Joseph Edward Brennan (November 2, 1934 – April 6, 2024) was an American lawyer and politician from Maine. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 70th Governor of Maine from 1979 to 1987 and in the United States House of Representatives for Maine's 1st congressional district from 1987 to 1991.[1] Brennan was a commissioner on the Federal Maritime Commission during the Clinton, George W. Bush, and Obama administrations.
Joe Brennan | |
|---|---|
 Brennan as governor | |
| Commissioner of the Federal Maritime Commission | |
| In office November 10, 1999 – January 1, 2013 | |
| President | Bill Clinton George W. Bush Barack Obama |
| Preceded by | William Hathaway |
| Succeeded by | William P. Doyle |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Maine's 1st district | |
| In office January 7, 1987 – January 3, 1991 | |
| Preceded by | Jock McKernan |
| Succeeded by | Tom Andrews |
| 70th Governor of Maine | |
| In office January 3, 1979 – January 7, 1987 | |
| Preceded by | Jim Longley |
| Succeeded by | Jock McKernan |
| Attorney General of Maine | |
| In office January 2, 1975 – January 3, 1979 | |
| Governor | Jim Longley |
| Preceded by | Jon Lund |
| Succeeded by | Richard Cohen |
| Member of the Maine Senate from the 10th district | |
| In office January 3, 1973 – January 1, 1975 | |
| Preceded by | Gerard Conley |
| Succeeded by | Philip Merrill |
| Member of the Maine House of Representatives from the Portland district | |
| In office January 6, 1965 – January 6, 1971 Serving with 11 at-large members | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Joseph Edward Brennan November 2, 1934 Portland, Maine, U.S. |
| Died | April 6, 2024 (aged 89) Portland, Maine, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Constance Brennan |
| Children | 2 |
| Education | Boston College (BS) University of Maine (LLB) |
| Military service | |
| Branch/service | United States Army |
| Years of service | 1953–1955 |
Early life edit
Brennan was born on November 2, 1934, in Portland, Maine.[2] He lived on Kellogg Street, on the third floor of tenement housing on Munjoy Hill.[3][4] He was raised in a family of eight children, with his parents being Irish immigrants.[4] Brennan graduated from Cheverus High School,[5] Boston College, and the University of Maine School of Law. Brennan served in the United States Army from 1953 to 1955.[6]
Government service edit
Brennan won election to the Maine House of Representatives in 1964, and served three terms.[6] When first elected to the Maine House he did not own a car and hitchhiked up from Portland.[7] In 1970, he was elected county attorney for Cumberland County. When he was District Attorney, his Munjoy Hill house was shot up, with bullets landing by his infant daughter. This led Brennan to support the ban on assault-style weapons in the United States.[8] He was elected to the Maine Senate in 1972.[6]
Brennan ran for governor of Maine in 1974; he lost the Democratic nomination to George J. Mitchell.[9] The Maine Legislature selected Brennan to be the Maine Attorney General on January 2, 1975.[10] As attorney general, Brennan took part in negotiations with both Wabanaki tribes and the federal government on what became the Maine Indian Land Claims Settlement Act of 1980, a federal law enacted during the presidency of Jimmy Carter.[4] Brennan ran for governor again in 1978, winning the primary and general elections. Brennan was reelected in a landslide in 1982, serving as governor from 1979 to 1987. As governor, Brennan launched education reforms, pressed for tough highway safety measures, and helped to establish the Finance Authority of Maine.[4] Among the notable people Brennan appointed as governor were renowned Maine U.S. Senator George J. Mitchell and future Governor of Maine Janet T. Mills,[4] whom Brennan appointed as the first female district attorney in the New England region.[11][12][4]
In 1986, Brennan ran for the U.S. House in Maine's 1st congressional district and defeated Republican Rollin Ives with 53% of the vote.[13] After serving two terms in the House, Brennan ran for governor again in 1990, losing to Republican John McKernan.[14] He ran again in 1994, losing to Independent Angus King, but placing second, ahead of Republican Susan Collins.[15] He faced Collins in another statewide election in 1996, running for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Bill Cohen,[16] which Collins won.[17]
In 1999, President Bill Clinton nominated Brennan to serve as a commissioner on the Federal Maritime Commission, a small independent agency that regulates shipping between the U.S. and foreign countries.[18] He was re-nominated by President George W. Bush and confirmed for a second term at the FMC in 2004.[19]
Personal life and death edit
Joe married Connie LaPointe Brennan in 1994. They subsequently had two children together: J. B. Brennan, who is a 25-year veteran of the United States Secret Service, and Dr. Tara Brennan, who holds a Doctorate of Psychology from LIU Brooklyn.[20]
Brennan died of natural causes at his home in Munjoy Hill, on April 6, 2024, at the age of 89.[6][21]
Electoral history edit
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Susan Collins | 298,422 | 49.2% | ||
| Democratic | Joe Brennan | 266,226 | 43.9% | ||
| Green | John Rensenbrink | 23,441 | 3.9% | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | Angus King | 180,829 | 35% | ||
| Democratic | Joe Brennan | 172,951 | 34% | ||
| Republican | Susan Collins | 117,990 | 23% | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | John R. McKernan (incumbent) | 243,766 | 47% | ||
| Democratic | Joe Brennan | 230,038 | 44% | ||
| Independent | Andrew Adam | 48,377 | 9% | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Joe Brennan (incumbent) | 167,623 | 60.11% | ||
| Republican | Edward S. O'Meara | 111,125 | 36.78% | ||
| Majority | 79,864 | 26.44% | |||
| Turnout | 278,748 | ||||
| Democratic hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Joe Brennan | 121,848 | 53.16% | |||
| Republican | H. Rollin Ives | 100,260 | 43.74% | |||
| Labor for Maine | Plato Truman | 7,109 | 3.10% | |||
| Majority | 21,588 | 9.42% | ||||
| Turnout | 229,217 | |||||
| Democratic gain from Republican | ||||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Joe Brennan (incumbent) | 281,066 | 61% | ||
| Republican | Charles Cragin | 172,949 | 38% | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Joe Brennan | 176,493 | 48% | ||
| Republican | Linwood E. Palmer, Jr. | 126,862 | 34% | ||
| Independent | Herman Frankland | 65,889 | 18% | ||
References edit
- ^ Congressional Record: Daily Digest of the 100th Congress, First Session. Washington, D.C.: United States Government Printing Office. 1987 – via Internet Archive.
- ^ Hunt, Matt. "Joseph E. Brennan – The Blaine House , Home of Maine's Governors". blainehouse.org. Archived from the original on April 7, 2024. Retrieved April 7, 2024.
- ^ "Boyhood Home of Governor Brennan". Archived from the original on January 27, 2013. Retrieved March 26, 2013.
- ^ a b c d e f Sharp, David (April 6, 2024). "Joe Brennan, Democratic former governor of Maine and US congressman, dies at 89". Associated Press. Archived from the original on April 6, 2024. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
- ^ "Maine". Official Congressional Directory. 100. U.S. Government Printing Office: 88. 1987. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
- ^ a b c d "Joseph Brennan, former Maine governor, congressman and political leader, dies at 89". Press Herald. April 6, 2024. Archived from the original on April 6, 2024. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
- ^ "Brennan, McKernan have similar pasts > Gubernatorial candidates took comparable political paths to Blaine House". Bangor Daily News. October 20, 1990. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
- ^ "Senate races draw national leaders> Kennedy's visit boost for Brennan". Bangor Daily News. October 19, 1996. Archived from the original on August 15, 2019. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
- ^ "Mitchell will face Erwin in November". Kennebec Journal. June 12, 1974. p. 1. Archived from the original on April 6, 2024. Retrieved April 6, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Legislature under way: Brennan, Scribner selected for posts". The Bangor Daily News. January 2, 1975. p. 1. Archived from the original on April 6, 2024. Retrieved April 6, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Office of the Maine AG: Biography of Attorney General Janet T. Mills". maine.gov. Archived from the original on March 26, 2012. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
- ^ Woodard, Colin (September 16, 2018). "Janet Mills' mission: Break yet another glass ceiling". Portland Press Herald. Archived from the original on November 19, 2018. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
- ^ "Brennan celebrates bittersweet victory". Journal Tribune. November 5, 1986. p. 1. Archived from the original on April 8, 2024. Retrieved April 8, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "How Maine voted: Governor's races 1990 – 2018". Press Herald. October 5, 2022. Archived from the original on April 6, 2024. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
- ^ "Unfettered By Party, He's Set To Govern". The New York Times. November 18, 1994. Archived from the original on December 5, 2022. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
- ^ Broder, David S. (October 24, 1996). "Republicans Hope Senate Candidate Can Go Against The Grain In Maine". Washington Post. Archived from the original on August 28, 2017. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
- ^ "Maine Sends Second GOP Woman To Senate". CNN.com. November 5, 1996. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
- ^ "President Clinton Names Joseph. E. Brennan as Commissioner of the Federal Maritime Commission". The White House (Press release). February 3, 1999. Archived from the original on April 6, 2024. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
- ^ "Bush names Democrats to federal boards – UPI Archives". UPI.
- ^ "Obituary of Joseph Brennan". Bangor Daily News. April 8, 2024. Archived from the original on April 9, 2024. Retrieved April 9, 2024.
- ^ Ledford, David (April 6, 2024). "Former Maine governor Joseph Brennan dies at 89". FOX 22/ABC 7. Archived from the original on April 6, 2024. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
- ^ "Statistics of the Presidential and Congressional Election of November 5, 1996" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on May 25, 2017. Retrieved January 5, 2013.
- ^ "1994 Gubernatorial General Election Results – Maine". Archived from the original on April 11, 2024. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
- ^ "1990 Gubernatorial General Election Results – Maine". Archived from the original on May 28, 2022. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
- ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on July 19, 2021. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on August 4, 2023. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "1982 Gubernatorial General Election Results – Maine". Archived from the original on March 27, 2023. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
- ^ "1978 Gubernatorial General Election Results – Maine". Archived from the original on December 6, 2022. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
External links edit
- United States Congress. "Joseph E. Brennan (id: B000798)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
- Appearances on C-SPAN