with Republican State Representative Tim Flook to pass the first major ethics reform bill in Missouri since 1991. In 2010, he ran for re-election to his State Representative seat and won 70% of the vote to defeat Republican Sally Miller.

During his time in the Missouri House, Kander was the chief sponsor of 28 bills, none of which became law.

Missouri Secretary of State

Kander in November 2013 visiting Fort Leonard Wood

Kander announced his candidacy for the Missouri Secretary of State after Robin Carnahan announced she would not seek reelection. Kander defeated MD Rabbi Alam in the primary election, winning the Democratic nomination.

In the general election, Kander faced the Speaker Pro Tempore of the Missouri House, State Representative Shane Schoeller. As of the October Quarterly Report, Kander had $1,075,000 on hand while Schoeller had $297,450 to spend for the rest of the election.

On November 6, 2012, Kander narrowly defeated Schoeller and was elected Missouri Secretary of State.

In 2009, Kander signed a Progressive State Network letter calling on President Obama and the Democrat-led Congress to include a public option in the Affordable Care Act.

Despite the lack of a public option, Kander supports retaining the Affordable Care Act.

In 2009, Kander voted against a bill that would extend the Castle Doctrine to renters. The doctrine allows a homeowner to use deadly force against a perceived intruder. The NRA has given Kander a 7% rating. Kander has also cited overturning Citizens United v. FEC as a political priority.

On February 19, 2015, Kander entered the race to represent Missouri in the United States Senate against Roy Blunt, the Republican incumbent. He won the Democratic primary against three other candidates on August 2, 2016. Kander's campaign released an ad in September that showed the blindfolded senatorial candidate assembling an AR-15 rifle while explaining his support of background checks. The ad quickly went viral, and as of November 2016 the original YouTube video had earned over 1.3 million views. While initially significantly behind in the race, polls started to show a tightening in the fall. Kander was a national co-chair for Hillary Clinton. During the campaign, Kander positioned himself as a Washington outsider and touted his experience as an Army Intelligence officer. He was endorsed by the Planned Parenthood Action Fund.

Kander was narrowly defeated by Blunt in the general election, receiving 46.4% of the vote to Blunt's 49.2%.

Kander is married to Diana Kander, a businesswoman and author. Diana and her family emigrated from the Soviet Union in 1989. The couple have one son.

Kander's great-uncle is composer John Kander.