Howard Dean
Howard Dean | |
|---|---|
 Dean in 2016 | |
| Chair of the Democratic National Committee | |
| In office February 12, 2005 – January 21, 2009 | |
| Preceded by | Terry McAuliffe |
| Succeeded by | Tim Kaine |
| 79th Governor of Vermont | |
| In office August 13, 1991 – January 9, 2003 | |
| Lieutenant | Barbara Snelling Doug Racine |
| Preceded by | Richard Snelling |
| Succeeded by | Jim Douglas |
| Chair of the National Governors Association | |
| In office July 19, 1994 – August 1, 1995 | |
| Preceded by | Carroll A. Campbell Jr. |
| Succeeded by | Tommy Thompson |
| 77th Lieutenant Governor of Vermont | |
| In office January 8, 1987 – August 13, 1991 | |
| Governor | Madeleine Kunin Richard Snelling |
| Preceded by | Peter Smith |
| Succeeded by | Barbara Snelling |
| Member of the Vermont House of Representatives from the Chittenden 7-4 district | |
| In office January 5, 1983 – January 7, 1987 | |
| Preceded by | Constituency established |
| Succeeded by | Bennett Truman |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Howard Brush Dean III November 17, 1948 East Hampton, New York, U.S. |
| Party | Democratic |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
| Education | Yale University (BA) Yeshiva University (MD) |
| Signature |  |
Howard Brush Dean III (born November 17, 1948) is an American physician and retired politician who served as the 79th governor of Vermont from 1991 to 2003 and chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) from 2005 to 2009. Dean was an unsuccessful candidate for the Democratic nomination in the 2004 presidential election. Afterward, he became a political commentator and consultant to McKenna Long & Aldridge, a law and lobbying firm.
Before entering politics, Dean earned his medical degree from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in 1978. Dean served as a member of the Vermont House of Representatives from 1983 to 1986 and as the 77th lieutenant governor of Vermont from 1987 to 1991. Both were part-time positions that enabled him to continue practicing medicine. In 1991, Dean became governor of Vermont, subsequently winning five two-year terms and serving until 2003. Dean also oversaw the expansion of the "Dr. Dynasaur" program, which ensures universal health care for children and pregnant women in the state.
Dean denounced the 2003 invasion of Iraq and called on Democrats to oppose the George W. Bush Administration. In the 2004 Democratic presidential primaries, Dean finished third in the Iowa caucus, and his campaign suffered after negative reactions in the media to a hoarse shout that he gave during a speech; Dean ended up losing the nomination to Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts. He was later elected chairman of the Democratic National Committee in February 2005. As chairman of the party, Dean created and employed the fifty-state strategy that attempted to make Democrats competitive in normally conservative states often dismissed in the past as "solid red".
Dean was named chairman emeritus of the DNC upon his retirement in January 2009. Since retiring from the DNC chairman position, Dean has held neither elected office nor an official position in the Democratic Party and, as of 2015, was working for global law firm Dentons as part of the firm's public policy and regulation practice. In 2013, Dean expressed interest in running for the presidency in 2016, but instead supported former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's run for president.