Your feedback ensures we stay focused on the facts that matter to you most—take our survey.
Charles Summers Jr. (Maine)
Charles Summers, Jr. (born 1959 in Danville, Illinois) was a Republican Maine Secretary of State. Elected to the office by a Republican majority that controlled both houses of the State Legislature in 2010, he was the first Republican named to the statewide public position in thirty-five years.[1][2][3][4]
Summers ran in the 2012 election for the U.S. Senate, representing Maine. Summers won the Republican nomination in the Republican primary on June 12, 2012. He faced Cynthia Dill and Independent candidate Angus King in the general election.[5]
Summers lost to Angus King (I) on November 6, 2012.[6]
Biography
Summers serves as a public affairs officer in the United States Navy Reserve. He was first recalled back to active duty in March 2007 by the United States Navy and was deployed to Iraq four months later attached to Multi National Forces-Iraq (MNF-I) Strategic Effects Directorate. His deployment ended in May 2008, but he was once again recalled in September 2010, this time serving as a public affairs officer in Kabul, Afghanistan.[4]
Education
Political career
Secretary of State 2011-2012
Summers was elected by the 125th Legislature to serve as Maine's 48th Secretary of State. He was sworn into office on January 6, 2011.[2][4][3]
Maine State Senate 1991-1995
Summer's first entry into state politics came in 1990 when he successfully campaigned to represent the thirty-first senate district in the State Legislature. During his first two years in office, he served as a member of the Legal Affairs and Inland Fisheries and Wildlife Joint Standing Committee. Upon winning re-election in 1992, Summers was named as a ranking member of the Taxation Joint Standing Committee. In 1994, he chose to campaign for the United States House of Representatives seat for the 1st House District; he ultimately lost in the Republican primary, placing second with twenty-five percent of the vote. He would campaign for the same seat two more times - in 2004 and 2008. After his primary defeat, Summers began his tenure as State Director for Republican United States Senator Olympia J. Snowe, a position he maintained for nine years. From March 2005 until June 2007, he was New England Regional Administrator (Region I) for the United States Small Business Administration (SBA), a role in which he was responsible for oversight of SBA District Offices in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont in addition to the agency's financing, marketing and outreach efforts in the six-state region.[3][4][2]
Elections
2012
Summers ran in the 2012 election for the U.S. Senate, representing Maine. Summers won the nomination on the Republican ticket.[7] He defeated Scott D'Amboise, Richard Bennett, Debra Plowman, Bruce Poliquin, and William Schneider in the June 5 Republican primary. He faced Cynthia Dill (D), Andrew Ian Dodge (L), Independent candidate Angus King, Danny Francis Dalton, and Stephen Woods in the general election on November 6, 2012.[5] King defeated all challengers to win the election.[5]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent |  Angus King |
51.1% | 370,580 | |
| Democratic | Cynthia Dill | 12.8% | 92,900 | |
| Republican | Charles Summers | 29.7% | 215,399 | |
| Libertarian | Andrew Ian Dodge | 0.8% | 5,624 | |
| Independent | Danny Francis Dalton | 0.8% | 5,807 | |
| Independent | Stephen Woods | 1.4% | 10,289 | |
| N/A | Blank Votes | 3.3% | 24,121 | |
| Total Votes | 724,720 | |||
| Source: Maine Secretary of State "United States Senate Election Results" | ||||
Polls
| Angus King vs. Charles Summers Jr. vs. Cynthia Dill | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poll | Angus King | Charles Summers Jr. | Cynthia Dill | Neither | Don't know | Margin of error | Sample size | ||||||||||||
| Rasmussen Reports(September 25, 2012) | 45% | 33% | 14% | 1% | 7% | +/-4.5 | 500 | ||||||||||||
| Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org. | |||||||||||||||||||
2008
| 2008 Race for United States House of Representatives, District 1 - Republican Primary[8] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote Percentage | |
| Republican Party | 59.8% | ||
| Republican Party | C. Peter Scontras | 40.2% | |
| Total Votes | 35,402 | ||
| 2008 Race for United States House of Representatives, District 1 - General Election[9] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote Percentage | |
| Democratic Party | 54.9% | ||
| Republican Party | Charles Summers, Jr. | 45.1% | |
| Total Votes | 374,559 | ||
2004
- 2004 Race for United States House of Representatives, District 1 - Republican Primary[10]
- Charles Summers, Jr. ran unopposed in this contest
| 2004 Race for United States House of Representatives, District 1 - General Election[11] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote Percentage | |
| Democratic Party | 62.1% | ||
| Republican Party | Charles Summers, Jr. | 37.9% | |
| Total Votes | 156,355 | ||
1994
| 1994 Race for United States House of Representatives, District 1 - Republican Primary[12] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote Percentage | |
| Republican Party | 42.8% | ||
| Republican Party | Charles Summers, Jr. | 25.0% | |
| Republican Party | Kevin Keogh | 18.1% | |
| Republican Party | Theodore T. Rand | 14.1% | |
| Total Votes | 46,073 | ||
Campaign contributions
2012
Summers lost the U.S. Senate election in 2012. During that election cycle, Summers' campaign committee raised a total of $1,233,121 and spent $1,225,034.[13]
| United States Senate, 2012 - Charles Summers Jr. (Maine) Campaign Contributions | |
|---|---|
| Total Raised | $1,233,121 |
| Total Spent | $1,225,034 |
| Total Raised by Election Winner | $2,926,581 |
| Total Spent by Election Winner | $2,850,780 |
| Top contributors to Charles Summers Jr. (Maine)'s campaign committee | |
| Murray Energy | $12,464 |
| Alamo PAC | $10,000 |
| Bluegrass Cmte | $10,000 |
| Capital Technologies | $10,000 |
| Defend America PAC | $10,000 |
| Top 5 industries that contributed to campaign committee | |
| Leadership PACs | $127,500 |
| Retired | $117,543 |
| Securities & Investment | $57,576 |
| Mining | $51,414 |
| Real Estate | $49,751 |
Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Summers currently resides in Maine with his wife, Ruth. The couple has had three children together - Patricia, Charles, and Thomas.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Star Courier, "Summers named Maine’s secretary of state" 1 Dec. 2010
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Project VoteSmart, "Charles Summers Jr." accessed October 8, 2012
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Maine Secretary of State, "Short Biography" accessed October 8, 2012
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Maine Secretary of State, "Long Biography" accessed October 8, 2012
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Associated Press, "Election Results" accessed June 12, 2012
- ↑ Politico, "2012 Election Map, Maine"
- ↑ Maine Secretary of State, "Candidate List Primary 2012" accessed March 13, 2012
- ↑ Maine Secretary of State - 2008 Republican Primary Election Results
- ↑ Maine Secretary of State - 2008 General Election Results
- ↑ Maine Secretary of State - 2004 Republican Primary Election Results
- ↑ Maine Secretary of State - 2004 General Election Results
- ↑ Maine Secretary of State - 1994 Republican Primary Election Results
- ↑ Open Secrets, " 2012 Election Cycle," accessed March 2013
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Matthew Dunlap |
Maine Secretary of State 2011–2012 |
Succeeded by Matthew Dunlap |
| |||||||||||||||||||
