Peter Ernest Cianchette (born June 25, 1961) is an American diplomat, businessman, politician and former

United States Ambassador to Costa Rica The following is a list of United States ambassadors, or other chiefs of mission, to Costa Rica. On February 16, 2022, Cynthia Telles was sworn in as the 60th ambassador to the Republic of Costa Rica. See also * Costa Rica – United States re ...

from 2008 to 2009. He was elected to the

Maine House of Representatives The Maine House of Representatives is the lower house of the Maine Legislature. The House consists of 151 voting members and three nonvoting members. The voting members represent an equal number of districts across the state and are elected via p ...

and served there from 1996 to 2000. Cianchette was the

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

nominee for

governor of Maine The governor of Maine is the head of government of the U.S. state of Maine. Before Maine was admitted to the Union in 1820, Maine was part of Massachusetts and the governor of Massachusetts was chief executive. The current governor of Maine is Ja ...

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

, losing to Democrat U.S. Representative

John Baldacci John Elias Baldacci (born January 30, 1955) is an American politician who served as the 73rd Governor of Maine from 2003 to 2011. A Democrat, he also served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1995 to 2003. During h ...

Early life and education

Cianchette was raised in

Pittsfield, Maine Pittsfield is a town in Somerset County, Maine, United States. The population was 3,908 at the 2020 census. Pittsfield is home to the Maine Central Institute, a semi-private boarding school, and the annual Central Maine Egg Festival. History ...

. He attended

Maine Central Institute Maine Central Institute (MCI) is an independent high school in Pittsfield, Maine, United States that was established in 1866. The school enrolls approximately 430 students and is a nonsectarian institution. The school has both boarding and da ...

and worked as a youth for the Cianbro construction and construction services company which his father, Ival "Bud" Cianchette, and his uncles, Ken, Carl and

Chuck Chuck is a masculine given name or a nickname for Charles or Charlie. It may refer to: People Arts and entertainment * Chuck Alaimo, American saxophonist, leader of the Chuck Alaimo Quartet * Chuck Barris (1929–2017), American TV producer * C ...

, founded in 1949. Cianchette was graduated from the

University of Maine The University of Maine (UMaine or UMO) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Orono, Maine. It was established in 1865 as the land-grant college of Maine and is the Flagship universities, flagshi ...

with a business administration degree.Ricker, Nok-Noi
"Cianchette takes Cianbro post after stint as U.S. ambassador"
''Bangor Daily News'', July 01, 2009 9:47 pm. Retrieved 2011-08-24.

Career

Cianchette worked in Cianbro's Dragon Products cement division until 1985. In 1985, he moved to the South Portland area and worked in business there with The Cianchette Group, a public affairs management and business consulting firm; the Portland-based private investment firm, CHK Capital Partners; and, starting in 1998, the business and public affairs consulting firm, Pierce Atwood Consulting, where he served as chief operating officer and executive vice-president.

Public sector

Cianchette served two terms as a Maine State Representative (1996–2000) from South Portland and Cape Elizabeth and was the

candidate in Maine's 2002 gubernatorial election, making a credible showing. He served on the

National Republican Committee The Republican National Committee (RNC) is a U.S. political committee that assists the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican brand and political platform, as well as assisting in fu ...

and as the Maine General Chairman of the

Bush Bush commonly refers to: * Shrub, a small or medium woody plant Bush, Bushes, or the bush may also refer to: People * Bush (surname), including any of several people with that name **Bush family, a prominent American family that includes: *** ...

- Cheney 2004 re-election campaign. Cianchette was appointed ambassador by President Bush and sworn in on May 8, 2008. He presented his credentials on June 12, 2008 and served until June 19, 2009. He was the 56th person to hold the position and was succeeded by Anne S. Andrew.

Return to private sector

After service in Costa Rica, Cianchette rejoined Cianbro as vice president of business development, announced Cianbro chairman and CEO Peter Vigue.

Personal and civic life

A community and civic activist, Cianchette served as a director on the boards of the

Make-A-Wish Foundation The Make-A-Wish Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in the United States that helps fulfill the wishes of children with a critical illness between the ages of and 18 years old. Make-A-Wish was founded in 1980 and headqua ...

of Maine and also served on the

Republican National Committee The Republican National Committee (RNC) is a U.S. political committee that assists the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican brand and political platform, as well as assisting in fu ...

and as director of the Greater Portland Big Brothers/Big Sisters, the

Boy Scouts of America The Boy Scouts of America (BSA, colloquially the Boy Scouts) is one of the largest scouting organizations and one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with about 1.2 million youth participants. The BSA was founded i ...

/Pine Tree Council, the Portland Chamber of Commerce, the

Southern Maine Community College Southern Maine Community College is a public community college in South Portland, Maine. It is part of the Maine Community College System. History Southern Maine Community College (SMCC) opened in Augusta, Maine in 1946 under the name "Maine ...

Foundation, YES! to Youth. Cianchette is an alumni initiate brother of

Pi Kappa Phi Pi Kappa Phi (), commonly known as Pi Kapp(s), is an American Greek Letter secret and social fraternity. It was founded by Andrew Alexander Kroeg Jr., Lawrence Harry Mixson, and Simon Fogarty Jr. on December 10, 1904 at the College of Charleston i ...

fraternity. He lives in Maine with his wife Carolyn and their two children, Evan and Maria.

References

External links

"What Is Peter Cianchette Up To?"
''Pine Tree Politics'', September 21, 2009; speculation about a 2010 gubernatorial run
"Peter Cianchette Rejoins Cianbro"
The Exception Magazine, July 2, 2009; link to July 1, 2009 ''Bangor Daily News'' article *

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Cianchette, Peter Ernest 1961 births Living people Ambassadors of the United States to Costa Rica Republican Party members of the Maine House of Representatives People from Pittsfield, Maine Southern Maine Community College University of Maine alumni