Janet Napolitano Net Worth

What is Janet Napolitano's Net Worth?

Janet Napolitano is an American politician and lawyer who has a net worth of $4 million. Among her many government positions, Janet Napolitano served as the attorney general of Arizona, the governor of Arizona, and the United States secretary of homeland security under President Obama from 2009 to 2013. After those roles, she was the president of the University of California from 2013 to 2020.

Early Life and Education

Janet Napolitano was born on November 29, 1957 in New York City to Jane and Leonard. She was raised Methodist with her two younger siblings, a brother and sister. Janet is not related in any way to Andrew Napolitano, the retired judge and TV personality.

Napolitano spent some of her youth in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and Albuquerque, New Mexico, graduating from Sandia High School in the latter. She went on to attend Santa Clara University, and to study at the London School of Economics for one term in 1978 through an exchange program. Napolitano graduated from Santa Clara in 1979 with a BS in political science. She was the university's first female valedictorian. Napolitano subsequently worked as an analyst for the United States Senate Committee on the Budget. She went on to enroll at the University of Virginia School of Law, where she obtained her JD in 1983.

Law Career

After earning her JD, Napolitano became 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, Arizona, where she became a partner in 1989. In the early 1990s, Napolitano worked as an attorney for Anita Hill. From November of 1993 to November of 1997, she served as the United States attorney for the District of Arizona. In that role, Napolitano was involved in the investigation of Michael Fortier's connection to the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing. In 1998, Napolitano was elected as Arizona attorney general, a position she held until 2003.

Governor of Arizona

In 2002, Napolitano ran for governor of Arizona and narrowly won the election over Republican Matt Salmon. As governor, she set a state record for total number of vetoes issued when she issued her 115th veto in mid-2006. By the end of her tenure, Napolitano had issued a total of 180 vetoes. In other significant activities during her governorship, she negotiated the creation of voluntary full-day kindergarten, established a literacy program, and made investments in higher education. Napolitano also invested strongly in tourism and economic development initiatives. She was reelected as governor in 2006 and served until 2009.

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Secretary of Homeland Security

When President Obama took office in early 2009, Napolitano became his United States secretary of homeland security, becoming the first woman to hold that position. Early in her tenure, she oversaw the federal response to the swine flu pandemic and helped to successfully avert serious damage. Under Napolitano, the Department of Homeland Security made major investments in border security. A proponent of comprehensive immigration reform, Napolitano helped create the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program to protect those brought to the United States as children by immigrant guardians. Among her other creations was TSA PreCheck, which works to expedite security screenings at airports.

University of California

In July of 2013, Napolitano left the Department of Homeland Security to become president of the University of California. She became the 20th president of the university and the first female president, and served until August of 2020. In her position, Napolitano led efforts to support undocumented students, diversify the graduate and postdoctoral research pools, and create a plan to achieve carbon neutrality on all ten UC campuses by 2025. She also created funds and fellowship programs focused on encouraging careers in public service, launched the Global Food Initiative to combat food insecurity, and spearheaded efforts to fight sexual violence on campus. In late 2017, Napolitano began chairing UC's newly created National Center for Free Speech and Civic Engagement. Despite her successes, she was not without controversy, particularly in relation to misleading budget practices. After leaving her role as president of the University of California, Napolitano remained at the university as a faculty member in the Goldman School of Public Policy. She also founded and became the director of the Center for Security in Politics.

Personal Life

Highly athletic, Napolitano regularly plays softball and tennis. She also loves to hike and whitewater raft. Napolitano has never married and does not have children.

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