Baron Hill

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Baron Hill

United States Representative from Indiana's 9th district
In office 1999-2005 Term Starts January 2007
Preceded by	Lee Hamilton (1999-2005) Mike Sodrel (2005-2007)
Succeeded by	Mike Sodrel (2005-2007) Incumbent

Born	June 20, 1953 Seymour, Indiana
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Betty Schepman Hill
Religion	Church of Christ

Baron Paul Hill (born June 23, 1953) was a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives from 1999 until 2005, representing the 9th District of Indiana. He won the election on November 7, 2006 and will be representing Indiana again.

1 Early life, education, and career
2 U.S. House of Representatives
3 2004 election
4 2006 election
5 Contributors
6 External links

[edit] Early life, education, and career

Hill was born in Seymour, Indiana. He was a three-sport star at Seymour High School, where he was all-state in football and basketball. He accepted an athletic scholarship to Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina, where he earned a bachelor's degree in history in 1975.

After graduation, he moved back to Seymour and joined his family's insurance and real estate business.

Hill is married to Betty Schepman, a math teacher in the public schools. They have three adult daughters, one of whom is at Indiana University and one who will be a newlywed shortly after the election.

Hill was a member of the Indiana House of Representatives from 1982 to 1990. He served as chairman of the Caucus Campaign Committee, where he played a prominent role in building a Democratic majority in the House.

In 1990, Hill lost a U.S. Senate bid to incumbent Republican Senator Dan Coats, 54-46 percent. Hill made a name for himself during that campaign by walking the length of the state, from the Ohio River to Lake Michigan, to meet with voters.

[edit] U.S. House of Representatives

Hill was elected to the House in November 1998. He defeated Republican Jean Leising, 51%-48%, winning the seat vacated by retiring Democratic Representative Lee Hamilton.

In 2001, Hill voted for a version of the "No Child Left Behind Act", which passed the House 384-45. [1]. In 2006, he said he was in favor of scrapping the version that passed, calling it a "more or less of a federal takeover of our system". [2]

In 2002, Hill defeated Republican Mike Sodrel with 51 percent of the vote. Sodrel, a New Albany businessman, had 46 percent.

Hill also voted for a bill giving Bush the power to wage war in Iraq as a last resort in 2002. He has since stated he was lied to by the Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld about the threat Iraq posed to the American people. Hill says he found out it was all a lie in late 2002. Hill brought up this war story many times during the 2006 election cycle, however never brought it up during the 2004 election cycle when the war was more popular with Americans

In December 2003, Hill was named communication co-chair of the Blue Dog Coalition, a group of 34 moderate-to-conservative Democrats who advocate fiscal discipline.

[edit] 2004 election

In November 2004, in a rematch, Hill lost to Sodrel, by a margin of about 1,500 votes. There was a recount, but the scope was limited because of the use of DRE voting machines in Indiana. Hill partly blamed the defeat on billboards purchased late in the campaign by an independent political action committee called Citizens for Truth, that accused Hill of supporting gay marriage, flag burning, and removing God from the Pledge of Allegiance.

After the election, Hill took a position with a Washington D.C. lobbying firm. He currently lives in Seymour, Indiana, where he works in the family firm.

[edit] 2006 election

Hill was the Democratic Party's nominee in the 2006 congressional election for the 9th District, running to take back the seat he lost in 2004. He again faced Sodrel (and a libertarian, Eric Schansberg), now the incumbent. Hill was heavily supported by the Democratic party, including the traditional allies of the Democrats, such as teachers and unionized labor. Hill was included in the "First Wave" of the Democratic Party's "Red-to-Blue" program. [3]

Texas millionaire Bob J. Perry gave more than $5 million to the Economic Freedom Fund, a 527 group, which included Hill as one of its targets for removal. The group paid for automated "push poll" calls attacking Hill. Such calls were stopped after action by the Indiana Attorney General [4]. Similar calls against opponent Sodrel had been going on since Sodrel took office in January of 2004. However the investigation by the Indiana Attorney General did not begin until calls against Hill began. [5]

Hill on August 30, 2006 sold gasoline at a Bloomington, IN gas station for $1.80, which was about $1 less than current prices. Citizens for Truth has filed a complaint with the US Attorney General's office and the Indiana Election Commission with allegations of vote buying.[6]

The district is very balanced, and is competitive in each election, something unusual for House districts in the United States. Cook Political Report rated this race as a toss-up. [7]

Baron Hill won the 2006 election with a preliminary 50% of the vote; Sodrel with 46% percent and Libertarian Eric Schansberg with roughly 4 percent. This is not close enough for a recount under Indiana law.

[edit] Contributors

Top contributors to Hill with dollar amounts since 1989 are listed below[8]:

1 American Federation of Teachers $60,000
1 Assn of Trial Lawyers of America $60,000
1 Carpenters & Joiners Union $60,000
1 Communications Workers of America $60,000
1 Intl Brotherhood of Electrical Workers $60,000
1 Sheet Metal Workers Union $60,000
1 Teamsters Union $60,000
1 United Food & Commercial Workers Union $60,000
9 National Education Assn $59,800
10 American Fedn of St/Cnty/Munic Employees $58,000
11 Laborers Union $56,000
12 Plumbers/Pipefitters Union $53,500
13 United Auto Workers $48,440
14 AFL-CIO $48,100
15 United Transportation Union $47,500
16 United Mine Workers $45,700
17 Blue Dog PAC $45,000
18 National Assn of Letter Carriers $44,000
19 AmeriPAC: The Fund for a Greater America $43,000
20 Ironworkers Union $37,500

Political offices
Preceded by Lee Hamilton	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Indiana's 9th congressional district 1999-2005	Succeeded by Mike Sodrel
Preceded by Mike Sodrel	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Indiana's 9th congressional district 2007-Present	Succeeded by Incumbent