Joe Dunn

Who is Joe Dunn?

Joseph Lawrence Dunn is a Democratic former California State Senator who represented California's 34th Senate District in central Orange County.

Dunn was born in St. Paul, Minnesota and graduated from the College of St. Thomas and University of Minnesota Law School.

As senator, Dunn led the state's investigation into Enron's involvement in the 2000-2001 energy crisis. He was first elected to the state Senate in 1998, when he unseated incumbent Republican Rob Hurrt by a 51% to 49% margin. Dunn was reelected in 2002. He ran for the Democratic nomination for Controller in 2006 but lost by 53% to 47% to John Chiang, who would then go on to win the general.

In October 2006, Dunn was appointed as CEO of the California Medical Association.

In 2010, Dunn was selected as the Executive Director of the State Bar of California. He is a founding partner of The Senators Firm, LLP.