Christine Gregoire was the first female governor of a U.S. state. She was born in Spokane, Wash., and grew up there and in Oregon. Gregoire graduated from the University of Oregon with a bachelor of arts degree in political science and a master's degree in public administration
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In 1988, she went to work for the city council as a research specialist and then as council clerk, before becoming executive assistant to then-Mayor Roy Romer. While working for Romer, she became interested in politics and government and decided to run for the state senate later that year. In 1994, she ran against Dino Rossi for the U.S.
Senate seat being vacated by Slade Gorton, winning by a margin of 13 percent. After winning the election, Gregoire served as chairwoman of the powerful Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. She has been reelected twice, capturing 60% of the vote in 2000 and 70% of the vote in 2004 - making her one of only two senators ever reelected with more than 50% of the vote.
In 2001, Gregoire introduced legislation that would provide for a universal health care system for Washington State residents similar to those offered by Canada and other industrialized countries. In 2002, she sponsored legislation to require background checks on all gun sales; signed legislation establishing the state's first mental health ombudsman; and signed legislation banning smoking in all indoor public places and workplaces statewide, including bars and restaurants. During her time as governor, Gregoire was credited with helping create thousands of jobs for Washingtonians and attracting millions of dollars in new investment into the state through tourism, software development, film production and biomedical research companies such as Microsoft's One Medical Group which opened an office near Seattle.