Gore Taps Shaheen Husband For N.H. Race

By Jill Zuckman, Globe Staff, March 12, 1999

Demonstrating influence among Democratic activists in New Hampshire, Vice President Al Gore named Bill Shaheen, the governor's husband, as his state campaign chairman yesterday.

The appointment may foreshadow what many activists had expected -- Governor Jeanne Shaheen's endorsement of Gore. "Billy Shaheen has made his decision as to who he will support for president," said Brian Murphy, the governor's spokesman. "The governor has said she will make her decision . . . after this legislative session. For now, she needs to focus on the state's issues."

Bill Shaheen, a Dover attorney and former judge, is active in Democratic politics in his own right. In 1976, he helped run Jimmy Carter's campaign.

"Bill's knowledge of the state, organizational skills, and years of experience . . . is unparalleled," Gore said in a statement last night.

Gore visits New Hampshire and Iowa on Monday, his first official campaign trip.