John Baldacci

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73^rd Governor of Maine
John Baldacci

Incumbent
Assumed office January 8, 2003
Lieutenant(s)	none
Preceded by	Angus King
Succeeded by	Incumbent

Born	January 30, 1955 (1955-01-30) (age 52) Bangor, Maine
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Karen Baldacci
Religion	Roman Catholic

John Elias Baldacci (born January 30, 1955) is the current Governor of the U.S. State of Maine. A Democrat, he was born in Bangor, Maine, one of eight children in a family of Italian-Lebanese origin.

1 Political career
2 Election as Governor
3 First term
4 2006 Election
5 Second Term
6 Personal
7 Electoral History
8 References
9 External links

He was first elected to public office in 1978 at the age of 23, when he served on the Bangor City Council. He continued in politics, winning election to the Maine Senate in 1982. Baldacci served as a State Senator for 12 years. In 1994, following the retirement of his cousin, United States Senator George J. Mitchell, Baldacci won election to the U.S. House of Representatives from Maine's Second District, replacing Senator (then Representative) Olympia Snowe, who had moved on to Mitchell's open Senate seat. He was reelected to Congress in the elections of 1996, 1998, and 2000, serving on the House Agriculture Committee and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.

A Democrat, Baldacci was first elected in 2002, defeating Republican candidate Peter Cianchette, who garnered 41% of the vote, and Green Party nominee Jonathan Carter, who won 9%. Baldacci was sworn in as Maine's Governor on January 8, 2003. In 2006, Baldacci won re-election from a field of 4 major candidates. As Governor, he is a member of the National Governors Association and the Democratic Governors Association.

After being elected, Baldacci attempted to fill a $1.2 billion deficit. This was done through budget cuts and fee increases. Baldacci refused to raise broad based taxes, honoring a campaign pledge.

Baldacci also established a controversial^{[citation needed]} state funded health care program known as Dirigo Health. The program offers subsidized health care to individuals and Maine businesses with fewer than 50 employees. Individuals in the system enjoy unlimited preventive care. The program is funded by taxes levied on health insurance companies. This tax is controversial^{[citation needed]}, with critics claiming that it raises health care costs and drives insurers out of the state. Proponents claim that the preventive care eventually lowers health care costs. Thus far, Dirigo not been widely successful^{[citation needed]} and has endured political and public setbacks. The Baldacci administration maintains the program can be fixed if more taxpayer money is invested into it.

In 2005, Baldacci introduced legislation to expand Maine's civil rights law to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation. This legislation in Maine had been defeated via referendum by voters two times before. The law passed, but opponents of the law initiated a referendum to overturn the law. Voters upheld the new law.

Baldacci is a supporter of regionalization, a sometimes contentious policy of merging local-government services to save money on administrative costs. While Baldacci has had some success with regionalizing local government, it has often come under fire from rural lawmakers who view the process as weakening their communities.[1]

Main article: Maine gubernatorial election, 2006

Baldacci ran for reelection in 2006, facing opposition from Republican Chandler Woodcock, Independents Barbara Merrill and Phillip Napier, and Green Independent Party candidate Pat LaMarche.

Democratic-leaning voters had a wide array of choices. Merrill, who was elected to her state house seat as a Democrat, Woodcock, and LaMarche received money from Maine's Clean Elections law. Merrill and LaMarche were generally seen as taking votes from Baldacci, while Woodcock's socially conservative position prompted many longtime Republicans to throw their votes to Baldacci, Merrill, or LaMarche.

Baldacci won the election with 38% of the vote. Woodcock placed second with 30%. Merrill received a surprising 21%, narrowly defeating Baldacci among unenrolled voters. LaMarche finished with 10%, enough to maintain ballot access for the Green Party.

Governor Baldacci was inaugurated on January 3, 2007 in Augusta, Maine. During his inaugural speech, Baldacci reaffirmed his controversial^{[citation needed]} goal to combine Maine's 152 school districts into only 26.

Shortly after beginning his second term, he proposed consolidating Maine's 152 school districts into 26. Many Maine teachers and administrators oppose the move.^{[citation needed]} Baldacci claims that the proposal will reduce bureaucratic redundancy and make more money available for classrooms. Critics contend it reduces local control. Debate over the proposal continues, with the Legislature inititally appearing to favor a compromise proposal that would reduce the number of districts, but not as radically as proposed by Baldacci, and with exceptions for island schools and high achieving districts.

Word has emerged that Governor Baldacci had a private meeting with Verizon CEO Ivan Seidenberg in the midst of Verizon's significantly challenged sale of its Maine (and two other states) landlines to Fairpoint Communications.^[1] Details about the meeting have been sketchy. The deal has been termed the most significant for Maine's PUC in decades.

Baldacci has also proposed a controversial cigarette tax of an additional $1.50 per pack, which would bring Maine's tax to the highest cigarette tax in the nation at $3.50 in tax per pack.

His current term will end in January of 2011.

Born in Bangor, Maine, he grew up with seven siblings, in a Lebanese-Italian family. As a youngster, he worked in the family business, Momma Baldacci's restaurant in Bangor. A graduate of Bangor High School, he received a B. S. degree in history from the University of Maine at Orono. Following the example set by his father, a Bangor city councillor, he entered public service as the youngest member of that council at the age of 23 in 1978.

He is a Roman Catholic. He lives with his wife Karen and son Jack in the Blaine House in Augusta. Baldacci is first cousin to former United States Senate majority leader George J. Mitchell and to famed author David Baldacci. Karen heads up Maine Reads, a nonprofit umbrella organization for Read With ME, privately funded by Verizon.

He holds a technician class amateur radio license with call sign KB1NXP.

Maine Gubernatorial Election 2002
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	John Baldacci	233,543	47.2
	Republican	Peter Cianchette	205,335	41.5

Maine Gubernatorial Election 2006
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	John Baldacci (Incumbent)	206,991	38.0	-9.2
	Republican	Chandler Woodcock	164,861	30.3
	Independent	Barbara Merrill	117,111	21.5
	Green	Pat LaMarche	52,150	9.6

^ http://thephoenix.com/article_ektid53206.aspx

Maine Governor John Baldacci official state site
National Governors Association — Maine Governor John E. Baldacci biography
Follow the Money — John E Baldacci 2006 campaign contributions
On the Issues — John Baldacci issue positions and quotes
Project Vote Smart — Governor John Elias Baldacci (ME) profile
Governor John Baldacci official campaign site

Preceded by Olympia Snowe	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Maine's 2nd congressional district 1995–2003	Succeeded by Mike Michaud
Preceded by Angus King	Governor of Maine 2003 – present	Incumbent