Mike Blouin | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromIowa's2nd district | |
| In office January 3, 1975 – January 3, 1979 | |
| Preceded by | John Culver |
| Succeeded by | Tom Tauke |
| Member of theIowa State Senate | |
| In office 1973–1974 | |
| Member of theIowa House of Representatives | |
| In office 1969–1973 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Michael Thomas Blouin (1945-11-07)November 7, 1945 (age 79) Naval Air Station Jacksonville,Florida, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Suzanne Blouin |
| Alma mater | Loras College |
Michael Thomas Blouin (born November 7, 1945) is an American politician who served as aDemocratic member of theUnited States House of Representatives from 1975 to 1979, representingIowa's 2nd congressional district. He was a candidate inthe 2006 race for Governor of Iowa but lost in the primary toChet Culver.
Blouin was born on a Naval Air Base inJacksonville,Florida, and attended school inMiami Shores, Florida, andChicago,Illinois. In 1966 he received a B.A. inpolitical science fromLoras College inDubuque,Iowa. He remained in Dubuque to teach elementary school. Two years later, he won a seat in theIowa House of Representatives, where he served from 1969 to 1973. Blouin then won election to theIowa Senate, serving from 1973 to 1974.
In 1974 Blouin ran for the U.S. House seat in the Second District being vacated by fellow DemocratJohn C. Culver, who was running for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated byHarold Hughes. Blouin defeated RepublicanTom Riley, an attorney fromCedar Rapids, in the general election. Blouin became one of many freshman Democrats in thelargest Democratic majority in the House since 1965-67, providing a mathematical two-thirds majority in that chamber.[1] For the only time since 1857,Iowa's congressional delegation included only one Republican.
Blouin won re-election in 1976, defeating Riley in acloser rematch. Besides shifting control of the White House to the Democrats, the 1976 electionsexpanded the Democratic majority in the House by one seat. It was thelast time the Democrats would hold a two-thirds majority.
Blouin wasdefeated byTom Tauke in 1978, as part of a mid-term election that was the first phase of a conservative backlash, particularly in the Midwest.[2] He was appointed by PresidentJimmy Carter to be the first Director of the newly formedInformation Security Oversight Office; he served from 1978 to 1980.[3]
He is an ordained deacon in the Catholic Church. He founded a special ministry for those with Alzheimer's Disease, which included his now-deceased wife. Blouin was director of the Iowa Department of Economic Development[4] from January 2003 to July 2005, and became a candidate for the Democratic nomination forGovernor in 2006. He was also achamber of commerce executive.[4]
Blouin lost a 2006Democratic Partyprimary for Iowa governor, running against a field which includedIowa Secretary of StateChet Culver (the primary winner) and seven-term state representativeEd Fallon.
Blouin had received the endorsement of more than 80% of the state's Democratic legislators and most of the state's labor unions, including theTeamsters andAFSCME. Blouin has ananti-abortion perspective on abortion but had stated that he will not sign any legislation limiting the right to an abortion, even ifRoe v. Wade is overturned. He selected pro-choice business executive Andrea McGuire as his pick to be lieutenant governor.[4] The selection of McGuire was initially questioned by the media and Blouin's opponents because she was registered as a Republican as recently as 2004 and has made past contributions to Republicans including CongressmanJim Nussle, the presumptive 2006 Republican nominee for governor. McGuire also made significant contributions to Democratic candidates within the same time span, and supportedHoward Dean's2004 presidential bid.
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | U.S. Representative fromIowa's 2nd congressional district 1975-1979 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial) | ||
| Preceded byas Former US Representative | Order of precedence of the United States as Former US Representative | Succeeded byas Former US Representative |
