Introduction
William Pond Baker (born June 14, 1940, in Oakland, California) is a former United States Congressman from California. He attended San Jose State University, from which he earned a business degree. Baker served as a member of the United States Coast Guard reserve from 1957 to 1965.
After graduating from college, Baker worked as a budget analyst for a large financial corporation. He then took a similar job with the California Department of Finance, which he held for four years. Baker worked as the vice president of a Taxpayers Association until he successfully ran for a seat in the California State Assembly as a Republican in 1980. He served six terms in a district that included portions of Contra Costa and Alameda Counties. In 1992, Baker ran for Congress and served two terms in the House before losing reelection in 1996 to Ellen Tauscher. Baker was a political conservative.
After leaving Congress, Baker returned to the field of finance, and was a partner in the Baker, Brose & Mitsutome investment management firm.
Electoral history
| Year | Democrat | Votes | Pct | Republican | Votes | Pct | 3rd Party | Party | Votes | Pct | 3rd Party | Party | Votes | Pct | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | Wendell H. Williams | 134,635 | 48% | Bill Baker | 145,702 | 52% | * | ||||||||||||
| 1994 | Ellen Schwartz | 90,523 | 39% | Bill Baker | 138,916 | 59% | Craig W. Cooper | Peace and Freedom | 4,802 | 2% | |||||||||
| 1996 | Ellen O. Tauscher | 137,726 | 49% | Bill Baker | 133,633 | 47% | John Place | Reform | 6,354 | 2% | Valerie Janlois | Natural Law | 3,047 | 1% | * |
*Write-in and minor candidate notes:In 1992, write-ins received 92 votes.In 1996, Libertarian Gregory K. Lyon received 2,423 votes.