In 1994 TIME magazine named Indiana Governor Evan Bayh as one of America's 50 most promising leaders under the age of 40. In 1996, at the age of 40, Evan Bayh is recognized as not only a leader, but as a major emerging player in the national Democratic Party.

Elected to a second term as Indiana's governor in 1992 by the largest margin of any governor in modern state history, Bayh's record in his state is admirable. Under his fiscal leadership, Indiana has been one of only two states in the nation that has not increased general state taxes since 1989, all the while investing more in education and maintaining essential state services.

Bayh has also helped the state become a national leader in job creation. He has landed such projects as the United Airlines Indianapolis Maintenance Center, which will bring more than 7,000 jobs to the state, and a recently announced $1 billion Toyota truck assembly plant.

Bayh's commitment to education can be seen on many levels. He has ensured that state funding for education has increased every year of his term. He has also supported education reform, proposing programs to improve young children's programs and services and high school students' preparation for the work force. One of Governor Bayh's far-reaching reforms is Step Ahead, which has a goal of helping every child in Indiana reach school age ready to learn. He is chairman of the National Education Goals Panel and is one of two governors on the National Assessment in Education Panel.

As a gubernatorial candidate Bayh stated that among his goals was "opening up state government and putting new vigor and dedication in this process, so the voices of all of our citizens can be heard in the corridors of power in the Statehouse." As governor he has carried through with this promise by regularly visiting schools and by initiating a "capital-for-a-day" program, visiting more than 60 towns and cities around the state in an effort to take his proposals directly to the people.

As Bayh nears the end of his second term as governor, with Indiana law prohibiting him from serving a third term, there is speculation about his future in the national political arena. A spokesperson for the Democratic National Committee has described him as a "young, dynamic, successful governor," and NEWSWEEK magazine recently heralded him as "a rising star."

Born in Terre Haute, Bayh was raised in politics. His mother, Marvella Hern Bayh, was an impressive speaker and political campaigner. His father, Birch E. Bayh Jr., represented Indiana in the U.S. Senate for three terms. The Honorable Birch Bayh Jr. was the Commencement speaker at the 1995 Indiana University Bloomington campus. He received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree at that time.

Evan Bayh 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 has said made him realize that "politics was something I might be interested in." In 1982 Bayh was a law clerk to Judge James E. Noland, chief judge for the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana. The following year he worked for the Washington, D.C., law firm of Hogan and Hartson. He returned to Indianapolis, joining the law firm of Bingham Summers Welsh and Spilman in 1985. 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.

Evan and his wife, Susan, live in Indianapolis. They are the proud parents of twin boys, Birch Evans Bayh IV and Nicholas Harris Bayh, born on November 9,1995.