Ron Klink
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Pennsylvania's 4th district
In office
January 3, 1993 – January 3, 2001
Preceded byJoseph Kolter
Succeeded byMelissa Hart
Personal details
Born
Ronald Paul Klink

(1951-09-23) September 23, 1951
Canton, Ohio, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse
Linda Hogan
​
(m. 1977)​

Ronald Paul Klink[1] (born September 23, 1951) is an American television broadcaster and politician and who served four terms as a United States Representative from Pennsylvania from 1993 to 2001, as member of the Democratic Party.[2]

Early life and career

Klink was born in Canton, Ohio, and graduated from Meyersdale High School in Pennsylvania in 1969.[3] He married Linda Loree Hogan in Greensburg, Pennsylvania, on August 27, 1977.[1][4]

Broadcasting career

Klink originally worked behind the scenes at WTAJ-TV in Altoona, Pennsylvania from 1976 to 1977 and then became weatherman plus fill-in sports anchor until his departure for Pittsburgh in July 1978. He later became a recognizable figure in the Pittsburgh area as a television news weatherman and reporter on KDKA-TV from 1978 to 1991.

Congress

In 1992, Klink sought the Democratic nomination for the 4th District and defeated five-term incumbent Joe Kolter in the primary.[5] He was easily elected in November and served four terms in the House, never winning less than 64 percent of the vote. Klink was popular within his district as a moderate Democrat with strong labor ties.

2000 Senate campaign

In 2000, he left his House seat to run unsuccessfully for the Senate against incumbent Rick Santorum.[3] Klink lost the race by five points. Klink was virtually unknown on the eastern side of Pennsylvania (including the important Philadelphia area). Other contributing factors included his conservative stances on social issues and the fact that he had to spend a large amount of money in the crowded Democratic primary.

After Congress

He had been mentioned as a possible candidate for his own congressional seat against the person who succeeded him, Republican Melissa Hart. However, in December 2005, Klink announced he would not run.

According to then-Congressman Curt Weldon in his book Countdown to Terror, in 2003, Klink offered Weldon the identity of an intelligence source with information on Iraqi uranium purchases.[5] The agent was thought to be Iranian arms dealer Manucher Ghorbanifar. The intelligence reportedly later proved to be fabricated.

Electoral history

Pennsylvania's 4th congressional district: Results 1992–1998[6]
Year Democrat Votes Pct Republican Votes Pct 3rd Party Party Votes Pct
1992 Ron Klink 186,684 78% Gordon R. Johnston 48,484 20% Drew Ley None of Above 2,754 1%
1994 Ron Klink 119,115 64% Ed Peglow 66,509 36% *
1996 Ron Klink 142,621 64% Paul T. Adametz 79,448 36% *
1998 Ron Klink 103,183 64% Mike Turzai 58,485 36% *

*Write-in and minor candidate notes: In 1994, write-ins received 6 votes. In 1996, write-ins received 98 votes. In 1998, write-ins received 17 votes.

Pennsylvania Senator (Class I): 2000 results[6]
Year Democrat Votes Pct Republican Votes Pct 3rd Party Party Votes Pct 3rd Party Party Votes Pct 3rd Party Party Votes Pct
2000 Ron Klink 2,154,908 46% Rick Santorum 2,481,962 52% John J. Featherman Libertarian 45,775 1% Lester Searer Constitution 28,382 1% Robert Domske Reform 24,089 1%

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Couple Wed In Greensburg". The Daily American. September 30, 1977.
  2. ↑ "Ron Klink". Congress.gov. Retrieved 2020-11-08.
  3. 1 2 MacPherson, Karen (March 26, 2000). "Ron Klink: The Congressman from Murrysville". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved 2020-11-08.
  4. ↑ "Candidate Profile from Congressional Quarterly: Ron Klink (D) of Murrysville". CNN. 1998.
  5. 1 2 Weldon, Curt (2005). Countdown to terror : the top-secret information that could prevent the next terrorist attack on America-- and how the CIA has ignored it. Regnery Pub. ISBN 9780895260055.
  6. 1 2 "Election Statistics". Office of the Clerk of the House of Representatives. Retrieved 2007-08-08.

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