Bonnie Campbell (lawyer)
Bonnie J. Campbell (born April 9, 1948) is an American lawyer, a former Iowa Attorney General, a former Iowa gubernatorial candidate, a former official in the U.S. Department of Justice and a former federal judicial nominee to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.
Early life, education and career prior to elected office
Originally from Norwich, New York, Campbell moved to Washington, D.C. after completing high school and began working for a succession of politicians, including for United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Robert C. Weaver as a clerk-stenographer from 1965 until 1967. She then worked as a clerk for the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Intergovernmental Relations from 1967 until 1969. She joined the office of U.S. Sen. Harold Hughes as a caseworker from 1969 until 1974. Her work for Hughes brought her to Iowa, where she took a job with U.S. Sen. John Culver as a field office coordinator from 1974 until 1981.
During her time working for Senator Culver, Campbell pursued her undergraduate degree, earning a bachelor's degree from Drake University in 1982. She subsequently earned a law degree from Drake University Law School in 1984. She worked as a lawyer in private practice in Iowa from 1985 until 1991, and also was the chairwoman of the Iowa Democratic Party from 1987 until 1991.