John Keenan was born the fourth of seven children of Philip and Loretta Keenan. His father worked in the mailing room of the Record American, and then the Boston Herald, while his mother worked at Filene’s and CNA Insurance. John was raised in Quincy and attended the Quincy Public Schools, graduating in 1982 from North Quincy High School. While in high school, John cut lawns and sold newspapers, and worked the Saturday overnight shift at the Herald. He went to Harvard University, earning his way through by working in the athletic department equipment room. He worked summers in the State Legislature as an intern in then Representative Michael Morrissey’s office, and as an intern in the Attorney General’s office. John graduated with honors from Harvard in 1986, with a government concentration. Three years later, he graduated from Suffolk University Law School. In May 2005, he received a certificate of recognition upon completion of a nine-month seminar program on municipal governance and policy at the Rappaport Institute at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government.

After law school, John worked first as a litigator, then as a public defender, followed by work as an attorney combating insurance fraud. He is admitted to practice in all Massachusetts State Courts, the Federal District Court for the District of Massachusetts, the Federal First Circuit Court of Appeals, and the United States Supreme Court.

While in law school, John was appointed to serve as the Chairperson of the Quincy Mayor’s Commission on Handicapped Affairs, and was then appointed to the Quincy Zoning Board of Appeals, on which he served for seven years. In 1997 he was appointed Executive Secretary in the administration of Quincy Mayor Jim Sheets. As Executive Secretary he managed 22 municipal department heads and was responsible for the preparation and presentation of Quincy’s budget and the review of all financial matters. In 2001, John became Executive Director of the Norfolk County Retirement System, a public pension system with approximately 10,000 active and retired members, and assets of over $500 million. He held that position until he was sworn in as Senator for the Norfolk and Plymouth District in January 2011.

In 2003 John was appointed to the Quincy City Council to fill a vacant seat, and was elected Councilor at Large in 2004. He was been re-elected Councilor at Large four times, the last time as the top vote getter. He served as Chairman of the Council’s Finance Committee for a record eight years, under four different council presidents.

In 2010, John ran for Norfolk and Plymouth Senate seat.  He finished first in the Democratic Party primary, and defeated a Republican party candidate and an independent candidate in the final election.

After being sworn in on January 5, 2011, John was appointed the Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Mental Health and Substance Abuse.  He also serves as the Vice-Chair of the Senate Committee on Bonding, Capital Expenditures and State Assets, and is a member of the Joint Committee on Financial Services, Joint Committee on Revenue, Joint Committee on State Administration and Regulatory Oversight, Joint Committee on the Judiciary, and the Joint Committee on Veterans and Federal Affairs.

John resides at 37 Hobomack Road with his wife, Jeanne Hopkins, and their three children.  Jeanne is an optometrist who has worked in Quincy and Braintree for over nineteen years.  John is a member of the Merrymount Association, the Ward One Democratic Committee, the Quincy City Club, Friends of the Thomas Crane Public Library, and the Harvard Club of Quincy. He served as a member of the Board of Directors of Quincy Neighborhood Housing, and served for seven years as a member of the Zoning Board of Appeals. He also coached in the Sacred Heart Youth Basketball Program for several years.