John Cherry became Michigan’s Lieutenant Governor in 2003 when he was elected along with Governor Jennifer Granholm. Before that he served the people of Michigan for more than 20 years as a State Representative and as State Senator. He was the Senate Democratic Floor Leader for six years and the Senate Democratic Leader for another six years.
John has also served as Chair of the National Lieutenant Governor’s Association and as chair of the Great Lakes Commission.
As Lt. Governor, Cherry chaired Michigan’s Higher Education Commission more popularly called The Cherry Commission. The Commission issued a report that has served as guide for the development of Higher Education in Michigan for much of the Twenty First Century.
In 2020, Governor Gretchen Whitmer appointed John Cherry to the Saginaw Valley State University Board of Control. Currently, he serves as the Chair of the Flint Institute of Science and History which operates the Sloan Museum of Discovery and Longway Planetarium in Flint, Michigan’s Cultural Center.