Shannon Obrien

Vocation

Family

American politician, state treasurer of Massachusetts and unsuccessful Dem. gubernatorial candidate on 2/11/2001 running against Mitt Romney. A sharp, savvy and stylish campaigner, O'Brien met her first set-back as she strode to the podium with loudspeakers blaring and supporters cheering, when the room quieted for her speech only to be met by the howls of her uncooperative two-year-old daughter. Regan was being held by O'Brien's husband, R. Emmet Hayes. "Only my kid," bemoaned O'Brien, holding up her end with humor. Her husband promised to renounce his own job, that of State House lobbyist, while his wife ran for Governor. Her partner is venture capitalist Chris Gabrieli, a former candidate himself. O'Brien is a member of a large, politically active Southeast Hampton family, the daughter of Governor's Councilor Edward O'Brien. She attended Yale and took her law degree from Boston U., working as a lawyer before running unsuccessfully for treasurer in 1994. She won her post in her second run, 1998. During her time in office, she uncovered the largest embezzlement scandal in the history of MA, lottery thefts totaling $10 million, declaring that waste and mismanagement were not acceptable to her platform. She opposes the death penalty and gay marriage and supports abortion rights and a slowdown in income tax rollbacks. Father, a long-time state politician died of complications for cancer surgery at age 70 on 1/20/04 in Boston. Link to Wikipedia biography