Mark Begich
Mark Begich was born in Anchorage, Alaska, United States on March 30th, 1962 and is the Politician. At the age of 62, Mark Begich biography, profession, age, height, weight, eye color, hair color, build, measurements, education, career, dating/affair, family, news updates, and networth are available.
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Mark Peter Begich (born March 30, 1962) is an American politician who was a United States Senator from Alaska from 2009 to 2015.
A member of the Democratic Party, he previously was Mayor of Anchorage from 2004 to 2009. Born in Anchorage, Begich is the son of former U.S. Representative Nick Begich Sr. He was elected to the Anchorage Assembly at the age of 26.
He eventually served as chairman for three years, before leaving the Assembly in 1998.
Begich ran two unsuccessful campaigns for Mayor of Anchorage in 1994 and 2000 before being elected in 2003.
He was subsequently reelected in 2006.
In the 2008 Senate election, Begich narrowly defeated incumbent Ted Stevens, at the time, the longest-serving Republican member of the U.S. Senate.In the 2014 Senate election, Begich was narrowly defeated in his bid for reelection by former Alaska Attorney General Dan Sullivan.
Following completion of his term in the U.S. Senate, Begich started Anchorage-based consulting firm Northern Compass Group.
On June 1, 2018, Begich announced his candidacy for the Democratic nomination for Governor of Alaska in the 2018 election, where he faced off against Republican nominee and former State Senator Mike Dunleavy.
He lost the gubernatiorial election by a margin of 7.0%.
Begich is now a member of the ReFormers Caucus at Issue One.
Personal life
Begich is married to Deborah Bonito, a former chair of the Alaska Democratic Party and the owner of several small businesses throughout Anchorage. They have a son, Jacob. Begich is a Roman Catholic.
During his term in the Senate, Begich was the only U.S. Senator without a college degree. He has taken continuing education classes at the University of Alaska Anchorage. His brother Nick Jr. has researched and written about the High-frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP) program as an instrument of weather modification and possibly mind control. His nephew, Nick III, made the primary runoff (along with ex-Governor Sarah Palin and ex-state Representative Mary Sattler Peltola) for the Congressional seat that became vacant in 2022 as a result of the death of Don Young. Mark's brother Tom was elected as a state senator from Anchorage but declined to file for reelection in 2022.
Early life, education, and early political careers all played a role.
Begich was born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska. He is the son of Margaret Jean "Pegge" (née Jendro) and former US Representative Nick Begich. His father died on a flight from Anchorage to Juneau, Alaska, with then US House Majority Leader Hale Boggs, but the next month, when both were declared legally dead, he was reelected.
He has two sisters and three brothers, and is the fourth of six children in the family. His paternal grandparents were Croatians; John Begich, his paternal grandfather, immigrated from Croatia (then part of Austria-Hungary's empire) in 1911. His mother was Polish, Bohemian (Czech), Dutch, and English. He attended Steller Secondary School in Anchorage. He formed "The Motherlode" as an adolescent. He had obtained a business license to sell jewelry and was assisting his mother in the management of several real estate investments at the age of 18. He didn't want to go to college because of his work opportunities.
His mother attempted to fill her late husband's congressional seat in the 1980s twice, losing to long-serving Representative Don Young both times.
Begich began working in the Anchorage city health department and later served as a driver for then-Anchorage Mayor Tony Knowles at the age of 19. Begich served as a legislative aide to state Representative Dave Donley during the 1988 legislative session. Begich was elected to the Anchorage Assembly in 1988, at the age of 26, and served until 1998, three years as chairman and two as vice chairman.
Begich served on the Alaska Commission on Postsecondary Education for many years, including as Chair. Governor Tony Knowles named Begich to the University of Alaska Board of Regents in 2001, but the legislature did not announce his appointment.