Nearly three years after miniature heart pump maker Abiomed completed its sale to Johnson & Johnson, its former CEO is looking to trade the board room for the state house.
Michael Minogue has announced a bid to become the governor of Massachusetts. He will run in the 2026 election as a Republican candidate for his first campaign, following a history of major donations to the national party and political action committees.
Minogue plans to challenge the state’s incumbent Democratic governor, Maura Healey, who is seeking a second term. Other Republican candidates include Mike Kennealy, a cabinet secretary under previous Gov. Charlie Baker, and Brian Shortsleeve, founder of venture capital firm M33 Growth, according to a report from the Boston Herald.
In a post announcing his campaign on LinkedIn, Minogue cited his nearly 19 years as chief of the Massachusetts-based Abiomed as well as his experience as an Army ranger during Operation Desert Storm. “I've decided to run for Governor because we need a new kind of leadership—one that is grounded in upholding existing law, respecting taxpayers, and applying compassion & common sense,” he wrote.
“I ask for your prayers and support as I focus on another struggling ‘company’ called Massachusetts,” he said in a subsequent LinkedIn post, tagging workers at J&J MedTech. “I promise to put the people of Massachusetts first just like we put Patients First at Abiomed.”
Abiomed was acquired in one of the largest medtech M&A deals of 2022, weighing in at $16.6 billion, based around its Impella line of catheter-based heart pumps. The company had posted 20% growth in its top-line revenue annually for 17 years—and J&J MedTech has pitched it as a new pillar of its cardiovascular business alongside its more recent marquee purchase of Shockwave Medical, which topped $13.1 billion last year.
Minogue, meanwhile, ranked ninth on our 2022 list of the highest paid medtech CEOs. He stepped down from the post after the acquisition closed that December, before founding his own consultancy and investment firm.
He has also served on the boards of Insulet and the medtech industry association AdvaMed and is the founder and chairman of MedTechVets, a noprofit focused on veteran career advocacy.