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Francis Bellotti

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Francis Bellotti
Bellotti in 1962
39th Attorney General of Massachusetts
In office
January 2, 1975 – January 3, 1987
GovernorMichael Dukakis
Edward J. King
Preceded byRobert H. Quinn
Succeeded byJames Shannon
61st Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts
In office
January 3, 1963 – January 7, 1965
GovernorEndicott Peabody
Preceded byEdward F. McLaughlin Jr.
Succeeded byElliot Richardson
Personal details
Born
Francis Xavier Bellotti

(1923-05-03)May 3, 1923
Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
DiedDecember 17, 2024(2024-12-17) (aged 101)
Hingham, Massachusetts, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse
Margarita E. Wang
(m. 1949; died 2022)
[1]
Children12, including Michael G.
EducationTufts University (BA)
Boston College (JD)
Military service
Branch/serviceUnited States Navy
RankLieutenant (junior grade)
Battles/warsWorld 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

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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

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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

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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 at his home in Hingham, Massachusetts December 17, 2024, at the age of 101.[11][12][13][14]

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References

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  1. ^ "Margarita Bellotti Obituary (1924 - 2022) - Hingham, MA - Boston Herald". Legacy.com. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
  2. ^ RM-612. Council of State Governments. 1977. p. 1956.
  3. ^ "Bellotti, Francis X." Our Campaigns.
  4. ^ Man in the News; Massachusetts Victor; Francis Xavier Bellotti (New York Times, September 12, 1964)
  5. ^ "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.
  6. ^ "Our Campaigns - MA Attorney General Race - Nov 08, 1966".
  7. ^ [1]
  8. ^ "First National Bank v. Bellotti". FindLaw.
  9. ^ Byrne, Matt (September 24, 2012). "Quincy courthouse renamed for Francis Bellotti: Ex-attorney general honored for service". The Boston Globe.
  10. ^ "Francis X. Bellotti : Executive Profile & Biography". Bloomberg News. Retrieved March 30, 2019.
  11. ^ Francis Bellotti Obituary
  12. ^ Kahn, Joseph. "Francis X. Bellotti, influential Mass. attorney general, dies at 101". The Boston Globe. Retrieved December 17, 2024.
  13. ^ "A Good Age: Quincy court namesake Frank Bellotti 'keeps a tight schedule' at 100". The Patriot Ledger. Retrieved May 3, 2023.
  14. ^ "Happy birthday Frank Bellotti!". Boston Herald. May 2, 2023. Retrieved May 3, 2023.
[edit]
Party political offices
Preceded by Democratic nominee for Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts
1962
Succeeded by
Preceded by Democratic nominee for Governor of Massachusetts
1964
Succeeded by
Preceded by Democratic nominee for Attorney General of Massachusetts
1966
Succeeded by
Preceded by Democratic nominee for Attorney General of Massachusetts
1974, 1978, 1982
Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts
1963–1965
Succeeded by
Legal offices
Preceded by Attorney General of Massachusetts
1975–1987
Succeeded by