Janet Napolitano Bio
Janet Ann Napolitano (born November 29, 1957) is an American politician, lawyer, and academic. A member of the Democratic Party, she served as United States Secretary of Homeland Security from 2009 to 2013, and as the 20th president of the University of California system from 2013 to 2020. Earlier she was the 21st governor of Arizona (2003–2009), Arizona attorney general (1999–2003), and United States attorney for the District of Arizona (1993–1997). Napolitano is credited with creating the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program in 2012 while at DHS. Since 2015 she has been on the faculty at UC Berkeley’s Goldman School of Public Policy.
Early Life and Background
Janet Ann Napolitano was born on November 29, 1957, in New York City, the daughter of Jane Marie (née Winer) and Leonard Michael Napolitano. Her father served as the dean of the University of New Mexico School of Medicine. Her father was of Italian descent, and her mother had German and Austrian ancestry. Her paternal grandfather was named Filippo Napolitano.
Napolitano is a Methodist and the oldest of three children, with a younger brother and sister. She was raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and also in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where she graduated from Sandia High School in 1975. Her father’s academic career shaped a household that valued education and public service.
Napolitano received a Bachelor of Science summa cum laude with a major in political science from Santa Clara University in 1979 and a Juris Doctor from the University of Virginia in 1983. She was Santa Clara’s first female valedictorian, a Truman Scholar, and a member of Phi Beta Kappa. In 1978, she studied for a term at the London School of Economics as part of Santa Clara’s exchange program through IES Abroad.
Path to US Politics
After graduation, Janet Napolitano worked as an analyst for the United States Senate Committee on the Budget. She then attended the University of Virginia School of Law, after which she served as a law clerk for Judge Mary M. Schroeder of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. She then joined Schroeder’s former firm, Lewis and Roca, in Phoenix, and was named a partner of the firm in 1989.
In 1991, while a partner at Lewis and Roca LLP, Napolitano served as an attorney for Anita Hill during testimony before the U.S. Senate. The early 1990s positioned her at the center of major national legal debates and built her reputation as a skilled litigator. In 1993, she was appointed by President Bill Clinton as United States attorney for the District of Arizona, an office she held until 1997. Her transition from private practice to federal prosecution marked her entry into senior public service.
Janet Napolitano Career
Early Career (1993–2002)
As United States attorney for the District of Arizona from 1993 to 1997, Janet Napolitano was involved in the investigation of Michael Fortier of Kingman, Arizona, in connection with the Oklahoma City bombing. She ran for and won the position of Arizona attorney general in 1998, becoming the 23rd attorney general of the state.
During her tenure as attorney general, she focused on consumer protection issues and improving general law enforcement. She also defended Arizona’s death penalty statute before the United States Supreme Court when she argued Ring v. Arizona. While serving as attorney general, she spoke at the 2000 Democratic National Convention just three weeks after having a mastectomy. Her early statewide role established her as a leading voice in Arizona politics.
Arizona Governor Breakthrough (2003–2009)
In 2002, Janet Napolitano narrowly won the Arizona gubernatorial election with 46 percent of the vote, defeating Republican former congressman Matt Salmon, who received 45 percent. She was Arizona’s third female governor and the first female elected governor in the United States to succeed another elected female governor. She was also the first Democrat popularly elected to the governorship since Bruce Babbitt left office in 1987.
As Governor, Napolitano set records for total number of vetoes issued, ultimately issuing 180 vetoes by the time she left office. She successfully negotiated the creation of voluntary full-day kindergarten in Arizona, created a literacy program, and acquired funding for an increase in teacher salaries. She also built the state’s rainy day fund to more than $650 million and played a leading role in the successful bid to host Super Bowl XLII in Glendale, Arizona.
In November 2006, Janet Napolitano was re-elected as governor, defeating the Republican challenger, Len Munsil, by a nearly 2:1 ratio. She was the first woman to be re-elected to that office and the first gubernatorial candidate in state history to win every county and every legislative district in Arizona. She served as chairwoman of the National Governors Association for the 2006–2007 cycle, the first female governor and first governor of Arizona to serve in that position.
Homeland Security Era (2009–2013)
On December 1, 2008, Barack Obama introduced Janet Napolitano as his nominee for United States Secretary of Homeland Security. On January 20, 2009, she was confirmed, becoming the first woman appointed as Secretary in the relatively new department. As Secretary, she was a central leader in the federal response to the 2009 flu pandemic, advancing a strategy of proactive education for prevention.
Napolitano created the popular program TSA PreCheck, which allows travelers to provide background information to the Transportation Security Administration in return for expedited security screening. She also expanded the U.S. Customs and Border Protection trusted traveler program, Global Entry. Under her leadership, the DHS invested heavily in border security and border security technology.
In 2012, in an effort to provide relief for the so-called DREAM Act population, Napolitano used prosecutorial discretion to create the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (DACA). The program deferred removal proceedings against DREAMers, providing them with legal status to remain in the United States without fear of deportation. DACA was announced by President Obama in a Rose Garden ceremony shortly after its creation.
University of California Era (2013–2020)
In July 2013, Janet Napolitano announced she would leave her post as Secretary of Homeland Security to become president of the University of California. She was appointed the 20th president by the University of California Board of Regents on July 18, 2013, the first woman to lead the University of California, and began her tenure on September 30, 2013.
Among her first acts was the allocation of more support for UC’s undocumented students and expanded efforts to diversify the ranks of UC graduate students and post-doctoral researchers. She also initiated an ambitious ongoing plan for the ten-campus system to achieve carbon neutrality by 2025, calling it a moral imperative. In 2017, Napolitano was awarded the Pat Brown Award from the California Council for Environmental and Economic Balance for her environmental leadership.
Napolitano led efforts to combat sexual violence and harassment at the University of California, creating a system-wide Title IX office and appointing the first system-wide Title IX coordinator in January 2017. On October 26, 2017, the University of California announced the establishment of the National Center for Free Speech and Civic Engagement, chaired by Napolitano. On September 18, 2019, she announced her resignation as president, effective August 1, 2020.
Notable Events and Milestones
Janet Napolitano’s most enduring signature achievement remains the creation of the DACA program in 2012, which has shaped national immigration policy for more than a decade. Her tenure as Arizona governor produced a record 180 vetoes and a successful bid to host Super Bowl XLII. She also became the first woman to lead the Department of Homeland Security and the first woman to serve as president of the University of California.
Janet Napolitano Career Wins
Janet Napolitano’s career is marked by a series of historic firsts in American politics and public administration. From her early victories in Arizona state offices to senior federal appointments, she has built a record of competitive wins and sustained leadership across government, law, and higher education.
Election Highlights
In 1998, Janet Napolitano won the position of Arizona attorney general, launching her statewide political career. In 2002, she narrowly won the Arizona gubernatorial election with 46 percent of the vote against Republican Matt Salmon. In 2006, she was re-elected as governor by a nearly 2:1 ratio over Republican Len Munsil, becoming the first woman to be re-elected to that office and the first gubernatorial candidate in state history to win every county and every legislative district in Arizona.
Other Wins & Achievements
Janet Napolitano was ranked by Forbes as the world’s ninth most powerful woman in 2012 and eighth most powerful woman in 2013. In January 2006, she won the Woodrow Wilson Award for Public Service. In 2017, she received the Pat Brown Award for her environmental leadership, and in 2018 she was elected to the American Philosophical Society.
Janet Napolitano Family
Family Background and Political Lineage
Janet Ann Napolitano was born into an academic family, the daughter of Leonard Michael Napolitano, who served as the dean of the University of New Mexico School of Medicine, and Jane Marie (née Winer). Her father was of Italian descent and her mother had German and Austrian ancestry. Her paternal grandfather was named Filippo Napolitano, and she is the oldest of three children.
Personal Life
Janet Napolitano has never married and has no children. An avid basketball fan, she regularly plays tennis and softball, and her hobbies include whitewater rafting and hiking. She has hiked in Arizona’s Superstition Mountains, New Mexico’s Sandia Mountains, and the Himalayas, and has climbed Mount Kilimanjaro. She is a Methodist.