John Baldacci facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
John Baldacci
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| 73rd Governor of Maine | |
| In office January 8, 2003 – January 5, 2011 |
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| Preceded by | Angus King |
| Succeeded by | Paul LePage |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Maine's 2nd district |
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| In office January 3, 1995 – January 3, 2003 |
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| Preceded by | Olympia Snowe |
| Succeeded by | Mike Michaud |
| Member of the Maine Senate from the 9th district |
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| In office December 1, 1982 – December 7, 1994 |
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| Preceded by | Constituency established |
| Succeeded by | Sean Faircloth |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
John Elias Baldacci
January 30, 1955 Bangor, Maine, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Karen Baldacci |
| Children | 1 |
| Education | University of Maine (BA) |
| Signature |  |
John Elias Baldacci (born January 30, 1955) is an American politician. He was the 73rd governor of Maine from 2003 to 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party. Before becoming governor, he served in the United States House of Representatives from 1995 to 2003. He was also a member of the Maine Senate from 1982 to 1994.
As governor, Baldacci worked on improving health care and public education. He also focused on developing new energy sources. He helped make government services more efficient. He also worked to create more job training programs. During his time in the U.S. Congress, he was part of committees that dealt with farming and transportation. Today, he helps lead a group called the Northeast-Midwest Institute. This group studies how to make states in the Northeast and Midwest stronger.
Contents
Early Life and Political Start
John Baldacci was born in Bangor, Maine. He grew up in a large family with seven brothers and sisters. His family had roots in Italy and Lebanon. As a child, he helped out at his family's restaurant, Momma Baldacci's. He finished Bangor High School in 1973. Later, in 1986, he earned a degree in history from the University of Maine in Orono.
Baldacci first entered politics when he was 23 years old. In 1978, he was elected to the Bangor City Council. He continued his political career by winning a seat in the Maine Senate in 1982. He represented the Bangor area. He was reelected twice, serving a total of 12 years in the state Senate.
Serving in the U.S. House of Representatives
In 1994, John Baldacci ran for the U.S. House of Representatives. He won the election for Maine's Second District. He took over the seat from Olympia Snowe. She had moved on to become a U.S. Senator. Baldacci won against Rick Bennett. This was one of the few times a Democrat won a new seat that year.
After this first close election, Baldacci was reelected three more times. He won with a large majority of the votes each time. While in Congress, he served on important committees. These included the House Agriculture Committee and the House Transportation Committee.
Becoming Governor of Maine
Winning the 2002 Election
John Baldacci, a Democrat, was first elected governor in 2002. He won with 47.2% of the votes. He defeated Republican candidate Peter Cianchette. Two other candidates, Jonathan Carter and John Michael, also ran. Baldacci officially became Maine's governor on January 8, 2003. He was reelected in 2006. As governor, he was part of groups like the National Governors Association.
First Term as Governor
When Baldacci became governor, Maine faced a large budget problem. He worked to fix this by cutting costs and combining government services. He also increased some fees. He kept his promise not to raise general taxes. During his first term, he started several big projects. These included Dirigo Health, the Maine Community College System, and Pine Tree Development Zones.
The Pine Tree Development Zones program started in 2004. It helped businesses reduce or remove state taxes for up to ten years. This was meant to encourage them to create new jobs in Maine. However, a report later showed that this program cost the state more money than it brought in.
Baldacci also changed the healthcare system with his Dirigo Health Care Act. This program offered affordable health care to people and small businesses in Maine. It helped expand wellness centers across the state. The program focused on preventive care. This meant helping people stay healthy to avoid bigger problems later.
He also improved technical colleges by turning them into community colleges. He added more courses and teachers. These colleges offered programs that helped local communities. Students could also transfer credits to the University of Maine system. This made it easier to get a four-year degree. The community college system grew a lot during his time.
In 2005, Baldacci supported a law to protect people from discrimination. This law made it illegal to discriminate based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Voters had rejected similar laws twice before. This time, the law passed. When opponents tried to overturn it, voters chose to keep the new law. Baldacci also supported combining local government services. This was done to save money on administrative costs.
Second Term as Governor
Baldacci began his second term on January 3, 2007. He continued to work on his earlier goals. He aimed to make Maine more competitive in the world economy. He also worked to make government services more efficient. He focused on attracting good jobs to the state. He wanted all Mainers to have access to good education, job training, and health care. When a recession hit in 2008, he continued to combine services. He did not raise state income taxes. He left office with extra money in the state's funds.
In his second term, Baldacci pushed for combining school administration districts. Maine had many small school districts. His plan was to merge them into larger units. This helped save money by reducing duplicated jobs. The money saved could then be used for classrooms.
In 2007, Baldacci suggested sending some Maine prisoners to a private prison in Oklahoma. This was to help with overcrowding at the Maine State Prison. However, the Maine Legislature did not approve this plan.
Baldacci also worked hard to promote alternative energy sources. He wanted Maine to rely less on oil for heating. His programs encouraged using wood pellets, which are made from Maine's forests. He also supported wind, solar, and wave energy technologies. He created the Energy Efficiency Trust. He helped set new goals for renewable energy in the state. Research at the University of Maine on floating wind turbines even attracted national attention.
He also brought leaders from the region together. They worked on coordinating energy efforts. This included building the right infrastructure to carry electricity to different markets. Baldacci also led Maine to join the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative. This program helps reduce greenhouse gases and has brought money to Maine for weatherization.
Throughout his eight years, Baldacci supported many bond efforts. These bonds were approved by Maine voters. They helped increase research and development in the state. This focused on growing areas like biomedicine and forest products. These efforts helped Maine's leading educational institutions.
In 2008, Baldacci hosted a visit from the Premier of New Brunswick, Canada. This was the first time a Canadian provincial leader officially visited Maine. They discussed increasing trade, tourism, and cooperation on energy and education.
In 2009, Baldacci signed a law that made same-sex marriage in Maine legal. This was a historic moment. It made him the first U.S. governor to sign such a bill into law without a court order. However, voters in Maine later overturned this law in a referendum. It was made legal again by a different vote in 2012.
John Baldacci left office in 2011. He was followed by Republican Paul LePage.
Personal Life and Family
While he was governor, John Baldacci lived in the Blaine House in Augusta. He lived there with his wife, Karen, and their son, Jack.
John's brother, Joe Baldacci, is a member of the Bangor City Council. John Baldacci is also related to former U.S. Senator George J. Mitchell. He is also a second cousin to author David Baldacci. His wife, Karen, worked as a registered dietitian.
Images for kids
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John Baldacci's signature
See also
In Spanish: John Baldacci para niños
