Olympia Snowe
Olympia Jean Snowe (b. February 21, 1947) was a Republican member of the U.S. Senate from the state of Maine. Snowe served in the Senate from 1994-2013.
Based on an analysis of bill sponsorship by GovTrack, Snowe was a "centrist Republican leader."[1]
Snowe did not seek re-election in 2012.[2] Snowe pointed to the increasingly partisan divide in Congress, stating she was tired of "'my way or the highway' ideologies."[3] Independent Angus King won the election to succeed Snowe.
Biography
Snowe was born in 1947 in Augusta, Maine. After graduating from Edward Little High School in 1965, Snowe went on to earn her B.A. at the University of Maine in 1969. Prior to her political career, Snowe worked as a businesswoman.[4]
Career
Below is an abbreviated outline of Snowe's political career:[4]
- Maine State House of Representatives, 1973-1976
- Maine State Senate, 1976-1978
- U.S. House of Representatives, 1979-1995
- U.S. Senate, 1995-2013
Committee assignments
U.S. Senate
2011-2012
Snowe served on the following Senate committees[5]:
- Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee Ranking Member
- Select Committee on Intelligence
- Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee
- Finance Committee
Issues
Fiscal Cliff
Snowe voted for the fiscal cliff compromise bill, which made permanent most of the Bush tax cuts originally passed in 2001 and 2003 while also raising tax rates on the highest income levels. The bill was passed in the Senate by an 89 - 8 vote on January 1, 2013.[6]
Endorsements
2014
Snowe endorsed Wyoming Republican Senator Mike Enzi over Liz Cheney. She stated: "There is no reason to challenge him. What is the basis? That he’s not working hard enough? He’s working very hard. That he’s not conservative enough? I think it’s regrettable.”[7]
Elections
2012
Snowe did not seek re-election in 2012.[2] Angus King (I) defeated Cynthia Dill (D), Charles Summers (R), Andrew Ian Dodge (L), Danny Francis Dalton (I), and Stephen Woods (I) in the general election on November 6, 2012.
2006
On November 7, 2006, Snowe won re-election to the United States Senate. She defeated Jean M. Hay Bright (D) and William H. Slavick (I) in the general election.[8]
| U.S. Senate General Election, Maine, 2006 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  Olympia Snowe Incumbent |
74.4% | 405,596 | |
| Democratic | Jean M. Hay Bright | 20.8% | 113,131 | |
| Independent | William H. Slavick | 4.8% | 26,222 | |
| Independent | Other | 0% | 179 | |
| Total Votes | 545,128 | |||
Campaign finance summary
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Analysis
Congressional staff salaries
The website Legistorm compiles staff salary information for members of Congress. Snowe paid her congressional staff a total of $2,470,674 in 2011. She ranked 22nd on the list of the highest paid Republican senatorial staff salaries and ranked 36th overall of the lowest paid senatorial staff salaries in 2011. Overall, Maine ranked 41st in average salary for senatorial staff. The average U.S. Senate congressional staff was paid $2,529,141.70 in fiscal year 2011.[9]
Net worth
Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org, Snowe's net worth as of 2010 was estimated between $9,426,053 and $29,270,000. That averages to $19,348,026, which was higher than the average net worth of Republican senators in 2010 of $7,054,258.[10]
Political Analysis
National Journal vote ratings
Each year, National Journal publishes an analysis of how liberally or conservatively each member of Congress voted, as compared to other members, in the previous year. More information about the analysis process can be found on the vote ratings page.
2012
According to the data released in 2013, Snowe ranked 46th most conservative senator during 2012.[11]
2011
According to the data released in 2012, Olympia Snowe ranked 46th most conservative senator during 2011.[12]
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term Olympia + Snowe + Maine + Senate
Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Snowe has been married to former Governor of Maine John R. McKernan, Jr., since 1989[13].
External links
- Social media:
- Biographies:
- Political profiles:
- Financial (federal level):
- Interest group ratings:
- Issue positions:
- Public statements:
- Voting record:
- Works by or about:
- Media appearances:
- Media coverage:
Footnotes
- ↑ GovTrack, "Olympia Snowe," accessed March 3, 2012
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 The Washington Post, "Maine Sen. Olympia Snowe to retire in blow to GOP" accessed February 29, 2012
- ↑ Associated Press, "GOP US Sen. Snowe of Maine leaving after 3 terms," February 29, 2012 (dead link)
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Biographical Guide to Members of Congress, "Olympia Snowe," accessed October 25, 2011
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedabout - ↑ U.S. Senate, "Roll Call Vote on the Fiscal Cliff," accessed January 4, 2013
- ↑ Politico, "Olympia Snowe: Liz Cheney challenge to Mike Enzi ‘unfortunate,’" accessed July 23, 2013
- ↑ U.S. Congress House Clerk, "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 7, 2006," accessed March 28, 2013
- ↑ LegiStorm, "Olympia Snowe"
- ↑ OpenSecrets, "Snowe, (R-Maine), 2010"
- ↑ National Journal, "TABLE: House Liberal Scores by Issue Area," February 26, 2013
- ↑ National Journal, "Searchable Vote Ratings Tables: House," accessed February 23, 2012
- ↑ Official Website, "Biography," accessed October 25, 2011
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by George J. Mitchell |
U.S. Senate - Maine 1995-2013 |
Succeeded by Angus King (I) |
