Zell Miller
Zell Bryan Miller (February 24, 1932 – March 23, 2018) was an American politician who served as a United States senator representing Georgia from 2000 to 2005 and as the 79th governor of Georgia from 1991 to 1999. He was a member of the Democratic Party.
Zell Miller | |
|---|---|
| United States Senator from Georgia | |
| In office July 24, 2000 – January 3, 2005 | |
| Preceded by | Paul Coverdell |
| Succeeded by | Johnny Isakson |
| 79th Governor of Georgia | |
| In office January 14, 1991 – January 11, 1999 | |
| Lieutenant | Pierre Howard |
| Preceded by | Joe Frank Harris |
| Succeeded by | Roy Barnes |
| 8th Lieutenant Governor of Georgia | |
| In office January 14, 1975 – January 14, 1991 | |
| Governor | George Busbee Joe Frank Harris |
| Preceded by | Lester Maddox |
| Succeeded by | Pierre Howard |
| Member of the Georgia State Senate from the 50th district | |
| In office January 14, 1963 – January 11, 1965 | |
| Preceded by | Hamilton McWhorter, Jr. |
| Succeeded by | Robert King Ballew |
| Member of the Georgia State Senate from the 40th district | |
| In office January 9, 1961 – January 14, 1963 | |
| Preceded by | Russell Ellis Cannon |
| Succeeded by | Dan I. MacIntyre III |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Zell Bryan Miller February 24, 1932 Young Harris, Georgia, U.S. |
| Died | March 23, 2018 (aged 86) Young Harris, Georgia, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse |
Shirley Carver (m. 1954) |
| Children | 2 |
| Education | Young Harris College University of Georgia (BA, MA) |
| Signature | |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Branch/service | United States Marine Corps |
| Years of service | 1953–1956 |
| Rank | Sergeant |
Miller served as lieutenant governor of Georgia from 1975 to 1991. After being more liberal as governor in the 1990s, he was a conservative Democrat as a senator in the 2000s. In 2004, he supported Republican president George W. Bush against Democratic nominee John Kerry in the presidential election. Miller was a keynote speaker at both major American political parties' national conventions–Democratic in 1992 and Republican in 2004.
He did not seek re-election to the Senate in 2004. After retiring from the Senate, he joined the law firm McKenna Long & Aldridge as a non-lawyer professional in the firm's national government affairs practice. Miller was also a Fox News contributor. After he left his office in 2005, no Georgia Democrats were elected to the United States Senate for 16 years until Raphael Warnock won Miller's former seat in the 2020–2021 special runoff election and Jon Ossoff won the Class 2 seat in the 2020–2021 regular runoff election.