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James "Jim" Hedges (born May 10, 1938) is an American politician who served as the
Tax Assessor Tax assessment, or assessment, is the job of determining the value, and sometimes determining the use, of property, usually to calculate a property tax. This is usually done by an office called the assessor or tax assessor. Governments need to ...
for Thompson Township, Pennsylvania and as the Prohibition Party's 2016 presidential nominee. He is currently the only member of the Prohibition Party to be elected to public office in the 21st century, and the first since 1959.


Life

James Hedges was born on May 10, 1938, in
Iowa City, Iowa Iowa City, offically the City of Iowa City is a city in Johnson County, Iowa, United States. It is the home of the University of Iowa and county seat of Johnson County, at the center of the Iowa City Metropolitan Statistical Area. At the ti ...
to Robert Hedges and Margaret Ayres, who were
teetotallers Teetotalism is the practice or promotion of total personal abstinence from the psychoactive drug alcohol, specifically in alcoholic drinks. A person who practices (and possibly advocates) teetotalism is called a teetotaler or teetotaller, or is ...
for religious reasons. He became interested in the Prohibition Party while in high school after reading an article in a newspaper. Hedges earned a
Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...
in Musical Performance from the
University of Iowa The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized into 12 coll ...
in 1960, then enlisted in the
United States Marine Band The United States Marine Band is the premier band of the United States Marine Corps. Established by act of Congress on July 11, 1798, it is the oldest of the United States military bands and the oldest professional musical organization in t ...
, in Washington, D.C., where he played tuba for twenty years. In 1972, he earned a
Master’s degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.
in Geography from the University of Maryland and published widely on karst and on periglacial geomorphology. From 1972 to 1983, Hedges served as the editor of the National Speleological Society Bulletin. He later became a reporter and environmental columnist for area weekly newspapers and was appointed Fulton County’s first Recycling Coordinator.State Award for Journal Reporter: Mercersburg (Pennsylvania) Journal, 5 May 1993, p A-7.Recycling Column Wins Award: Fulton County (Pennsylvania) News, 6 May 1993, p. B-5. In 1980, Hedges retired from the military and became more active in the Prohibition Party and rose to the position of Executive Secretary in 2003. In 2005, he was selected as the Secretary of the Partisan Prohibition Historical Society. Hedges also publishes the party's printed newsletter.


Tax assessor

In 2001, Hedges secured the nominations of the
Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or again ...
,
Democratic Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...
and Prohibition parties through write-in ballots to appear as the only candidate for Tax Assessor in Thompson Township. He won the election, and was sworn-in in 2002 by District Justice Carol Jean Johnson. He became the first official elected in a partisan election from the Prohibition Party since two members of the
Winona Lake, Indiana Winona Lake is a town in Wayne Township, Kosciusko County, in the U.S. state of Indiana, and the major suburb of Warsaw. The population was 4,908 at the 2010 census. Geography Winona Lake is located at (41.220818, -85.817118). It is now contiguo ...
, city council were elected in 1959. Hedges was re-elected in 2005, and served until the office was abolished by the
Pennsylvania General Assembly The Pennsylvania General Assembly is the legislature of the U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The legislature convenes in the State Capitol building in Harrisburg. In colonial times (1682–1776), the legislature was known as the Pennsylvania ...
in 2007.


2004 presidential election

Prior to the 2004 presidential election, Hedges was involved in a schism within the party stemming from alleged misuse of funds and mismanagement by
Earl Dodge Earl Farwell Dodge Jr. (December 24, 1932 – November 7, 2007) was an American politician who served as the Prohibition Party's chairman and presidential candidate from the 1984 to 2000 presidential elections and later ran with the nomination ...
, the party's long-time face. Notably, Hedges and others claimed that Dodge sold the party's headquarters for $119,500 in 1999 with intent to build on his own property, but that Dodge instead kept the money for himself and moved the headquarters to a tool shed. Dodge countered by saying that he placed the funds in a separate party account, and argued that Hedges and others who had put forth the allegations were simply disgruntled with their position in the party. Nevertheless, Hedges and his faction formed the Concerns of the People (Prohibition) Party to counter Dodge, and nominated Washington anti-alcohol activist and preacher
Gene Amondson Gene C. Amondson (October 15, 1943 – July 20, 2009) was a painter, woodcarver, Christian minister and prohibition activist, who was the 2004 US presidential nominee for one faction of the Prohibition Party and the nominee of the unified part ...
for President. Both Dodge and Hedges claimed their parties were the authentic Prohibition Party. The split abruptly came to an end in 2007 after Dodge's death, and the reunified party again nominated Amondson for president for the
2008 election This electoral calendar 2008 lists the national/federal direct elections held in 2008 in the de jure and de facto sovereign states and their dependent territories. Referendums are included, even though they are not elections. By-elections are no ...
.


2012 presidential campaign

After Gene Amondson's death in 2009, a vacancy opened for the Prohibition Party's
2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...
presidential nomination In United States politics and government, the term presidential nominee has two different meanings: # A candidate for president of the United States who has been selected by the delegates of a political party at the party's national convention (al ...
. Hedges announced on February 18, 2010, that he intended to run for the nomination. In preparation, he established a campaign website, sent out a series of postcards through the party's mailing list and contacted members of the nominating committee. Despite such efforts, Hedges lost the nomination to retired engineer
Jack Fellure Lowell Jackson Fellure (October 3, 1931 – July 31, 2022) was an American perennial political candidate and engineer. He was the presidential nominee of the Prohibition Party for the 2012 presidential election. Early life and career Fellure wa ...
at the
Cullman, Alabama Cullman is the largest city and county seat of Cullman County, Alabama, United States. It is located along Interstate 65, about north of Birmingham and about south of Huntsville. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 14,775, with an ...
Prohibition Party National Convention on June 22, 2011.


2016 presidential campaign

In the 2016 presidential election cycle, Hedges was initially the preferred
running mate A running mate is a person running together with another person on a joint ticket during an election. The term is most often used in reference to the person in the subordinate position (such as the vice presidential candidate running with a pres ...
of Greg Seltzer, the Prohibition Party's Chairman, who was seeking the party's presidential nomination. In April 2015, Seltzer withdrew his candidacy and resigned as the party's Chairman upon being appointed by
Maryland Governor The Governor of the State of Maryland is the head of government of Maryland, and is the commander-in-chief of the state's National Guard units. The Governor is the highest-ranking official in the state and has a broad range of appointive powers ...
Larry Hogan Lawrence Joseph Hogan Jr. (born May 25, 1956) is an American politician and businessman serving as the 62nd governor of Maryland since 2015. A moderate member of the Republican Party, he was secretary of appointments under Maryland governor B ...
to the Maryland Elections Board. Following Seltzer's departure from the race, Hedges became a candidate for the party's presidential nomination. Hedges received the Prohibition presidential nomination during a nominating convention held via conference call on July 31, 2015. Hedges was a contestant in the American Independent Party Party primary in California where received 10.56% and carried Lake County. The Prohibition Party's ballot access was increased from Fellure's in 2012 and attempts were made in other states, but in Tennessee two electors dropped out shortly before the filing deadline and
floods A flood is an overflow of water (list of non-water floods, or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are an area of study o ...
in Louisiana prevented ballot petitioning in the state. In the general election Hedges appeared on the ballot in
Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the ...
,
Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...
, and
Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Mis ...
and received 5,617 votes, the best showing for a Prohibition nominee since Earl Dodge received 8,002 votes in 1988, and placed third in
Arkansas County, Arkansas Arkansas County is a county located in the U.S. state of Arkansas. As of the 2010 census, the population was 19,019. Located in the Arkansas Delta, the county has two county seats, DeWitt and Stuttgart. The first of the state's 75 prese ...
. Following the election, he was selected as the party's secretary.


Electoral history


References


External links


Campaign website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hedges, James 1938 births 21st-century tubists Living people American tubists United States military musicians Pennsylvania local politicians Pennsylvania Prohibitionists People from Fulton County, Pennsylvania People from Iowa City, Iowa Military personnel from Iowa Candidates in the 2012 United States presidential election 21st-century American politicians Candidates in the 2016 United States presidential election University of Iowa alumni University of Maryland, College Park alumni Prohibition Party (United States) presidential nominees