John Sarbanes
Encyclopedia
John Peter Spyros Sarbanes (born May 22, 1962) is the U.S. Representative
for , serving since 2007. He is a member of the Democratic Party. The district includes the state capital of Annapolis
, central portions of the city of Baltimore, and parts of Anne Arundel, Howard
and Baltimore
counties.
Paul Sarbanes
(who represented the 3rd from 1971 to 1977) and Christine Dunbar Sarbanes, a teacher. He was born in Baltimore
and graduated from the Gilman School
there in 1980. He received a B.A., cum laude, from the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs
at Princeton University
in 1984 and a Juris Doctor
from Harvard Law School
, where he was co-chair of the Law School Democrats, in 1988.
After college, Sarbanes clerked with Baltimore Judge J. Frederick Motz on the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland
. Sarbanes spent his professional legal career at the law firm of Venable LLP
in Baltimore from 1989 to 2006, where he was chair of health care practice from 2000 to 2006 and a member of the hiring committee from 1992 to 1996.
Sarbanes sought the Democratic nomination for Maryland's third congressional district after 10-term incumbent Ben Cardin
gave up the seat to run for the Senate seat of John Sarbanes' father, Paul Sarbanes. The primary campaign included State Senator Paula Hollinger, former Baltimore City Health Commissioner Peter Beilenson, and former Maryland Democratic Party Treasurer Oz Bengur. Sarbanes won the nomination on September 12, 2006 with 31.9% of the vote. His Republican opponent in the general election was Annapolis marketing executive John White. However, the 3rd is a heavily Democratic district that has been in that party's hands since 1921, and few expected Sarbanes to have much difficulty in the election. On November 7, 2006, Sarbanes won the general election with 64% of the vote, while White received 34% of the vote and Libertarian Charles Curtis McPeek received 2%. He was handily reelected in 2008.
!bgcolor=#cccccc |Office
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!bgcolor=#cccccc |Opponent
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|-
|2006
|Congress, 3rd district
|General
||
|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |John Sarbanes
|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Democratic
|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |150,142
|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |64.03
||
|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |John White
|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Republican
|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |79,174
|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |33.76
||
|bgcolor=#99FFFF |Charles McPeek
|bgcolor=#99FFFF |Libertarian
|bgcolor=#99FFFF |4,941
|bgcolor=#99FFFF |2.11
|-
|2008
|Congress, 3rd district
|General
||
|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |John Sarbanes
|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Democratic
|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |203,711
|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |69.66
||
|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Thomas E. "Pinkston" Harris
|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Republican
|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |87,971
|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |30.08
||
|
|
|
|
|-
|2010
|Congress, 3rd district
|General
||
|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |John Sarbanes
|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Democratic
|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |147,448
|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |61.07
||
|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Jim Wilhelm
|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Republican
|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |86,947
|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |36.01
||
|bgcolor=#99FFFF |Jerry McKinley
|bgcolor=#99FFFF |Libertarian
|bgcolor=#99FFFF |5,212
|bgcolor=#99FFFF |2.16
with his three children and wife Dina, whom he met at Harvard and married in 1988.
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
for , serving since 2007. He is a member of the Democratic Party. The district includes the state capital of Annapolis
Annapolis, Maryland
Annapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Maryland, as well as the county seat of Anne Arundel County. It had a population of 38,394 at the 2010 census and is situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east of Washington, D.C. Annapolis is...
, central portions of the city of Baltimore, and parts of Anne Arundel, Howard
Howard County, Maryland
-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*62.2% White*17.5% Black*0.3% Native American*14.4% Asian*0.0% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*3.6% Two or more races*2.0% Other races*5.8% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...
and Baltimore
Baltimore County, Maryland
Baltimore County is a county located in the northern part of the US state of Maryland. In 2010, its population was 805,029. It is part of the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area. Its county seat is Towson. The name of the county was derived from the barony of the Proprietor of the Maryland...
counties.
Early life, education and career
John Sarbanes is the eldest son of former U.S. SenatorUnited States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
Paul Sarbanes
Paul Sarbanes
Paul Spyros Sarbanes , a Democrat, is a former United States Senator who represented the state of Maryland. Sarbanes was the longest-serving senator in Maryland history, having served from 1977 until 2007. He did not seek re-election in 2006, when he was succeeded by fellow Democrat Ben Cardin...
(who represented the 3rd from 1971 to 1977) and Christine Dunbar Sarbanes, a teacher. He was born in Baltimore
Baltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
and graduated from the Gilman School
Gilman School
Gilman School is a private preparatory school for boys located in the Roland Park neighborhood of Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1897 as the Country School for Boys, it was the first country day school in the United States. Gilman enrolls approximately 978 students, ranging from kindergarten to...
there in 1980. He received a B.A., cum laude, from the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs
Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs
The Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs is a professional public policy school at Princeton University. The school has granted undergraduate A.B. degrees since 1930 and graduate degrees since 1948...
at Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
in 1984 and a Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...
from Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...
, where he was co-chair of the Law School Democrats, in 1988.
After college, Sarbanes clerked with Baltimore Judge J. Frederick Motz on the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland
United States District Court for the District of Maryland
The United States District Court for the District of Maryland is the Federal district court whose jurisdiction is the state of Maryland....
. Sarbanes spent his professional legal career at the law firm of Venable LLP
Venable LLP
Venable LLP is a law firm formerly known as Venable, Baetjer & Howard LLP. The firm is . It was founded in Baltimore in 1900. Today the firm maintains 7 offices throughout the country and includes over 500 attorneys practicing in over covering corporate and business law, complex litigation,...
in Baltimore from 1989 to 2006, where he was chair of health care practice from 2000 to 2006 and a member of the hiring committee from 1992 to 1996.
Committee assignments
- Committee on Energy and CommerceUnited States House Committee on Energy and CommerceThe Committee on Energy and Commerce is one of the oldest standing committees of the United States House of Representatives. Established in 1795, it has operated continuously—with various name changes and jurisdictional changes—for more than 200 years...
- Subcommittee on Health
- Committee on Natural Resources
- Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral ResourcesUnited States House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral ResourcesThe United States House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources is one of the five subcommittees within the House Natural Resources Committee-Members, 112th Congress:-External links:*...
- Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public LandsUnited States House Natural Resources Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public LandsThe United States House Natural Resources Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands is one of the five subcommittees within the House Natural Resources Committee-Members, 112th Congress:-External links:*...
- Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources
Caucus Memberships
- Armenian Caucus
- Congressional Public Service Caucus (Co-Chair)
- House Congressional Hellenic Caucus
- International Conservation CaucusUnited States Congressional International Conservation CaucusThe U.S. Congressional International Conservation Caucus is a bipartisan congressional organization that was founded in September 2003 with the conviction that “the United States of America has the opportunity, the obligation and the interests to advance the conservation of natural resources for...
- Joint Congressional Human Rights Caucus
- Pakistan Caucus
Environmental education
Congressman Sarbanes has introduced H.R. 2054, the No Child Left Inside Act (NCLI). This Act seeks to both improve education in the nation’s public schools and to protect the environment by “creating a new environmental education grant program, providing teacher training for environmental education, and including environmental education as an authorized activity under the Fund for the Improvement of Education.” NCLI also requires states that participate in the environmental education grant programs to develop a plan to ensure that high school graduates are environmentally literate. This legislation is supported by a “coalition of over 1200 local, regional, and national organizations representing millions of concerned citizens who are anxious to see a new commitment to environmental education.”Political campaigns
Sarbanes sought the Democratic nomination for Maryland's third congressional district after 10-term incumbent Ben Cardin
Ben Cardin
Benjamin Louis "Ben" Cardin is the junior United States Senator from Maryland and a member of the Democratic Party. Before his election to the Senate, Cardin was a member of the United States House of Representatives, representing from 1987 to 2007.Cardin was elected to succeed Paul Sarbanes in...
gave up the seat to run for the Senate seat of John Sarbanes' father, Paul Sarbanes. The primary campaign included State Senator Paula Hollinger, former Baltimore City Health Commissioner Peter Beilenson, and former Maryland Democratic Party Treasurer Oz Bengur. Sarbanes won the nomination on September 12, 2006 with 31.9% of the vote. His Republican opponent in the general election was Annapolis marketing executive John White. However, the 3rd is a heavily Democratic district that has been in that party's hands since 1921, and few expected Sarbanes to have much difficulty in the election. On November 7, 2006, Sarbanes won the general election with 64% of the vote, while White received 34% of the vote and Libertarian Charles Curtis McPeek received 2%. He was handily reelected in 2008.
Campaign finance
In the 2008 election cycle, the Sarbanes campaign’s income totaled $1,012,936 and his campaign spent $799,506. His top individual contributor was Veneble LLP ($38, 854), which is where he spent his professional legal career for 18 years (1989–2006), “represent[ing] non-profit hospitals and senior living providers in their mission to deliver high quality care to the people of Maryland.” Other top contributors included Johns Hopkins University, Gordon Feinblatt et al., Chesapeake Partners Management, DLA Piper, and the Carpenters & Joiners Union. The top sectors that contributed money to his campaign were Finance/Insurance/Real Estate, Lawyers & Lobbyists, Labor, and Health. The top industries that contributed to Sarbanes’ campaign include: Lawyers, Real Estate, Education, and Health Professionals.Electoral history
!bgcolor=#cccccc |Year!bgcolor=#cccccc |Office
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!
!bgcolor=#cccccc |Opponent
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!
!bgcolor=#cccccc |Opponent
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|-
|2006
|Congress, 3rd district
|General
||
|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |John Sarbanes
|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |150,142
|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |64.03
||
|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |John White
John White (Maryland politician)
John White is currently the Chairman and CEO of Compass Marketing, Inc., and was the Republican nominee for U.S. Congress in 2006 in Maryland's 3rd congressional district to replace incumbent Democrat Ben Cardin, who successfully ran for the U.S. Senate. His opponents were Democrat John Sarbanes...
|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |79,174
|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |33.76
||
|bgcolor=#99FFFF |Charles McPeek
|bgcolor=#99FFFF |Libertarian
Libertarian Party (United States)
The Libertarian Party is the third largest and fastest growing political party in the United States. The political platform of the Libertarian Party reflects its brand of libertarianism, favoring minimally regulated, laissez-faire markets, strong civil liberties, minimally regulated migration...
|bgcolor=#99FFFF |4,941
|bgcolor=#99FFFF |2.11
|-
|2008
|Congress, 3rd district
|General
||
|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |John Sarbanes
|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |203,711
|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |69.66
||
|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Thomas E. "Pinkston" Harris
|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |87,971
|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |30.08
||
|
|
|
|
|-
|2010
|Congress, 3rd district
|General
||
|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |John Sarbanes
|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |147,448
|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |61.07
||
|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Jim Wilhelm
|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |86,947
|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |36.01
||
|bgcolor=#99FFFF |Jerry McKinley
|bgcolor=#99FFFF |Libertarian
Libertarian Party (United States)
The Libertarian Party is the third largest and fastest growing political party in the United States. The political platform of the Libertarian Party reflects its brand of libertarianism, favoring minimally regulated, laissez-faire markets, strong civil liberties, minimally regulated migration...
|bgcolor=#99FFFF |5,212
|bgcolor=#99FFFF |2.16
Personal life
Sarbanes lives in Towson, MarylandTowson, Maryland
Towson is an unincorporated community and a census-designated place in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. The population was 55,197 at the 2010 census...
with his three children and wife Dina, whom he met at Harvard and married in 1988.
External links
- Congressman John Sarbanes official U.S. House site
- John Sarbanes for Congress official campaign site
- Profile at SourceWatchSourceWatchSourceWatch is an internet wiki site that is a collaborative project of the liberal Center for Media and Democracy...