Joseph E. Brennan

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Joe Brennan
Gerard Conley
Succeeded byPhilip 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

(1934-11-02)November 2, 1934
Portland, Maine, U.S.
DiedApril 6, 2024(2024-04-06) (aged 89)
Portland, Maine, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseConstance Brennan
Children2
EducationBoston College (BS)
University of Maine (LLB)
Military service
Branch/serviceUnited States Army
Years of service1953–1955

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.

Early life

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

Brennan won election to the

assault-style weapons in the United States.[8] He was elected to the Maine Senate in 1972.[6]

Brennan in 2005

Brennan ran for

Janet T. Mills,[4] whom Brennan appointed as the first female district attorney in the New England region.[11][12][4]

In

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

Joe married Connie LaPointe Brennan in 1994. Joe had two children :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

Maine U.S. Senate Election 1996[22]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican
 		Susan Collins 298,422 49.2%
Democratic
 Joe Brennan 266,226 43.9%
Green
 John Rensenbrink 23,441 3.9%
Maine Gubernatorial Election 1994[23]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Independent
 		Angus King 180,829 35%
Democratic
 Joe Brennan 172,951 34%
Republican
 Susan Collins 117,990 23%
Maine Gubernatorial Election 1990[24]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican
John R. McKernan
(incumbent) 		243,766 47%
Democratic Joe Brennan 230,038 44%
Independent
 Andrew Adam 48,377 9%
US House election, 1988: Maine District 1[25]
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
US House election, 1986: Maine District 1[26]
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
Republican
Maine Gubernatorial Election 1982[27]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Joe Brennan (incumbent) 281,066 61%
Republican Charles Cragin 172,949 38%
Maine Gubernatorial Election 1978[28]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Joe Brennan 176,493 48%
Republican
Linwood E. Palmer, Jr.
 126,862 34%
Independent
 Herman Frankland 65,889 18%

References

  1. ^ Congressional Record: Daily Digest of the 100th Congress, First Session. Washington, D.C.: United States Government Printing Office. 1987 – via Internet Archive.
  2. ^ 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.
  3. ^ "Boyhood Home of Governor Brennan". Archived from the original on January 27, 2013. Retrieved March 26, 2013.
  4. ^ 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.
  5. ^ "Maine". Official Congressional Directory. 100. U.S. Government Printing Office: 88. 1987. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  6. ^ 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.
  7. ^ "Brennan, McKernan have similar pasts > Gubernatorial candidates took comparable political paths to Blaine House". Bangor Daily News. October 20, 1990. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
  8. ^ "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.
  9. ^ "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.
  10. ^ "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.
  11. ^ "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.
  12. ^ 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.
  13. ^ "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.
  14. ^ "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.
  15. ^ "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.
  16. ^ 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.
  17. ^ "Maine Sends Second GOP Woman To Senate". CNN.com. November 5, 1996. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
  18. ^ "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.
  19. ^ "Bush names Democrats to federal boards – UPI Archives". UPI.
  20. ^ "Obituary of Joseph Brennan". Bangor Daily News. April 8, 2024. Archived from the original on April 9, 2024. Retrieved April 9, 2024.
  21. ^ 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.
  22. ^ "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.
  23. ^ "1994 Gubernatorial General Election Results – Maine". Archived from the original on April 11, 2024. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  24. ^ "1990 Gubernatorial General Election Results – Maine". Archived from the original on May 28, 2022. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  25. ^ "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)
  26. ^ "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)
  27. ^ "1982 Gubernatorial General Election Results – Maine". Archived from the original on March 27, 2023. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  28. ^ "1978 Gubernatorial General Election Results – Maine". Archived from the original on December 6, 2022. Retrieved April 11, 2024.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Joseph E. Brennan.
Legal offices
Preceded by Attorney General of Maine
1975–1979 		Succeeded by
Party political offices
Preceded by Democratic nominee for Governor of Maine
1978, 1982 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Democratic nominee for Governor of Maine
1990, 1994 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
Class 2)
1996
 Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by Governor of Maine
1979–1987 		Succeeded by
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the
U.S. House of Representatives
from Maine's 1st congressional district

1987–1991 		Succeeded by
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