Michael Michaud

Michael Herman Michaud (born January 18, 1955) is an American politician from Maine. Michaud served as the U.S. Representative for 2003 to 2015. He is a member of the Democratic Party. The primarily rural district comprises nearly 80% of the state by area and includes the cities of Lewiston, Auburn, Bangor, and Presque Isle. It is the largest Congressional district by area east of the Mississippi River. Michaud was previously President of the Maine Senate. He was employed for over two decades at the Great Northern Paper Company and remains a member of the United Steelworkers. He was one of the few members of Congress during his tenure never to have attended college. He did, however, attend the John F. Kennedy School of Government Program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government at Harvard University. He has also been awarded honorary Doctor of Public Service degrees from Maine's Unity College, Husson College, and Maine Maritime Academy. Michaud, who speaks fluent French, is the first Franco-American to be elected to a U.S. federal office from Maine. He was elected as a co-chair of the congressional French Caucus in January 2011. Michaud was the Democratic nominee for Governor of Maine in the 2014 election. While initially considered a favorite by some analysts on account of the general unpopularity of incumbent Paul LePage, he lost to the aforementioned by a larger than expected margin. He was succeeded in Congress by Republican Bruce Poliquin in January 2015.