Andru Volinsky facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Andru Volinsky
Member of the New Hampshire Executive Council from the 2nd district
In office January 3, 2017 – January 6, 2021
Preceded by	Colin Van Ostern
Succeeded by	Cinde Warmington
Personal details
Born	(1956-03-13) March 13, 1956 (age 69) New York City, New York, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Amy Goldstein
Children	3
Education	University of Miami (BA) George Washington University (JD)

Andru H. Volinsky (born March 13, 1956) is an American politician and lawyer. He is also known for working to make society more fair. As a member of the Democratic Party, he served on the Executive Council of New Hampshire. This council helps the governor make important decisions for the state. He represented the 2nd district from 2017 to 2021.

As a lawyer, Mr. Volinsky was the main attorney in a very important case called Claremont School District v. Governor of New Hampshire. In this case, the New Hampshire Supreme Court decided that everyone has a right to a public education. They also said that New Hampshire's way of paying for schools was not fair. Mr. Volinsky later ran for Governor of New Hampshire in 2020 but did not win.

Early Life and Education

Andru Volinsky was born in New York City. He grew up in Levittown, Pennsylvania. He finished high school in 1973. His father worked as a mechanic, and his mother stayed home to raise their four children.

Mr. Volinsky went to the University of Miami. He studied psychology and graduated with honors in 1976. He then went to George Washington University Law School. He earned his law degree in 1980. While in law school, he met his wife, Amy Goldstein. She is also a lawyer who works to help people.

Legal Career and Important Cases

After law school, Mr. Volinsky and his wife moved to Knoxville, Tennessee. There, he became a teacher at the University of Tennessee College of Law. He taught about criminal law. He also started defending people who were facing the death penalty.

Fighting for Fair School Funding

Mr. Volinsky was the lead lawyer in a group of cases called Claremont School District v. Governor of New Hampshire. In these cases, students, parents, and school districts argued that New Hampshire's school funding system was unfair. The court agreed with them.

This legal fight made it clear that children in New Hampshire have a basic right to a public education paid for by the state. The main decisions in these cases happened in 1993 and 1997. Even after these rulings, the state has struggled to fully follow the court's decision. In 2019, the court again said the state was not meeting its duty. Mr. Volinsky has continued to teach people about how schools are funded in New Hampshire.

In 2016, Mr. Volinsky also helped the Dover School District. He won back over $1.5 million in school money that had been unfairly held back by the state.

Working Against the Death Penalty

Mr. Volinsky has spent his career defending people facing the death penalty. In 1986, when he was 30, he argued a case before the United States Supreme Court. He won, and his client's death sentence was overturned. For many years, he represented a client in Georgia named Jimmy Meders. In 2020, Mr. Meders' death sentence was changed to life in prison.

Andru Volinsky was also part of the effort in 2019 to end the death penalty in New Hampshire. This effort was successful, even though the governor tried to stop it.

Stopping Racial Profiling

Mr. Volinsky represented the New Hampshire Civil Liberties Union (NHCLU). He worked on behalf of young people of color. The Manchester Police Department had been taking and storing their photos without a good reason. Mr. Volinsky argued that making the police release these photos could show if they were unfairly targeting people based on their race or gender. This would help the public see what the police were doing and hold them responsible. The court agreed, and the police stopped this practice.

Protecting the Environment

In a case about the Northern Pass project in New Hampshire, Andru Volinsky represented people who would be affected. This project wanted to build almost 200 miles of power lines through New Hampshire. These lines would bring power from Quebec to Massachusetts. The state committee that approves such projects said no to the necessary permits. Mr. Volinsky's work at the Supreme Court helped keep that decision in place, protecting New Hampshire's natural beauty.

Getting Back Government Overpayments

Mr. Volinsky also helped the New Hampshire Secretary of State. He worked to make sure that public insurance groups were managed fairly. His legal team helped get back over $50 million in money that had been overpaid. This money went back to towns and school districts in New Hampshire. He also helped get almost $30 million more back from two other similar groups.

Political Career

Mr. Volinsky was elected to the Executive Council in 2016. He won again in 2018. This second win helped the Democratic Party gain control of the Council. In 2020, he ran for Governor of New Hampshire but lost the Democratic nomination to Dan Feltes.

Mr. Volinsky supported Bernie Sanders in the 2020 presidential primary election. In the 2024 Democratic primary, he encouraged voters to write in "ceasefire." This was a way to show their support for peace.

Personal Life

Andru Volinsky lives in East Concord, New Hampshire with his wife, Amy. They have three grown children named Josh, Mollie, and Bekah. They raise alpacas and chickens. They also grow organic vegetables. Andru even built his barn using timber from his own land. He and Amy have climbed all 48 of New Hampshire’s tallest mountains.

Awards

• The National Education Association-New Hampshire Friend of Education Award (1997 & 2019)
• NH Civil Liberties Union Bill of Rights Award (1997)
• Merrimack County Attorney of the Year (2000)
• Concord Monitor, One Hundred People Who Shaped the New Hampshire Century (2000)
• NHPR 25 Most Influential People in the last 25 Years (2007)
• Capital Region Food Program Volunteer Hero Award (2018)