Evan Bayh

Birch Evans "Evan" Bayh III, a Democrat, is a former U.S. Senator from Indiana having served from 1999 to 2011 and is a former Governor of Indiana. In February 2010 Bayh announced that he would not seek re-election. The seat was won by Republican Dan Coats who formerly was Senator for Indiana 1989 to 1999.(map)

Iraq War
Bayh voted for the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq in Oct. 2002.

Environmental record
For more information on environmental legislation, see the Energy and Environment Policy Portal

Background
Bayh was born December 26, 1955 in Shirkieville, Indiana. His father, Birch Bayh, was a Senator from 1963 to 1981 and ran for the Democratic nomination for President in 1976, but lost it to Jimmy Carter. Evan Bayh released a biography in 2003 entitled From Father to Son: A Private Life in the Public Eye. He describes growing up as the son of Senator Birch Bayh and emphasizes the importance of active, responsible fatherhood.

Evan Bayh graduated with honors in business, economics and public policy from the Indiana University Kelley School of Business in 1978, where he was a member of Phi Kappa Psi, and received his Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree from the University of Virginia in 1981. After clerking for a federal court judge and entering private law practice in Indianapolis, he was elected Indiana's Secretary of State in 1986.

Bayh was elected Governor of Indiana in 1988 and re-elected in 1992 with the highest percentage of the vote in a statewide election in modern Indiana history. Stressing fiscal responsibility, lower taxes, job creation and lean government, Bayh's tenure as governor was highlighted by: eight years without raising taxes; the largest single tax cut and budget surplus in state history; "welfare-to-work"-type social programs; increasing annual school funding; high academic standards and new college opportunities; the creation of over 350,000 new jobs; strengthened law enforcement; and improved environmental quality. He signed the 21st Century Scholars Act in 1992, legislation which says that every child growing up in Indiana who is eligible for the free lunch program in a public school, graduates from high school with passing grades, and signs a pledge not to experiment with illegal drugs, is entitled to a full college scholarship to a public university of his or her choice. By the end of his second term, Bayh had an approval rating of nearly 80 percent.

Senate career
Bayh was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1998 to the seat once held by his father. He won with 64% of the vote, the largest victory margin ever by a Democrat in a U.S. Senate race in Indiana. He easily won reelection in 2004, receiving 62% of the vote.

From 2001 to 2005, Bayh served as Chairman of the Democratic Leadership Council (DLC), the longest term of any DLC chair (previous DLC Chairmen included Bill Clinton and Joe Lieberman). He is also a member of the Senate Centrist Coalition and helped establish the New Democrat Coalition.

Bayh voted against confirming Secretary of the Interior Gale A. Norton, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, and Justice Samuel Alito. He has also become increasingly critical of Bush's handling of the war in Iraq, for which he voted. Some viewed Bayh's shift as being an attempt to woo liberal Democrats who make up a large part of the presidential primary electorate.

On January 20, 2006, Bayh introduced a resolution to deal with Iran's nuclear program. The resolution calls for economic sanctions created with the goal of deterring Iran from developing nuclear weapons. Such sanctions include: 
 * Cutting off supplies of refined gasoline to Iran,
 * Cutting assistance to countries whose companies invest in Iran's energy sector,
 * Enacting a worldwide, comprehensive ban on arms sales to Iran,
 * Withdrawing U.S. support for Iran's accession to the WTO, and
 * Calling on the UN Security Council to limit travel of some Iranian officials, reduce diplomatic exchanges with Iran, and ban Iran from participating in world events such as the World Cup and the Olympics.

Presidential candidate?
Bayh was considered a possible running mate for Al Gore in the 2000 presidential election and was selected by Bill Clinton to give the keynote address at the 1996 Democratic National Convention to reinforce his efforts to cast himself and the Democratic Party with a new moderate image. In May 2000, Bill Clinton said, "I hope and expect some day I'll be voting for Evan Bayh for President of the United States".

Some pundits initially considered Bayh to be a possible running mate for presidential candidate John Kerry in the 2004 election because his native Indiana was a key state in the important Midwest. Indiana has long been a Republican stronghold in presidential races, however, and it would almost certainly not be a swing state unless Bayh were nominated.

Bayh was also considered to be a possible 2008 Presidential nominee, due to his appeal to "Red State" voters and his perceived electability. In the 2004 election he received more votes in Indiana than George W. Bush, a feat unheard of by a Democrat in a state as staunchly Republican as Indiana. Some believe that Bayh would be a very appealing moderate in some future presidential campaign, with many critics portraying a candidate like Hillary Clinton as too liberal and polarizing. Bayh is often mentioned as leading or complementing a ticket of other possible moderates such as Governor Mark R. Warner of Virginia, Former Senator John Edwards of North Carolina, or Governor Bill Richardson of New Mexico. Bayh already has a large war chest of 9.5 million dollars, making him secure financially no matter what he decides to do.

Bayh has engaged in activities that many characterized as the laying the foundation for a Presidential run in 2008. On June 9, 2005, Bayh addressed Iowa business and civic leaders and told reporters he would travel to the state in August. On July 15, Bayh spent the weekend in New Hampshire. He has spoken to groups of Democrats in the potential swing states of Wisconsin, Ohio and Colorado. In addition, Bayh has conducted fundraisers in Chicago, Cincinnati, Dallas, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, New Orleans, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco and St. Louis.

On December 3, 2006, Bayh announced that he would be forming an exploratory committee, the first step toward making a formal presidential bid, within a few days. With such a body set up, he could begin to formally raise money for his campaign. Only two weeks later though, on December 16, 2006, Bayh announced that he would not pursue the Democratic nomination, however, as his chances of winning it were too remote. 

Money in politics
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Committees

 * Senate Special Committee on Aging
 * Senate Committee on Armed Services
 * Subcommittee on Airland
 * Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities
 * Subcommittee on Readiness and Management Support
 * Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
 * Subcommittee on Financial Institutions
 * Subcommittee on Securities, Insurance, and Investment
 * Subcommittee on International Trade and Finance - Chairman
 * Senate Select Committee on Intelligence
 * Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship

Committee assignments in the 109th Congress (2005-2006)

 * Senate Special Committee on Aging
 * Senate Committee on Armed Services
 * Subcommittee on Airland
 * Subcommittee on Readiness and Management Support
 * Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities
 * Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
 * Subcommittee on Financial Institutions
 * Subcommittee on International Trade and Finance - Ranking Minority Member
 * Subcommittee on Securities and Investment
 * Senate Select Committee on Intelligence
 * Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship

Coalitions and caucuses

 * Former chair, Democratic Leadership Council (2001-2005)
 * Member, Senate Centrist Coalition
 * Senate Chair of Third Way.
 * Helped establish the New Democrat Coalition.

Boards and other affiliations

 * Board of Directors, National Endowment for Democracy
 * Advisory Board, The Israel Project

Contact
DC Office: 463 Russell Building Washington, DC 20510 Phone: 202-224-5623 Fax: 202-228-1377 Email: senator AT bayh.senate.gov Web Email Website

District Office - Evansville: 101 Martin Luther King Junior Boulevard Evansville, IN 47708 Phone: 812-465-6500 Fax: 812-465-6503

District Office - Fort Wayne: 1300 South Harrison Street, Suite 3161 Fort Wayne, IN 46802 Phone: 260-426-3151 Fax: 260-420-0060

District Office - Hammond: 5400 Federal Plaza, Suite 3200 Hammond, IN 46320 Phone: 219-852-2763 Fax: 219-852-2787

District Office - Indianapolis: 1650 Market Tower 10 West Market Street Indianapolis, IN 46204 Phone: 317-554-0750 Fax: 317-554-0760

District Office - Jeffersonville: 1201 East Tenth Street, Suite 106 Jeffersonville, IN 47130 Phone: 812-218-2317 Fax: 812-218-2370

District Office - South Bend: Leighton Plaza 130 South Main Street, Suite 110 South Bend, IN 46601 Phone: 574-236-8302 Fax: 574-236-8319

Resources

 * Official website
 * All America PAC - Bayh's Exploratory Committee
 * 2008 Presidential Wire - Evan Bayh
 * On the Issues
 * Bayh's profile on Flickr
 * Washington Post'' Voting Database: Evan Bayh
 * Indiana Historical Bureau
 * Star Library: Evan Bayh
 * See how you compare to Evan Bayh

Related SourceWatch articles

 * Mark Penn

Local blogs and discussion sites

 * Left in Aboite
 * Americans For Bayh
 * The BayhPartisan Blog
 * Bayh4Pres
 * Draft Bayh
 * Rhodopsin

Articles

 * David Espo, "Bayh to take first step toward 2008 presidential bid," Associated Press (Boston Globe), December 1, 2006.
 * "Sen. Bayh to consider running for president," Reuters (via Washington Post), December 3, 2006.
 * Adam Nagourney, "Senator Bayh Drops Out of 2008 Presidential Field," New York Times, December 16, 2006.