Craig Benson
|
|
Craig Benson (born October 8, 1954) is an American politician and businessman. Benson came to public attention by founding Cabletron Systems, a successful computer-products provider that became one of the largest employers in New Hampshire, and was governor of the state from January 2003 to January 2005.
Biography
Benson was born in New York City in 1954, where in his childhood he struggled with a speech impediment and severe asthma. After receiving a bachelor's degree in finance from Babson College in 1977, Benson attended Syracuse University, graduating with an MBA in 1979.
In 1983, Benson started Cabletron Systems. The company went public in 1989, with what was at the time the largest IPO in Wall Street history. It was dissolved into four separate companies (Enterasys Networks, Aprisma Technologies, Riverstone Networks, and Global Network Technology Services) in January 2000. Within months Cabletron sold its manufacturing operation to Flextronics International for $100 million.
Benson sold most of his stock in Cabletron near its peak in 1996, accounting for a large portion of his estimated $600 million wealth. At Cabletron, Benson was known for his aggressive management style. He was forced to pay $2.5 million to a pair of employees after a court found him guilty of two counts of sexual discrimination. While he was CEO, Benson instructed a male subordinate to fire a woman and "put a guy in that position," which the male subordinate refused to do. Both were fired.
Political career
Benson began running for governor of New Hampshire in 2001, promising to use technology and greater efficiency to save money in state government. Benson was elected governor on November 5, 2002 in an open race to succeed the retiring governor, Jeanne Shaheen. In the primaries, Benson spent more than $15 million, most of it his own money, in an effort to defeat former state senator Bruce Keough and former U.S. Senator Gordon Humphrey to win the Republican nomination, making Benson's victory, vote-for-vote, one of the most expensive in American history.
In the general election, Benson overwhelmingly defeated underfunded Democratic state Senator Mark Fernald, receiving 59 percent of the votes while Fernald received 38 percent. The Fernald campaign tried to emphasize Benson's often vague campaign promises, but made little headway in overcoming Benson's advantages in funding and name recognition.
Benson's administration came under criticism for claims of corruption stemming from scandals such as the resignation of Attorney General Peter Heed and the awarding of no-bid contracts to former volunteer Linda Pepin. Benson also frequently used "volunteers" in his office to do gubernatorial work, but would not say who they were or what they did. Reporters discovered that one of these volunteers, former Cabletron employee Angela Blaisdell, was New Hampshire's official liaison with the federal government on homeland security.
In the 2004 election, he lost to Democratic challenger John Lynch, only the second time in 78 years that an incumbent New Hampshire governor was denied a second term. When the results became apparent, Benson drove home to Rye instead of speaking to the crowd at his Election Night party, ignoring the traditional speech thanking his staff and supporters for their help.
A Catholic, Benson and his wife, Denise, have two children.
External links
- 2002 campaign website (http://lcweb4.loc.gov/elect2002/catalog/1119.html)
- National Governors Association profile (http://www.nga.org/governors/1,1169,C_GOVERNOR_INFO%5ED_408,00.html)