Joseph E. Brennan

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.

Joseph E. 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	John R. McKernan Jr.
Succeeded by	Thomas Andrews
70th Governor of Maine
In office January 3, 1979 – January 7, 1987
Preceded by	James B. 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 (1934-11-02)November 2, 1934 Portland, Maine, U.S.
Died	April 6, 2024(2024-04-06) (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

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 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 in 2005

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

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 the night of 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
	Democratic gain from 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. 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. "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

• United States Congress. "Joseph E. Brennan (id: B000798)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
• Appearances on C-SPAN

Legal offices
Preceded by Jon Lund	Attorney General of Maine 1975–1979	Succeeded by Richard Cohen
Party political offices
Preceded by George Mitchell	Democratic nominee for Governor of Maine 1978, 1982	Succeeded by James Tierney
Preceded by James Tierney	Democratic nominee for Governor of Maine 1990, 1994	Succeeded by Tom Connolly
Preceded by Neil Rolde	Democratic nominee for U.S. Senator from Maine (Class 2) 1996	Succeeded by Chellie Pingree
Political offices
Preceded by Jim Longley	Governor of Maine 1979–1987	Succeeded by Jock McKernan
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Jock McKernan	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Maine's 1st congressional district 1987–1991	Succeeded by Tom Andrews