Begich, Mark (1962-…), a Democrat from Alaska, served in the United States Senate from 2009 to 2015. Prior to his time in the Senate, Begich had served as mayor of Anchorage, Alaska’s largest city.
Begich was born in Anchorage on March 30, 1962. His father, Nick Begich, served in the U.S. House of Representatives in the early 1970’s. In 1972, an airplane carrying Nick Begich and another congressman disappeared over the Gulf of Alaska. Begich was presumed dead. In the 1980’s, Mark Begich attended the University of Alaska Anchorage. He later owned several businesses in Anchorage.
Begich was elected to the Anchorage Assembly in 1988 and served for almost 10 years. He ran for mayor of Anchorage in 1994 and 2000 but was unsuccessful. He finally became mayor in 2003 and won reelection in 2006.
In the 2008 Senate election, Begich defeated incumbent Republican Senator Theodore F. (Ted) Stevens in a close race. Shortly before the election, Stevens had been accused of receiving illegal gifts and services from a private company and was convicted of lying to federal prosecutors.
In his time in the Senate, Begich served on the chamber’s Appropriations, Commerce, Homeland Security, Indian Affairs, and Veterans Affairs committees. In 2014, Begich lost a close bid for reelection to Republican Dan Sullivan, a former Alaska attorney general.
