A. Keith Bissell is a Tennessee

Tennessee

Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...

 politician

Politician

A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...

 who served in the Tennessee House of Representatives

Tennessee House of Representatives

The Tennessee House of Representatives is the lower house of the Tennessee General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Tennessee.-Constitutional requirements:...

 and was the last chairman of the Tennessee Public Service Commission

Tennessee Public Service Commission

The Tennessee Public Service Commission, also called Tennessee Railroad and Public Utilities Commission, was a three-member elected body which regulated private utilities, trucking firms, and railroads within the state of Tennessee...

.

Early life and education

Keith Bissell was born December 3, 1941 to Alvin K. Bissell and Helen Tilley Bissell. He grew up in Oak Ridge, Tennessee

Oak Ridge, Tennessee

Oak Ridge is a city in Anderson and Roane counties in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Tennessee, about west of Knoxville. Oak Ridge's population was 27,387 at the 2000 census...

, the newly established Manhattan Project

Manhattan Project

The Manhattan Project was a research and development program, led by the United States with participation from the United Kingdom and Canada, that produced the first atomic bomb during World War II. From 1942 to 1946, the project was under the direction of Major General Leslie Groves of the US Army...

 community to which his family moved in 1943 and where his father was mayor

Mayor

In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....

 for many years. He graduated from Oak Ridge High School

Oak Ridge High School (Oak Ridge, Tennessee)

Oak Ridge High School is the public high school for Oak Ridge, Tennessee, enrolling grades 9 through 12. It was established in 1943 to educate the children of Manhattan Project workers. It currently has about 1500 students.-Founding and first location:...

 in 1959 and attended the University of Tennessee

University of Tennessee

The University of Tennessee is a public land-grant university headquartered at Knoxville, Tennessee, United States...

, where he received a bachelor's degree

Bachelor's degree

A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...

 in business administration and later a law degree

Law degree

A Law degree is an academic degree conferred for studies in law. Such degrees are generally preparation for legal careers; but while their curricula may be reviewed by legal authority, they do not themselves confer a license...

.

Tennessee House of Representatives

A Democrat

Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

, Keith Bissell won election to the Tennessee House of Representatives in 1970 as a resident of Oak Ridge, representing the 33rd District in the 87th General Assembly

Tennessee General Assembly

The Tennessee General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Tennessee.-Constitutional structure:According to the Tennessee State Constitution of 1870, the General Assembly is a bicameral legislature and consists of a Senate of thirty-three members and a House of Representatives of...

 (1971–1972). He was re-elected to three two-year terms in 1972, 1974, and 1976, and continued his House services in the 88th through 90th General Assemblies.

Tennessee Public Service Commission

Keith Bissell was first elected to statewide office as a member of the Tennessee Public Service Commission

Tennessee Public Service Commission

The Tennessee Public Service Commission, also called Tennessee Railroad and Public Utilities Commission, was a three-member elected body which regulated private utilities, trucking firms, and railroads within the state of Tennessee...

 (PSC) in 1978, representing East Tennessee

East Tennessee

East Tennessee is a name given to approximately the eastern third of the U.S. state of Tennessee, one of the three Grand Divisions of Tennessee defined in state law. East Tennessee consists of 33 counties, 30 located within the Eastern Time Zone and three counties in the Central Time Zone, namely...

. He won re-election in 1984 and 1990 and served on the PSC for over 17 years, until resigning May 10, 1996, shortly before the PSC's abolition at the end of June 1996. During most of his PSC tenure, he was chairman of the three-member commission.

Congressional campaign

After incumbent Marilyn Lloyd

Marilyn Lloyd

Rachel Marilyn Laird Lloyd is a Tennessee businesswoman and 10-term member of the United States House of Representatives .-Biographical information:...

 announced that she would not seek re-election in 1988, Bissell campaigned to become that year's Democratic nominee for the U.S. House of Representatives in Tennessee's 3rd congressional district

Tennessee's 3rd congressional district

The 3rd Congressional District of Tennessee is a congressional district in Tennessee. It currently includes a north-south strip in the eastern part of the state. Current Republican Representative Chuck Fleischmann has served since 2011....

, but he ended his campaign after Lloyd changed her mind and decided to run again.