Thomas V. Miller Jr.


Thomas V. Miller Jr., known as Mike Miller, is the former president of the Maryland Senate. He has been a state senator representing the 27th District since 1975 and served as president from January 1987 to January 8, 2020, longer than any other senate president in Maryland history, and was for a period the longest-serving state senate president in the United States.

Early life and education

Miller was born in Clinton, Maryland, the first of ten siblings, and attended Surrattsville High School. He studied at the University of Maryland, College Park where he was a member of Phi Sigma Kappa, and graduated with a B.S. in business administration in 1964. Miller went on to graduate from the University of Maryland School of Law in 1967 with an LL.B. degree.

Career

In 1971, he was elected to the Maryland House of Delegates from the third legislative district of Maryland in Prince George's County, and served in that position until his election to the state senate in 1975.
The Senate office building in Annapolis is named after him due to his being the longest-serving Senate president in the history of the state legislature.
The Main Administration Building at his alma mater, the University of Maryland, College Park, was named after him on June 29, 2020. He is known as a tireless advocate for higher education institutions in Maryland and the building's official moniker is the "Thomas V. Miller Administration Building."
Miller was featured in the Netflix documentary The Keepers for his opposition to a bill seeking to increase the statute of limitations for sexual abuse victims.
On Oct. 24, 2019, he announced he would step down from his leadership post, citing fatigue caused by his cancer treatment. He has stated that he intends to serve out the remainder of his term in the state Senate.

Personal life

Miller is married; he and his wife live in Chesapeake Beach and have five children, a son and four daughters.
In January 2019, Miller disclosed that he had been diagnosed with prostate cancer in July 2018 and underwent prescribed medication treatment; in December 2018 he underwent chemotherapy after the cancer was found to have progressed.