James "Jim" V. Espaldon (born June 21, 1956) is a Guam

Guam

Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...

anian politician

Politician

A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...

 and lawyer

Lawyer

A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...

. A member of the Republican Party

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

, Espaldon is a candidate for Lieutenant Governor of Guam

Lieutenant Governor of Guam

The Guamanian self governing government consists of a locally elected Governor, Lieutenant Governor and a fifteen member Legislature. The current Lieutenant Governor is Ray Tenorio, who has been in office since January 3, 2011....

 in the 2010 gubernatorial election

Guam gubernatorial election, 2010

The Guam gubernatorial election of 2010 was held on November 2, 2010. Republican Governor Felix P. Camacho was term-limited in 2010 and ineligible to run for re-election. In January 2009, the website D.C.'s Political Report predicted that the Republican Party would retain the governorship...

 as the running mate

Running mate

A running mate is a person running together with another person on a joint ticket during an election. The term is most often used in reference to the person in the subordinate position but can also properly be used when referring to both candidates, such as "Michael Dukakis and Lloyd Bentsen were...

 of Michael Cruz.

Personal life

He is married to his wife, Gilda Respicio Eay. The couple have three children, Jonte, Christian James and Victoria.

Early life

James Espaldon was born on June 21, 1956, to parents, Dr. Leticia Virata Espaldon and Dr. Ernesto Espaldon. His father served as a Senator for six terms in the 13th,14th, 15th, 19th, 20th, 21st Guam Legislatures.

Espaldon graduated from Father Duenas Memorial High School in 1975. Espaldon received his bachelor's degree

Bachelor's degree

A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...

 in business management from Menlo College

Menlo College

Menlo College, often referred to as Menlo, is a private, four-year baccalaureate college specializing in business located in the Silicon Valley town of Atherton, California.-Campus:...

 in California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

.

Early career

Espaldon has held jobs in the real estate

Real estate

In general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...

, health care

Health care

Health care is the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in humans. Health care is delivered by practitioners in medicine, chiropractic, dentistry, nursing, pharmacy, allied health, and other care providers...

 and retail

Retail

Retail consists of the sale of physical goods or merchandise from a fixed location, such as a department store, boutique or kiosk, or by mail, in small or individual lots for direct consumption by the purchaser. Retailing may include subordinated services, such as delivery. Purchasers may be...

 industries during his early career. He previously worked as an onion

Onion

The onion , also known as the bulb onion, common onion and garden onion, is the most widely cultivated species of the genus Allium. The genus Allium also contains a number of other species variously referred to as onions and cultivated for food, such as the Japanese bunching onion The onion...

 farmer on the island of Maui

Maui

The island of Maui is the second-largest of the Hawaiian Islands at and is the 17th largest island in the United States. Maui is part of the state of Hawaii and is the largest of Maui County's four islands, bigger than Lānai, Kahoolawe, and Molokai. In 2010, Maui had a population of 144,444,...

 in Hawaii

Hawaii

Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...

. Espaldon then transitions to retail management at ABC Stores

ABC Stores (Hawaii)

ABC Stores is a chain of convenience stores based in Honolulu. Of their 78 stores, 56 are located in the state of Hawaii, with the remaining locations in Guam, Saipan and Las Vegas. The company now generates more than $150 million in annual profits and employs over 900 staff.-Products:The stores...

 in Hawaii before returning to Guam. He worked in Guamanian real estate before becoming Director for Facilities Services at a medical clinic.

He obtained a juris doctorate from Ohio Northern University Pettit College of Law in 2003.

Career

Espaldon worked as a law clerk

Law clerk

A law clerk or a judicial clerk is a person who provides assistance to a judge in researching issues before the court and in writing opinions. Law clerks are not court clerks or courtroom deputies, who are administrative staff for the court. Most law clerks are recent law school graduates who...

 for the Supreme Court of Guam under Judge Alberto C. Lamorena III prior to entering politics

Politics

Politics is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the...

. He joined the Guam bar asscoaition in September 2006.

Espaldon was first elected as a Senator in the Legislature of Guam

Legislature of Guam

The Legislature of Guam is the territorial legislature of Guam. The legislative branch of the unincorporated U.S. territory is unicameral, with a single house consisting of fifteen senators, serving for a two year term...

 the 29th Guam Legislature in November 2006. He was sworn into office in January 2007. Espaldon was re-elected to second term in November 2008 for the 30th Guam Legislature.

Lt. Governor Michael W. Cruz, a candidate for Governor in the 2010 gubernatorial election

Guam gubernatorial election, 2010

The Guam gubernatorial election of 2010 was held on November 2, 2010. Republican Governor Felix P. Camacho was term-limited in 2010 and ineligible to run for re-election. In January 2009, the website D.C.'s Political Report predicted that the Republican Party would retain the governorship...

, chose Espaldon as his running mate for the election. The announcement was made at the Cruz-Espaldon headquarters in Piti

Piti, Guam

Piti is a village located on the western shore of Guam. It contains the commercial port of Guam at Apra Harbor as well as several of the island’s largest power plants.- Education :Guam Public School System serves the island....

on May 4, 2010.