Robert R. Riley (born October 3, 1944)Governor Bob Riley was sworn into office as Alabama’s 52nd chief executive on Jan. 20, 2003, after representing the state for six years in the United States Congress.
Governor Riley comes into office during troubling financial times within the state’s education, correction, and transportation systems, along with several other agencies. He has pledged a host of reforms, from constitutional to budgetary, to reshape Alabama’s government into a model of efficiency and competency.
“Alabama’s government was established to serve the citizens, not the system,” Gov. Riley said. “I believe that as a nation’s first responsibility is to defend its people, a state’s first responsibility is to educate its young.”
Governor Riley has appointed successful and proven leaders to head the various state agencies needing urgent attention, and has recruited a world-class staff to help implement his many proposals for change.
Governor Riley was born and raised in the small Clay County town of Ashland, Alabama where his family has lived on ranches and farms for six generations.
After graduating from the University of Alabama at age 20 with a degree in business administration, he returned to his hometown, married his high school sweetheart and started a small business with his brother selling eggs door-to-door. That small, family-owned venture grew to become one of the largest integrated poultry operations in the Southeast.
For 32 years, Governor Riley ran a number of successful businesses including a trucking company, a car dealership, a real estate company, a grocery store and a small pharmacy. He’s also been a cattleman for the last 25 years, having more than 400-head of cattle on his Ashland ranch.
In 1996, when Alabama needed leaders to fundamentally change the course of government in Washington, Bob Riley, a political unknown, answered the call. Governor Riley, then 52, ran a successful Congressional campaign in his first run for state or national office and kept his pledge to serve only three terms.
Governor Riley has been very active serving his community as both a Shriner and a Mason. He and his family are members of the First Baptist Church of Ashland, where he taught the men's Sunday school class for a number of years and also served as Chairman of the Church’s Board of Trustees.
Governor Riley is married to the former Patsy Adams, also from Clay County. The Rileys were blessed with four children, Rob, Jenice, Minda and Krisalyn. Jenice, the Rileys' first daughter and the campaign's fundraiser, passed away in August 2001 after inspiring hundreds of people through her courageous fight against cancer. The Rileys are also the proud grandparents of two granddaughters and two grandsons. Links State of Alabama - Governor Bob Riley
