Joseph E. Brennan

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American lawyer and politician (1934–2024)

title: "Joseph E. Brennan" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1934-births", "2024-deaths", "american-people-of-irish-descent", "american-prosecutors", "boston-college-alumni", "cheverus-high-school-alumni", "clinton-administration-personnel", "george-w.-bush-administration-personnel", "democratic-party-governors-of-maine", "democratic-party-united-states-representatives-from-maine", "district-attorneys-in-cumberland-county,-maine", "federal-maritime-commission-members", "obama-administration-personnel", "politicians-from-portland,-maine", "university-of-maine-school-of-law-alumni", "20th-century-united-states-representatives", "20th-century-members-of-the-maine-legislature"] description: "American lawyer and politician (1934–2024)" topic_path: "law" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_E._Brennan" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary American lawyer and politician (1934–2024) ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox officeholder"]

Field	Value
name	Joseph E. Brennan
image	Joseph Brennan desk portrait.jpg
caption	Brennan as governor
office	Commissioner of the Federal Maritime Commission
president	Bill Clinton
George W. Bush
Barack Obama
term_start	November 10, 1999
term_end	January 1, 2013
predecessor	William Hathaway
successor	William P. Doyle
state1	Maine
district1
term_start1	January 7, 1987
term_end1	January 3, 1991
predecessor1	John R. McKernan Jr.
successor1	Thomas Andrews
office2	70th Governor of Maine
term_start2	January 3, 1979
term_end2	January 7, 1987
predecessor2	James B. Longley
successor2	John R. McKernan Jr.
office3	Attorney General of Maine
governor3	James B. Longley
term_start3	January 2, 1975
term_end3	January 3, 1979
predecessor3	Jon Lund
successor3	Richard Cohen
state_senate4	Maine
district4	10th
term_start4	January 3, 1973
term_end4	January 1, 1975
predecessor4	Gerard Conley
successor4	Philip Merrill
state_house6	Maine
district6	Portland
term_start6	January 6, 1965
term_end6	January 6, 1971
alongside6	11 at-large members
birth_name	Joseph Edward Brennan
birth_date
birth_place	Portland, Maine, U.S.
death_date
death_place	Portland, Maine, U.S.
party	Democratic
spouse	Connie LaPointe Brennan (m. 1994)
children	2
education	Boston College (BS)
University of Maine (LLB)
branch	United States Army
serviceyears	1953–1955
::

Joseph Edward Brennan (November 2, 1934 – April 5, 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 from 1987 to 1991. 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. He lived on Kellogg Street, on the third floor of tenement housing on Munjoy Hill. He was raised in a family of eight children, with his parents being Irish immigrants. Boston College, and the University of Maine School of Law. Brennan served in the United States Army from 1953 to 1955.

Government service

Early career

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/95/Joseph_Brennan_1973.jpg" caption="Brennan in 1973"] ::

Brennan won election to the Maine House of Representatives in 1964, and served three terms. In 1970, he was elected Cumberland County district attorney. During his service as 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. He was elected to the Maine Senate in 1972.

Attorney General and Governor of Maine

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/06/Former_U.S._Representative_Joseph_E._Brennan.jpg" caption="Brennan in 1988"] ::

Brennan ran for governor of Maine in 1974. That year he became the first candidate in the post-Watergate years to call for campaign finance reform. He also voluntarily disclosed his personal finances. https://conroytullywalker.com/obits/governor-joseph-edward-brennan/ Brennan lost the Democratic nomination to George J. Mitchell. The Maine Legislature selected Brennan to be the Maine Attorney General on January 2, 1975. 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.

United States Representative

In 1986, Brennan ran for the U.S. House in and defeated Republican Rollin Ives 53% to 44%. in 1988 Brennan was reelected to the House by a margin of 63% to 37%.

In Congress Brennan opposed President Ronald Reagan Administration’s interventions in Central America and Iran. he also supported the balanced budget amendment as a Congressman. https://conroytullywalker.com/obits/governor-joseph-edward-brennan/

Later gubernatorial and Senate campaigns

Brennan ran for governor again in 1990, losing to Republican John McKernan by 13,728 votes. He ran again in 1994, losing to Independent Angus King by 7,878 votes, but placing second, ahead of Republican Susan Collins. He faced Collins in another statewide election in 1996, running for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Bill Cohen, which Collins won by 32,196 votes.

Later career

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. He was re-nominated by President George W. Bush and confirmed for a second term at the FMC in 2004.

Personal life and death

Brennan married Connie LaPointe in 1994. He had two children: J.B. Brennan, who is a veteran of the United States Secret Service, and Dr. Tara Brennan, who holds a Doctorate of Psychology from LIU Brooklyn.

Brennan died of natural causes at his home in the Portland neighborhood of Munjoy Hill (where he grew up), on April 5, 2024, at the age of 89.

Electoral history

References

(1987). "Congressional Record: Daily Digest of the 100th Congress, First Session". United States Government Printing Office.
Hunt, Matt. "Joseph E. Brennan – The Blaine House, Home of Maine's Governors".
"Boyhood Home of Governor Brennan".
Sharp, David. (April 6, 2024). "Joe Brennan, Democratic former governor of Maine and US congressman, dies at 89". Associated Press.
(1987). "Maine". U.S. Government Printing Office.
(October 20, 1990). "Brennan, McKernan have similar pasts > Gubernatorial candidates took comparable political paths to Blaine House". Bangor Daily News.
(October 19, 1996). "Senate races draw national leaders> Kennedy's visit boost for Brennan". Bangor Daily News.
(June 12, 1974). "Mitchell will face Erwin in November". Kennebec Journal.
(January 2, 1975). "Legislature under way: Brennan, Scribner selected for posts". The Bangor Daily News.
Woodard, Colin. (September 16, 2018). "Janet Mills' mission: Break yet another glass ceiling". [[Portland Press Herald]].
(November 5, 1986). "Brennan celebrates bittersweet victory". Journal Tribune.
(1988-11-09). "THE 1988 ELECTIONS: Northeast; MAINE". The New York Times.
(October 5, 2022). "How Maine voted: Governor's races 1990 – 2018".
(November 18, 1994). "Unfettered By Party, He's Set To Govern". The New York Times.
Broder, David S.. (October 24, 1996). "Republicans Hope Senate Candidate Can Go Against The Grain In Maine". Washington Post.
(November 5, 1996). "Maine Sends Second GOP Woman To Senate".
(February 3, 1999). "President Clinton Names Joseph. E. Brennan as Commissioner of the Federal Maritime Commission".
"Bush names Democrats to federal boards – UPI Archives".
(April 8, 2024). "Obituary of Joseph Brennan".
(April 6, 2024). "Joseph Brennan, former Maine governor, congressman and political leader, dies at 89".
Ledford, David. (April 6, 2024). "Former Maine governor Joseph Brennan dies at 89". FOX 22/ABC 7.
"Statistics of the Presidential and Congressional Election of November 5, 1996".
"1994 Gubernatorial General Election Results – Maine".
"1990 Gubernatorial General Election Results – Maine".
"Archived copy".
"Archived copy".
"1982 Gubernatorial General Election Results – Maine".
"1978 Gubernatorial General Election Results – Maine".

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