Allen Kukovich ( ) is a former member of the

Pennsylvania State Senate The Pennsylvania State Senate is the upper house of the Pennsylvania General Assembly, the Pennsylvania state legislature. The State Senate meets in the State Capitol building in Harrisburg. Senators are elected for four year terms, staggered ev ...

, where he represented the 39th senatorial district from 1996 through 2004. He was also a member of the

Pennsylvania House of Representatives The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two-year terms from single member districts. It ...

from 1977 through 1996. He served as the Pennsylvania Democratic State Chairman from June 2002 through March 2003.

Person life

Allen Kukovich was born on September 5, 1947, in

Manor, Pennsylvania Manor is a borough in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 3,239 at the 2010 census. Manor was born from the railroad stop, Manor Station, into the borough it is today. Geography Manor is located at (40.335854, -7 ...

, a small town in Westmoreland County. He attended Penn Township High School before heading to

Kent State University Kent State University (KSU) is a public research university in Kent, Ohio. The university also includes seven regional campuses in Northeast Ohio and additional facilities in the region and internationally. Regional campuses are located in As ...

in Ohio, where he graduated in 1969. In 1973, he received his J.D. from

Duquesne University Duquesne University of the Holy Spirit ( or ; Duquesne University or Duquesne) is a private Catholic research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Founded by members of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit, Duquesne first opened as the Pittsbu ...

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

and worked for several years in private

law practice In its most general sense, the practice of law involves giving legal advice to clients, drafting legal documents for clients, and representing clients in legal negotiations and court proceedings such as lawsuits, and is applied to the professi ...

Greensburg, Pennsylvania Greensburg is a city in and the county seat of Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, United States, and a part of the Pittsburgh Metro Area. The city lies within the Laurel Highlands and the ecoregion of the Western Allegheny Plateau (ecoregion), W ...

Political career

After the unexpected death of state Representative John Laudadio in 1977, Kukovich won a

special election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-larges ...

on November 8, 1977, to complete the remainder of the deceased member's

term of office A term of office, electoral term, or parliamentary term is the length of time a person serves in a particular elected office. In many jurisdictions there is a defined limit on how long terms of office may be before the officeholder must be subject ...

. While in the House, Kukovich served as Majority Policy Chairman and also chaired several other key committees. A reformer known for his efforts to reduce the size of the

Pennsylvania General Assembly The Pennsylvania General Assembly is the legislature of the U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The legislature convenes in the State Capitol building in Harrisburg. In colonial times (1682–1776), the legislature was known as the Pennsylvania ...

and promote

open government Open government is the governing doctrine which sustain that citizens have the right to access the documents and proceedings of the government to allow for effective public oversight. In its broadest construction, it opposes reason of state and ...

and

accountability Accountability, in terms of ethics and governance, is equated with answerability, blameworthiness, liability, and the expectation of account-giving. As in an aspect of governance, it has been central to discussions related to problems in the publ ...

, he was instrumental in enacting the

Children's Health Insurance Program The Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) – formerly known as the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) – is a program administered by the United States Department of Health and Human Services that provides matching funds to ...

in Pennsylvania, which later served as a model for the federal CHIP program, and which has provided hundreds of thousands of children in Pennsylvania with free or low-cost health insurance each year. Politically, he was "liberal leaning." In 1996, he defeated incumbent Democratic state Senator Eugene Porterfield who represented Pennsylvania's 39th Senatorial District. Kukovich the primary won with a 10% margin and won the general election. In 2000, Porterfield re-registered as a Republican and unsuccessfully challenged Kukovich for his seat. In the Senate, Kukovich served as Democratic Chair of the Aging and Youth Committee, where he played a pivotal role in the passing of the expanded PACE legislation. Kukovich ran for

Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor The lieutenant governor is a constitutional officer of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The lieutenant governor is elected for a four-year term in the same year as the governor. Each party picks a candidate for lieutenant governor independently o ...

in 2002. In a crowded field, Kukovich came in

third place In sociology, the third place refers to the social surroundings that are separate from the two usual social environments of home ("first place") and the workplace ("second place"). Examples of third places include churches, cafes, clubs, public ...

, behind fellow

state senator A state senator is a member of a state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. Description A state senator is a member of an upper house in the bicameral legislatures of 49 U ...

Jack Wagner and the eventual winner,

Catherine Baker Knoll Catherine Baker Knoll (September 3, 1930 – November 12, 2008) was an American politician and member of the Democratic Party. She was the 30th lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania, serving under Governor Ed Rendell from 2003 to 2008, when she die ...

In 2002, the political website

PoliticsPA PoliticsPA.com is a website centered on the politics of Pennsylvania. Content The website reports on political and campaign news in Pennsylvania, from the state legislature up to federal races. The editors write occasional features, like the we ...

named him to the list of "Smartest Legislators," suggesting that he was "the policy wonk of all legislators." Following the primary,

Ed Rendell Edward Gene Rendell (; born January 5, 1944) is an American lawyer, prosecutor, politician, and author. He served as the 45th Governor of Pennsylvania from 2003 to 2011, as chair of the national Democratic Party, and as the 96th Mayor of Philade ...

, the Democratic nominee for governor, asked Kukovich to serve as Chairman of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party. Kukovich held that post through the successful gubernatorial campaign of Rendell/Knoll. In November, 2004, Kukovich lost his senate seat to Republican Bob Regola. Shortly after he left office, Kukovich was tapped to serve as Director of

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Rendell's

Southwestern Pennsylvania Greater Pittsburgh is a populous region centered around its largest city and economic hub, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The region encompasses Pittsburgh's urban core county, Allegheny, and six adjacent Pennsylvania counties: Armstrong, Beaver, B ...

office. Kukovich help found the Pennsylvania chapter of

Common Cause Common Cause is a watchdog group based in Washington, D.C., with chapters in 35 states. It was founded in 1970 by John W. Gardner, a Republican, who was the former Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare in the administration of President L ...

in the early 1970s and is currently an Executive Board member of the national organization,

Americans for Democratic Action Americans for Democratic Action (ADA) is a liberal American political organization advocating progressive policies. ADA views itself as supporting social and economic justice through lobbying, grassroots organizing, research, and supporting prog ...

(ADA).

References

External links

* Allen G. Kukovich papers, University of Pittsburgh {{DEFAULTSORT:Kukovich, Allen G. 1947 births Duquesne University alumni Kent State University alumni Living people Democratic Party members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives Pennsylvania Democratic Party chairs Democratic Party Pennsylvania state senators People from Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania