Monday, September 3, 2007

2006 election and later

Cox had raised over $1.9 million to contest the 2006 election and on November 7, 2006, was re-elected to a second term as Michigan's Attorney General defeating Democratic candidate Amos Williams. Cox is serving his last term as Attorney General, since Michigan statewide officeholders are limited to 2 terms in office.

Cox received nationwide negative press in 2007 when the Michigan Court of Appeals ruled that adultery could, at least in theory, be prosecuted as first-degree criminal sexual conduct with a resulting life in prison sentence. This unanimous decision was reached as a result of an appeal sought by Cox's office on a drug case that touched in part on this strange loophole in the law.[3][4]

In November 2005, Cox himself admitted to committing adultery while accusing Oakland County lawyer Geoffrey Fieger of blackmail, claiming that he threatened to reveal the affair if Cox did not drop an investigation into Fieger's alleged campaign finance violations. Cox said his personal conduct was "inexcusable" and had reconciled with his wife.

Cox is a rumored candidate to run for Governor of Michigan in 2010 after the term of current governor Jennifer Granholm expires.

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