Robert Edward Travaglini (born July 20, 1952 in
Massachusetts
Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...
) is an American
politician
A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...
and
lobbyist
Lobbying is a form of advocacy, which lawfully attempts to directly influence legislators or government officials, such as regulatory agencies or judiciary. Lobbying involves direct, face-to-face contact and is carried out by various entities, in ...
. From 2003 to 2007, Travaglini served as
President of the Massachusetts Senate. He represented the first
Middlesex
Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...
and
Suffolk
Suffolk ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Norfolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Essex to the south, and Cambridgeshire to the west. Ipswich is the largest settlement and the county ...
senate district, encompassing portions of
Boston
Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
,
Cambridge
Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...
,
Revere, and
Winthrop.
Career
Travaglini began his career as an executive assistant to then
Massachusetts Attorney General
The Massachusetts attorney general is an elected constitutionally defined executive officer of the Massachusetts government. The officeholder is the chief lawyer and law enforcement officer of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The officeholder ...
Francis X. Bellotti from 1975 to 1981, followed by a three-year stint as administrative assistant to Boston's Mayor
Kevin White.
After earning experience as an assistant, Travaglini entered the political world in the
1983 election for the
Boston City Council
The Boston City Council is the legislative branch of government for the city of Boston, Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It is made up of 13 members: 9 district representatives and 4 at-large members. Councillors are elected to two-year ...
. He was elected as the councilor for District 1, and was subsequently re-elected to four two-year terms. In November 1992, Travaglini was elected to the
Massachusetts Senate
The Massachusetts Senate is the upper house of the Massachusetts General Court, the bicameral state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The Senate comprises 40 elected members from 40 single-member senatorial districts in the st ...
, and served both as a state senator and city council member during 1993.
In 1999, Travaglini moved up in rank to
Majority Whip of the Senate. He reached the pinnacle of his political career in 2003, when he was elected as
President of the Massachusetts Senate. Travaglini was the first
Italian-American
Italian Americans () are Americans who have full or partial Italians, Italian ancestry. The largest concentrations of Italian Americans are in the urban Northeastern United States, Northeast and industrial Midwestern United States, Midwestern ...
to lead either legislative branch in Massachusetts.
Travaglini resigned from the senate position in 2007, in order to start a lobbying firm, Travaglini Eisenberg Kiley, and later one called Travaglini Scorzoni Kiley.
Education
Travaglini attended
Savio Preparatory High School in
East Boston
East Boston, nicknamed Eastie, is a Neighborhoods in Boston, neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, United States, which was annexed by the city of Boston in 1836. Neighboring communities include Winthrop, Massachusetts, Winthrop, Revere, Mas ...
and then continued on to
Boston State College, where he earned a
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years.
The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...
in
Political Science
Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...
in 1974.
Personal life
Travaglini, a longtime resident of
East Boston
East Boston, nicknamed Eastie, is a Neighborhoods in Boston, neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, United States, which was annexed by the city of Boston in 1836. Neighboring communities include Winthrop, Massachusetts, Winthrop, Revere, Mas ...
, now resides in
Winthrop. He is married to Kelly (
née
The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...
Holtz) and has three children: Taylor; Jennifer; and Andrew. His brother, Michael, was an unsuccessful candidate for an
at-large
At large (''before a noun'': at-large) is a description for members of a governing body who are elected or appointed to represent a whole membership or population (notably a city, county, state, province, nation, club or association), rather tha ...
City Council seat in
1993
The United Nations General Assembly, General Assembly of the United Nations designated 1993 as:
* International Year for the World's Indigenous People
The year 1993 in the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands had only 364 days, since its ...
.
In 2008, Travaglini spent $30,000 on an
oil-on-canvas
Oil painting is a painting method involving the procedure of painting with pigments combined with a drying oil as the binder. It has been the most common technique for artistic painting on canvas, wood panel, or copper for several centuries. ...
portrait by Boston-based artist Thomas Ouellette, which now hangs in the Senate Reading Room of the
Massachusetts State House
The Massachusetts State House, also known as the Massachusetts Statehouse or the New State House, is the List of state capitols in the United States, state capitol and seat of government for the Massachusetts, Commonwealth of Massachusetts, lo ...
, alongside former Senate Presidents such as
Calvin Coolidge
Calvin Coolidge (born John Calvin Coolidge Jr.; ; July 4, 1872January 5, 1933) was the 30th president of the United States, serving from 1923 to 1929. A Republican Party (United States), Republican lawyer from Massachusetts, he previously ...
and
Horace Mann
Horace Mann (May 4, 1796August 2, 1859) was an American educational reformer, slavery abolitionist and Whig Party (United States), Whig politician known for his commitment to promoting public education, he is thus also known as ''The Father of A ...
. As of 2008, only eleven Senate Presidents have portraits in the State House.
See also
*
1991–1992 Massachusetts legislature
*
1993–1994 Massachusetts legislature
*
1995–1996 Massachusetts legislature
*
1997–1998 Massachusetts legislature
*
1999–2000 Massachusetts legislature
*
2001–2002 Massachusetts legislature
*
2003–2004 Massachusetts legislature
*
2005–2006 Massachusetts legislature
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Travaglini, Robert Edward
Living people
1952 births
People from East Boston
American people of Italian descent
Boston State College alumni
Boston City Council members
Democratic Party Massachusetts state senators
Presidents of the Massachusetts Senate
American lobbyists
21st-century members of the Massachusetts General Court
20th-century members of the Massachusetts General Court