GSU Library Research Guides: Ellen Rafshoon Oral Histories: J

Jaeger, Ellen

Interviewee: Ellyn Jaeger
Interviewer: Ellen Rafshoon
Date of interview: Summer 2018

Biography:
Ellyn Jaeger is a retired mental healthcare professional from Roswell, Georgia who sought political office in 2018. Jaeger comes from a politically liberal family; her father once ran for office in New York. During a lengthy professional career from which she retired in 2016, Jaeger worked for the Alzheimer's Association for ten years before spending twenty years with Mental health America, serving as Director for Public Policy and Advocacy. In 2018, she ran for the Georgia Senate, District 56 seat held by Republican incumbent John Albers. Although she won the Democratic primary against two opponents, she failed to unseat Albers in the general election.

Abstract:
In this interview, conducted in the summer of 2018, Ellyn Jaeger discusses her newly elevated political activism as a candidate for State Senate District 56. Jaeger has an extensive background in lobbying and public policy through her professional work at the Alzheimer's Association and Mental Health America. Jaeger also discusses how Trump was a major catalyst for propelling her into action, claiming that she might not have run had Hillary Clinton won in 2016.

Jordan, Jen

Interviewee: Jen Jordan
Interviewer: Ellen Rafshoon
Date of interview:

Biography:

Abstract:
In this interview, Jen Jordan discusses her political activism as a newly elected State Senator. Her distinct perspective as an attorney has enabled her to bring a more nuanced insight to the office. She has historically pushed other women to run for office, but after the election of 2016, she felt a personal call to action to take on a more elevated role in politics.

Abstract:
Jen Jordan (born 1974) represents Atlanta’s northern suburbs in the Georgia State Senate. Born in North Carolina, she was raised in Eastman, Georgia by her mother, a hairdresser, following her parents’ divorce. Jordan graduated from Georgia Southern University and the University of Georgia College of Law. She moved to the Atlanta suburbs to practice law and worked for several law firms, most recently Shamp, Jordan, & Woodward. Jordan’s decision to seek political office followed her loss of a legal case where she represented an eighteen-year-old victim of sexual assault. Although sustained by the Georgia Court of Appeals, the case was reversed by the all-male Georgia Supreme Court. Donald Trump’s 2016 election also motivated her to enter politics. In 2017, she ran for the 6^th District senate seat after the resignation of its incumbent, defeating others in a crowded field. She was reelected since then, but lost her 2022 bid to unseat Attorney General Chris Carr as the Democratic nominee for that office. In the Georgia Senate, she has championed several notable issues: voting rights, reproductive rights, and environmentalism.