Bill Ritter

About

August William Ritter Jr. (born September 6, 1956) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 41st governor of Colorado from 2007 to 2011. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the district attorney for Denver before his election to the governorship in 2006.
Ritter was the first Colorado-born person to be elected as governor of Colorado since 1975, as well as being the first Democratic officeholder in 50 years to serve with a Democratic majority in the Colorado General Assembly. Ritter did not run for a second term in 2010, citing family reasons. He supported fellow Democrat John Hickenlooper, who was elected to the governorship.

Ritter was raised on a farm in Aurora, Colorado, with 11 brothers and sisters; he was sixth-oldest. His parents were Ethel and August William Ritter. He attended Gateway High School while he lived in Aurora. He also attended St. Anthony Catholic High School in San Antonio, Texas, from 1970 to 1972.
At 14 years old, he went to work full-time in the construction industry, and joined a local labor union. He continued to work in the construction field prior to college.
Ritter enrolled in Colorado State University and completed…