Martha Coakley

Martha Coakley
Coakley in 2014
43rd Attorney General of Massachusetts
In office January 17, 2007 – January 21, 2015
Governor	Deval Patrick Charlie Baker
Preceded by	Thomas Reilly
Succeeded by	Maura Healey
Massachusetts District Attorney for the Northern District
In office January 3, 1999 – January 17, 2007
Preceded by	Thomas Reilly
Succeeded by	Gerard Leone
Personal details
Born	Martha Mary Coakley (1953-07-14) July 14, 1953 (age 71) Pittsfield, Massachusetts, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Thomas O'Connor
Education	Williams College (BA) Boston University (JD)

Martha Mary Coakley^[1] (born July 14, 1953) is an American lobbyist, lawyer, and former politician who served as Attorney General of Massachusetts from 2007 to 2015. She is most notable for having lost a race for the United States Senate in what was widely considered a tremendous upset, a loss which had hugely significant ramifications for healthcare policy in America. Prior to serving as Attorney General, she was District Attorney of Middlesex County from 1999 to 2007.

Coakley was elected as attorney general of Massachusetts in 2006. She was the Democratic nominee in the 2010 special election to fill the United States Senate seat long held by fellow Democrat Ted Kennedy (and held in the interim by Paul G. Kirk), but was defeated 52% to 47% by Republican Scott Brown after a campaign in which her efforts and dedication came under heavy criticism. The loss represented a 22-point decrease in support from Kennedy's last re-election campaign. She was re-elected as attorney general in the 2010 general election.

Coakley ran for Governor of Massachusetts in 2014 as the Democratic nominee but lost in another upset to Republican Charlie Baker. Coakley was a lobbyist for the e-cigarette company Juul until June 2022.^[2]