Evan Bayh was born in Shirkieville, Indiana, on December 26, 1955. His father was long-time Indiana Senator, Birch Bayh.
He received his B.S. in business economics from Indiana University in 1978, and was awarded a law degree by the University of Virginia in 1981. He took a semester off from law school to manage his father's 1980 campaign, an experience that he said made him realize that, "Politics was something I might be interested in." After clerking for a federal judge and working in a number of law firms, he was elected Indiana's secretary of state in 1986. Two years later, at the age of 33, he became the state's youngest governor in this century. In 1992, he was elected governor by the highest percentage of the vote in a statewide Indiana election. Following two terms as Indiana governor (1989-97), Mr. Bayh was elected to the United States Senate - to a seat once held by his father - where he also served two terms (1999-2011).
He currently practices law at the Washington, D.C., firm McGuireWoods. He also serves as an advisor at Apollo Global Management in New York, as well as working on the board of directors for several major corporations, including Fifth Third Bank and Marathon Petroleum Corporation. He also serves on the advisory board for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
