Thomas V. Miller Jr. Explained

Mike Miller
Office:85th President of the Maryland Senate
Term Start:January 21, 1987
Term End:January 8, 2020
Predecessor:Melvin Steinberg
Successor:Bill Ferguson
Office2:Member of the Maryland Senate
Term Start2:January 8, 1975
Term End2:December 23, 2020
Predecessor2:Constituency established
Successor2:Michael A. Jackson
Constituency2:28th district (1975–1983)
27th district (1983–2020)
State Delegate3:Maryland
District3:Prince George's County 3rd
Term Start3:January 13, 1971
Term End3:January 8, 1975
Predecessor3:Multi-member district
Successor3:Constituency abolished
Birth Name:Thomas Vincent Miller Jr.[1]
Birth Date:3 December 1942
Birth Place:Clinton, Maryland, U.S.
Death Place:Chesapeake Beach, Maryland, U.S.
Party:Democratic
Spouse:Patricia Miller
Children:5

Thomas Vincent Miller Jr. (December 3, 1942 – January 15, 2021), known as Mike Miller, was an American politician from Maryland. He had been a state senator representing the 27th District (Calvert, Charles, and Prince George's Counties) from 1975 to 2020 and served as its President from 1987 to 2020. He was the longest-serving President of the Maryland Senate, and was for a period the longest-serving state senate president in the United States.[2]

Early life and education

Miller was born in Clinton, Maryland on December 3, 1942, the first of ten siblings,[3] and attended Surrattsville High School. He studied at the University of Maryland, College Park where he was a member of Phi Sigma Kappa, and graduated with a B.S. in business administration in 1964. Miller went on to graduate from the University of Maryland School of Law in 1967 with an LL.B. degree. Miller was admitted to the Maryland Bar in 1967.[4]

Career

In 1971, he was elected to the Maryland House of Delegates from the third legislative district of Maryland in Prince George's County, and served in that position until his election to the state senate in 1975.

The Senate office building in Annapolis was named after him due to his being the longest-serving Senate president in the history of the state legislature.

The Main Administration Building at his alma mater, the University of Maryland, College Park, was named after him on June 29, 2020. He was known as a tireless advocate for higher education institutions in Maryland and the building's official moniker was the "Thomas V. Miller Administration Building."[5]

Miller was featured in the Netflix documentary The Keepers for his opposition to a bill seeking to increase the statute of limitations for sexual abuse victims.[6]

On October 24, 2019, he announced he would step down from his leadership post, citing fatigue caused by his cancer treatment. He has stated that he intended to serve out the remainder of his term in the state Senate.[7]

On December 23, 2020, he announced his resignation from the senate, citing health reasons.[8]

Personal life

Miller was married; he and his wife lived in Chesapeake Beach and had five children, a son and four daughters.

In January 2019, Miller disclosed that he had been diagnosed with prostate cancer in July 2018 and underwent prescribed medication treatment;[9] in December 2018 he underwent chemotherapy after the cancer was found to have progressed. Miller died at home in Chesapeake Beach from the effects of the disease on January 15, 2021.[10]

External links

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Notes and References

  1. Web site: Commencement exercises . January 25, 1964 . . January 25, 2021 . Internet Archive.
  2. News: Ovetta . Wiggins . Jennifer . Barrios . Arelis R. . Hernández . Md. Senate President Mike Miller has metastasized prostate cancer, faces chemo . . January 10, 2019.
  3. Web site: About Mike . Senator Mike Miller . October 15, 2015 . May 31, 2019.
  4. Web site: Thomas V. Mike Miller, Jr., Maryland Senate President Emeritus . Maryland Manual On-Line . Maryland State Archives . December 23, 2020 . December 24, 2020.
  5. Web site: University of Maryland Main Administration Building Named for Thomas V. "Mike" Miller, Jr. . June 29, 2020 . UMD Right Now . University of Maryland.
  6. News: Pamela . Wood . Erin . Cox . Maryland delegate's effort to allow child abuse lawsuits clears hurdle . The Baltimore Sun . March 16, 2017.
  7. News: Tyler . Waldman . Miller Steps Down As Senate President . October 24, 2019 . October 24, 2019 . . en.
  8. News: Colleen . Kelleher . Mike Miller resigning from Maryland Senate after more than 45 years . December 23, 2020 . December 24, 2020 . WTOP-FM.
  9. News: Longtime Maryland Senate leader diagnosed with cancer . . January 10, 2019 . . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20190111055141/https://ktiv.com/2019/01/10/longtime-maryland-senate-leader-diagnosed-with-cancer/ . January 11, 2019.
  10. Web site: Mike Miller, longest-serving Maryland Senate president, dies at 78. January 15, 2021. WTOP. January 15, 2021.