Heather Sanborn
State senateMaine
District28th
Term startDecember 2018
Term endDecember 7, 2022
PredecessorMark Dion
SuccessorJill Duson
State house 1Maine
District 143rd
Term start 12016
Term end 12018
Predecessor 1Mark Dion
Successor 1W. Edward Crockett
PartyDemocratic
Alma materMiddlebury College
University of Southern Maine
USM School of Law
ProfessionTeacher
Attorney
Business director, Rising Tide Brewery
SpouseNathan Sanborn
Websiteheathersanborn.mainecandidate.com

Heather B. Sanborn is an American politician and attorney who previously represented District 28 (portions of the cities of Portland and Westbrook) in the Maine State Senate. She is a member of the Democratic Party.

Early life and education

Sanborn grew up in Portland[1] and attended Middlebury College where she graduated summa cum laude as the salutatorian of her class in 1997.[2] She received a Master of Science in Educational Leadership from the University of Southern Maine in 2004[2] and taught high school in Cape Elizabeth, Maine.[1]

Sanborn graduated from the University of Maine School of Law in 2007 where she was the editor-in-chief of the Maine Law Review. [1] She worked as a law clerk to Kermit Lipez on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit and as an associate in the litigation department at Ropes & Gray.[1] She has served on the boards of the Portland Development Corporation [3] and University Credit Union.[4]

Brewery & beer industry advocacy

Rising Tide Brewery

Sanborn and her husband, Nathan Sanborn, co-own Rising Tide Brewery in Portland, Maine, and Heather serves as the director of business operations.[5] The brewery opened in 2010 and quickly outgrew its initial space, relocating in 2012.[6] As of 2020, Rising Tide employs 29 people and produces 4,500 barrels of beer per year.[7] Sanborn has served as the President of the Maine Brewers' Guild and has drawn on her law background to advocate for breweries around Maine.[1][5]

2012 tasting room law

Sanborn has drawn on her legal background to advocate for state-level policy changes that benefit Maine's craft beer industry.[8] In collaboration with the Maine Brewer's Guild, she submitted a bill to the 125th Maine Legislature that would permit breweries to sell their products on-site. At the time, breweries in Maine were only permitted to give away small samples of their products,[9] a business model which Sanborn and other industry leaders argued was not conducive to customer interaction and beer tourism.[10] The bill, LD #1889, was signed into law in April 2012.[10]

Political career

Sanborn ran unopposed for the 2016 Maine House of Representatives District 43 Democratic primary, and defeated Republican opponent Jeffrey Langholtz 65%-35% in the general election.[11]

In June 2018, Sanborn won a contested primary against Portland City Councilor Jill Duson.[12]

Sanborn ran unopposed in both the Democratic primary and in the general election in 2020 and was therefore elected to her second term representing District 28 in the Maine Senate.[11]

Personal life

Sanborn co-owns and operates Rising Tide Brewery in Portland with her husband.

Electoral record

Maine State Senate

[11]

References

  1. ^ "usmlaw"
  2. ^ "martindale"
  3. ^ "mainesenatedems"
  4. ^ "ucu"
  5. ^ "mainebiz"
  6. ^ "smallbusinessadmin"
  7. ^ "Our Story". risingtidebrewing.com. Archived 5 February 2021 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 5 February 2021.
  8. ^ "Lawyer turned brewer helps Maine's alcohol laws evolve". News Center Maine. 21 May 2014. Archived 10 April 2021 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 10 April 2021.
  9. ^ "Maine on Tap: The Beer Boom". WGME. 2 June 2018. Archived 10 April 2021 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 10 April 2021.
  10. ^ Lauter, Carla Jean (13 April 2018). "Happy birthday to the bill that changed Maine's beer industry". Maine Today. Archived 10 April 2021 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 10 April 2021.
  11. ^ "ballotpedia"
  12. ^ "Graham"