Susan Collins

Susan Margaret Collins born December 7 1952 is an American politician serving as the senior United States senator from Maine A member of the Republican Party she has held her seat since 1997 and is Maines longestserving senator Born in Caribou Maine Collins is a graduate of St Lawrence University in Canton New York Beginning her career as a staff assistant for Senator William Cohen in 1975 she became staff director of the Oversight of Government Management Subcommittee of the Committee on Governmental Affairs which later became the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs in 1981 Governor John R McKernan Jr then appointed her commissioner of the Maine Department of Professional and Financial Regulation in 1987 In 1992 President George H W Bush appointed her director of the Small Business Administrations regional office in Boston Collins became a deputy state treasurer in the office of the Treasurer and ReceiverGeneral of Massachusetts in 1993 After moving back to Maine in 1994 she became the Republican nominee for governor of Maine in the 1994 general election She was the first female majorparty nominee for the post finishing third in a fourway race with 23 of the vote After her bid for governor in 1994 she became the founding director of the Center for Family Business at Husson University in Bangor Maine