Francis Bellotti
Francis Bellotti | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Bellotti in 1962 | |
| 39th Attorney General of Massachusetts | |
| In office January 2, 1975 – January 3, 1987 | |
| Governor | Michael Dukakis Edward J. King |
| Preceded by | Robert H. Quinn |
| Succeeded by | James Shannon |
| 61st Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts | |
| In office January 3, 1963 – January 7, 1965 | |
| Governor | Endicott Peabody |
| Preceded by | Edward F. McLaughlin Jr. |
| Succeeded by | Elliot Richardson |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Francis Xavier Bellotti May 3, 1923 Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Died | December 17, 2024 (aged 101) |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse |
Margarita E. Wang
(m. 1949; died 2022) |
| Children | 12, including Michael G. |
| Education | Tufts University (BA) Boston College (JD) |
| Military service | |
| Branch/service | United States Navy |
| Rank | Lieutenant (junior grade) |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
Francis Xavier Bellotti (May 3, 1923 – December 17, 2024) was an American lawyer and politician who served as both the 39th Attorney General and the 61st Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts.[citation needed]
Early life
[edit]Bellotti was born in Boston, Massachusetts.[2][3] He graduated from Tufts University in 1947 and received his J.D. degree from Boston College in 1952. He served in the United States Navy during World War II reaching the rank of Lieutenant (junior grade).[4]
Political career
[edit]In his first campaign for public office, Bellotti was the Democratic nominee for district attorney of Norfolk County, Massachusetts, in 1958, but was defeated in the general election.[5] In 1962 Bellotti was elected lieutenant governor and served a two-year term.
In 1964, he challenged the sitting governor of his own party, Endicott Peabody, and defeated Peabody in the Democratic primary. However, he went on to lose the general election to John A. Volpe, with Volpe regaining the seat that he had lost two years earlier. In 1966, Bellotti was the Democratic nominee for Massachusetts Attorney General, but was defeated by Republican Elliot Richardson.[6]
In 1974 he was elected to the attorney-generalship for what was now a four-year term and was reelected twice (serving until 1987).[7]
In his official capacity for the state, he was the named party in the commercial speech case: First National Bank of Boston v. Bellotti, 435 U.S. 765 (1978), which established that corporations have some free speech rights under the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.[8]
Later life and career
[edit]In 2012, the district courthouse in Quincy, Massachusetts, was named in his honor.[9]
Bellotti was later the Vice Chairman of Arbella Insurance Group.[10]
Bellotti turned 100 on May 3, 2023, and died on December 17, 2024, at the age of 101.[11][12][13]
Gallery
[edit]-
Belotti shakes hands with Boston Mayor John F. Collins in Collins's office at the Old Boston City Hall (circa 1962) -
Bellotti listens as Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell speaks in recognition of his 100th birthday on May 3, 2023
.jpg)
References
[edit]- ^ "Margarita Bellotti Obituary (1924 - 2022) - Hingham, MA - Boston Herald". Legacy.com. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
- ^ RM-612. Council of State Governments. 1977. p. 1956.
- ^ "Bellotti, Francis X." Our Campaigns.
- ^ Man in the News; Massachusetts Victor; Francis Xavier Bellotti (New York Times, September 12, 1964)
- ^ "Frank Bellotti, former MA politician, reflects on his legal/political career". Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly. April 3, 2006. Archived from the original on December 10, 2009.
- ^ "Our Campaigns - MA Attorney General Race - Nov 08, 1966".
- ^ [1]
- ^ "First National Bank v. Bellotti". FindLaw.
- ^ Byrne, Matt (September 24, 2012). "Quincy courthouse renamed for Francis Bellotti: Ex-attorney general honored for service". The Boston Globe.
- ^ "Francis X. Bellotti : Executive Profile & Biography". Bloomberg News. Retrieved March 30, 2019.
- ^ Kahn, Joseph. "Francis X. Bellotti, influential Mass. attorney general, dies at 101". The Boston Globe. Retrieved December 17, 2024.
- ^ "A Good Age: Quincy court namesake Frank Bellotti 'keeps a tight schedule' at 100". The Patriot Ledger. Retrieved May 3, 2023.
- ^ "Happy birthday Frank Bellotti!". Boston Herald. May 2, 2023. Retrieved May 3, 2023.
External links
[edit]
- Vitale, Peter (June 24, 2011). "Francis X. Bellotti, Three-Term Massachusetts Attorney General: A Political Machine Rebel". Post-Gazette. pp. 10–11.
- Mintz, Levin biography
- Martindale-Hubbell Legal Directory profile
- Getty Images
- 1923 births
- 2024 deaths
- 20th-century Massachusetts politicians
- Boston College Law School alumni
- Tufts University alumni
- American men centenarians
- Lieutenant governors of Massachusetts
- Massachusetts attorneys general
- Massachusetts Democrats
- Massachusetts lawyers
- Mintz Levin people
- United States Navy officers
- United States Navy personnel of World War II