35 Facts About Chellie Pingree

Chellie Marie Pingree is an American politician serving as the US representative for since 2009.

Chellie Pingree's district includes most of the southern part of the state, centered around the Portland area.

Chellie Pingree ran for the United States Senate in 2002, losing to incumbent Republican Susan Collins.

Chellie Pingree is the first Democratic woman elected to the US House of Representatives from Maine.

Chellie Pingree was born Rochelle Marie Johnson, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the daughter of Harry and Dorothy Johnson.

Chellie Pingree moved to Maine as a teenager and had her first name legally changed to Chellie.

Chellie Pingree attended the University of Southern Maine and graduated from College of the Atlantic with a degree in human ecology.

Chellie Pingree held various farming and care-taking jobs until 1981, when she started North Island Yarn, a cottage industry of hand knitters with a retail store on North Haven.

Chellie Pingree's business expanded and became North Island Designs, employing as many as ten workers.

Chellie Pingree supported net neutrality, mandatory voter-verified paper ballots, public financing of congressional elections, national popular vote, and an independent ethics commission for Congress.

Chellie Pingree stepped down from Common Cause in February 2007 to return to her home state and run for Congress in 2008.

Chellie Pingree was outspoken against going to war against Iraq, although counseled by party insiders to avoid that subject.

Chellie Pingree was elected Maine's second female majority leader in 1996.

Chellie Pingree shepherded Maine's largest land-bill initiative, Land for Maine's Future.

In 2002, Chellie Pingree ran for the US Senate seat held by Republican Susan Collins.

Chellie Pingree was endorsed by a number of labor organizations and many individuals and state officials, including Congressman Rush D Holt Jr.

Chellie Pingree was elected to the US House of Representatives on November 4,2008.

Chellie Pingree overcame strong anti-Democrat and anti-incumbent political sentiment to become just one of eight House Democrats to receive a higher percentage of the vote than in 2008.

On February 29,2012, an Associated Press story mentioned that Chellie Pingree was starting to circulate petitions to run for the US Senate seat vacated by the retirement of Olympia Snowe, which she confirmed on The Rachel Maddow Show later that night.

In 2016, Chellie Pingree defeated Republican nominee Mark Holbrook by around 16 points.

In late 2017, Chellie Pingree's name was mentioned as a potential Democratic candidate for governor of Maine, to succeed term-limited incumbent Paul LePage.

Chellie Pingree was reelected in 2022, defeating Republican nominee Edwin Thelander by 24 percentage points.

Chellie Pingree opposes granting the president fast track authority in negotiating trade agreements, having voted against doing so on June 12,2015.

Chellie Pingree said that such agreements need more transparency and debate, not less.

Chellie Pingree helped draft the Fair Elections Now Act, a proposal to provide public Fair Elections funding for popular candidates who raised a sufficient number of small local contributions.

Chellie Pingree has spoken out against the 2011 Supreme Court ruling McComish v Bennett, which limits public financing systems for congressional campaigns.

In 2017, Chellie Pingree did not attend the inauguration of Donald Trump, instead visiting a Planned Parenthood center and a business owned by immigrants.

Chellie Pingree attended the 2017 Women's March the next day and stood on stage with other politicians who had refused to attend the inauguration.

In July 2019, Chellie Pingree joined 95 Democrats voting for an impeachment resolution against Trump.

Alongside her House colleagues, Chellie Pingree has urged President Joe Biden to declare a national climate emergency.

Chellie Pingree has three children; the oldest, Hannah Chellie Pingree, is the former Speaker of the Maine House of Representatives.

On June 18,2011, Pingree married S Donald Sussman, a hedge fund manager, in a private ceremony at the couple's home in North Haven, Maine.

Articles in those papers that discussed Chellie Pingree carried a disclaimer noting her marriage to Sussman.

Chellie Pingree released a statement on September 8,2015, announcing her separation and beginning of divorce proceedings from Sussman.

Chellie Pingree called it an "amicable and truly mutual decision".