Linda Lorraine Bean is a Maine

Maine

Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...

 businessperson, political donor and former political candidate with the Republican Party

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

. She ran for the United States Congress

United States Congress

The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....

 in 1988 (lost the Republican Party primary) and 1992 (won primary but lost to incumbent Thomas Andrews

Thomas Andrews (politician)

Thomas Hiram Andrews , was a politician from Maine and a Democrat.A 1976 graduate of Bowdoin College, Andrews served in the Maine House of Representatives and Maine State Senate before being elected to two terms in the U.S...

). She is the granddaughter of Leon Leonwood Bean

Leon Leonwood Bean

Leon Leonwood Bean was an inventor, author, outdoor enthusiast, and founder of the company L.L.Bean.-History:...

 and an heiress to the L.L.Bean company. She is also a well-known donor to conservative Republican causes.

Business

Bean is also a prominent business figure in much of Maine, including St. George, Maine

St. George, Maine

St. George is a town in Knox County, Maine, United States. As of the 2000 census, the town population was 2,580. It includes the villages of Port Clyde, Clark Island, Glenmere, Martinsville and Tenants Harbor, the latter its commercial center. A favorite with artists, writers and naturalists, St...

, a small town in coastal Knox County

Knox County, Maine

Knox County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maine. As of 2010, the population was 39,736. Its county seat is Rockland. The county is named for American Revolutionary War general and Secretary of War Henry Knox, who lived in the county from 1795 until his death in 1806. The county was...

. She is also the owner of Linda Bean's Perfect Maine, which is a lobster roll

Lobster roll

A lobster roll is a kind of sandwich filled with lobster meat. A traditional lobster roll contains the fresh cooked meat of a lobster, tossed with mayonnaise and served on a grilled hot dog bun or similar roll, so that the opening is on the top rather than on the side...

 restaurant opened in Florida

Florida

Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...

 and Maine. It uses the image of fishing communities to market the product, but Bean became unpopular among many in St. George for closing a small restaurant she had recently purchased during the Christmas

Christmas

Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...

 season. On September 27, 2010, Bean purchased a former Bath & Body Works

Bath & Body Works

Bath & Body Works, LLC, is an American retail store under the Limited Brands umbrella. It was founded in 1990 in New Albany, Ohio and has since expanded across the United States and Canada. It specializes in lotions, bath items, personal care items, and home fragrances.The company launched both a...

 building across from the L.L. Bean store in Freeport, Maine.

Politics

Bean twice (1988 and 1992) sought to become the U.S. Congresswoman from Maine's 1st congressional district

Maine's 1st congressional district

Maine's 1st congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Maine. The geographically smaller of the two congressional districts in the state, the district covers the southern coastal area of the state. The district consists of all of Cumberland, Knox, Lincoln, Sagadahoc,...

. She was unable to win the seat in either election.

1988

In 1988, Bean sought the Republican nomination for the United State Congress to challenge incumbent Joseph Brennan. She ran under her married named of Linda Bean Jones. She outspent her opponent, Edward S. O'Meara, by $395,000 but narrowly lost. However, O'Meara subsequently lost to Brennan in the general election.

1992

Bean ran again in 1992 for the Republican nomination, this time to challenge incumbent Democrat Thomas Andrews

Thomas Andrews (politician)

Thomas Hiram Andrews , was a politician from Maine and a Democrat.A 1976 graduate of Bowdoin College, Andrews served in the Maine House of Representatives and Maine State Senate before being elected to two terms in the U.S...

. She won the nomination but lost 65% to 35% in the general election.

External links

• Linda Bean's Perfect Maine Official Website
• Clawing her way to new heights Portland Press Herald, December 12, 2010