Gerald Daniel "Jerry" Kleczka (born November 26, 1943), an American politician, was a Democratic

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...

 member of the United States House of Representatives

United States House of Representatives

The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...

 from 1984 to 2005, representing . The district includes the city of Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Wisconsin

Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...

, where he was born.

After graduating from Milwaukee's Don Bosco High School, in 1961, he attended the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee for two years. Afterward, he served as an accountant and a member of the National Guard

United States National Guard

The National Guard of the United States is a reserve military force composed of state National Guard militia members or units under federally recognized active or inactive armed force service for the United States. Militia members are citizen soldiers, meaning they work part time for the National...

. Kleczka was elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly

Wisconsin State Assembly

The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin....

, serving from 1969 to 1974. Later, he was a member of the Wisconsin State Senate

Wisconsin State Senate

The Wisconsin Senate, the powers of which are modeled after those of the U.S. Senate, is the upper house of the Wisconsin State Legislature, smaller than the Wisconsin State Assembly...

 from 1975 to 1984. Kleczka was elected to the House following the death of Representative Clement Zablocki.

While in Congress, Kleczka was a member of the House Ways and Means Committee and later the House Budget Committee. He was known to be one of the more liberal members of Congress and helped to secure money for many programs for education, poverty relief, and housing improvements.

Kleczka was arrested at least twice for drunk driving.

A 1995 arrest for drunken driving - his blood alcohol content

Blood alcohol content

Blood alcohol content , also called blood alcohol concentration, blood ethanol concentration, or blood alcohol level is most commonly used as a metric of alcohol intoxication for legal or medical purposes....

 was twice the legal limit in Virginia - led him to acknowledge his alcoholism and seek treatment. Friends say it softened his rough edges. He turned to God as part of his recovery and continues to meet regularly with fellow recovering alcoholics.

Kleczka announced his retirement in 2004, and did not run for reelection. He officially retired in January 2005 after 10 terms in Congress, and was succeeded by State Senator Gwen Moore

Gwen Moore

Gwendolynne Sophia Moore is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2005. She is a member of the Democratic Party.The district is based in Milwaukee and also includes South Milwaukee, Cudahy and St. Francis, and part of West Allis. She is the first woman to represent the district...

, also a Democrat.

External links

• Honorary Degree: Doctor of Laws Conferred on Jerry Kleczka, Marquette University, 2005.