John Kerry served as US Secretary of State under the government of Barack Obama. He is an American politician who also served in the U.S. Senate and ran in the 2004 U.S. presidential election but lost to President George W. Bush, who was heading for his second term. Kerry, who is considered a hero of the Vietnam War, served in the U.S. Navy for some time before switching to politics.
John Kerry Biography
The former US Secretary of State was born John Forbes Kerry on December 11, 1943, in Aurora, Colorado. He was raised, along with three other siblings, by their parents, Richard John Kerry and Rosemary Isabel Forbes.
Inspired by a father who served as an officer in the Foreign Service, Kerry joined the Naval Reserve in 1966 and served until 1978. During his years in the Navy, Kerry fought in the Vietnam War and was awarded the Silver Star, Bronze Star, 3 Purple Hearts, and the Combat Action Ribbon.
He had his first encounter with politics in 1972 when he ran for the 5th District of the Massachusetts Congress, but lost to Republican candidate Paul W. Cronin. He was elected Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts in 1982 and served in that capacity from 1983 to 1985 when he was elected U.S. Senator for Massachusetts.
ALSO READ: India Love Westbrooks Biography, Age, Height And Other Interesting Facts
He remained a senator until 2003 when he decided to give the presidency a chance, but in 2004 he lost to George W. Bush, who was re-elected with 62,040,606 to Kerry’s 59,028,109 votes.
Although it was believed that he would give the presidency another shot in 2007, he decided instead to support Barack Obama and run for a fifth term in the Senate, which he won. In 2012, John Kerry was nominated by Obama to succeed Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State and was subsequently confirmed by the Senate.
Since leaving office in 2017, Kerry has served as Chairman of the Bank of America’s Global Advisory Council, in addition to other international and humanitarian responsibilities.
Education
He was raised as a military child until 1949, when the family settled in Washington, D.C. For his education, Kerry attended the Fessenden School in Massachusetts and later went to St. Paul’s, Concord, New Hampshire. He then transferred to Yale University, where he graduated in 1966.
From 1973 to 1976 he attended the law school of Boston College. Kerry also received honorary doctorates from various universities. He was awarded doctorates in law from the University of Massachusetts Boston, Kenyon College, and Boston College, and in civil service from Northeastern University.
Wife And Daughter
Senator John Kerry has a very interesting history when it comes to relationships. He has met many women, including Cornelia Guest, American model Denice D. Lewis and actresses Morgan Fairchild and Catherine Oxenberg.
He has also walked down the aisle twice so far. The first time he married Julia Thorne in 1970. The couple was blessed with two children, Alexandra Forbes Kerry, born in 1973, and Vanessa Bradford Kerry, born in 1976. While Alexandre is a filmmaker, Vanessa is a doctor.
After 12 years of living together, Julia Thorne, who grew up mostly in Italy, asked to be separated from her John. However, it took until 1988 before the two were finally divorced.
The next woman to become the wife of John Kerry is Teresa Heinz. Before the two met, Teresa was once married to former US Senator John Heinz, who died in a plane crash in 1991.
Kerry and Teresa first met in 1990 at an Earth Day rally. The next time the two met was in 1992, after the death of their first husband, and they began to meet a year later. In 1995 they decided to get married.
Although John and Teresa have no children together, he has two from his previous marriage, while she has three from her marriage: André Heinz, Christopher Heinz, and H. John Heinz IV.
ALSO READ: Who is Terrance Ferguson? His Height, Weight, Body Stats, Family
John Kerry Net Worth
By himself, John Kerry is a very rich man, who is counted among the richest US politicians. When he sat in the Senate, he was considered the richest among the others. Currently, he has a net worth estimated at over $270 million.
Teresa Heinz Kerry, on the other hand, has an even greater net worth, estimated at between 700 million and one billion dollars. Nevertheless, both receive their net worth separately on the basis of the marriage contract they have signed. Teresa received her fortune as heir to the net worth of the H. J. Heinz Company bequeathed to her by her husband.
Height And Other Facts
Through his mother, he is related to both the Forbes family and the very popular Dudley-Winthrop family.
When he was in college, Kerry got involved in sports and played for the Yale University field hockey and soccer teams. He also participated in discussion groups.
He was not the smartest student in college, as he never got an A.
Kerry’s wife, Teresa Heinz Kerry, was born in Mozambique before moving to South Africa where she studied at the University of the Witwatersrand.
While John is a survivor of prostate cancer, Teresa is a survivor of breast cancer.
John Kerry, who served in the US Navy, is 193 cm (6 feet 4 inches) tall.