Dale McKenna (May 7, 1937 – March 4, 2009) was a former

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

politician, who served in the

Wisconsin State Senate The Wisconsin Senate is the upper house of the Wisconsin State Legislature. Together with the larger Wisconsin State Assembly they constitute the legislative branch of the state of Wisconsin. The powers of the Wisconsin Senate are modeled after t ...

Personal life

McKenna was born in Reeseville, Wisconsin. He graduated from St. Lawrence Seminary High School in

Mount Calvary, Wisconsin Mount Calvary is a village in Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin, Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 762 at the 2010 census, down from 956 residents at the 2000 census. History Mount Calvary's location was chosen by missi ...

, before graduating from

St. Norbert College St. Norbert College (SNC) is a private Norbertine liberal arts college in De Pere, Wisconsin. Founded in October 1898 by Abbot Bernard Pennings, a Norbertine priest and educator, the school was named after Saint Norbert of Xanten. In 1952, the c ...

and the

University of Wisconsin Law School The University of Wisconsin Law School is the professional graduate law school of the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Located in Madison, Wisconsin, the school was founded in 1868. The University of Wisconsin Law School is guided by a "law in ...

and becoming a

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...

. From 1959 to 1962, he served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

Political career

McKenna was first elected to the Senate in 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 ...

in 1969. In 1978, he was a candidate in the Democratic primary for

Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin The lieutenant governor of Wisconsin is the first person in the Gubernatorial lines of succession in the United States#Wisconsin, line of succession of Wisconsin's executive branch, thus serving as governor in the event of the death, resignation, r ...

and run on the gubernatorial ticket with incumbent Governor Martin J. Schreiber. He lost to

Doug La Follette Douglas J. La Follette (born June 6, 1940) is an American academic, environmental scientist, and politician. A Democrat, he is the current Secretary of State of Wisconsin, and the longest-serving statewide elected official (excluding U.S. senato ...

. Schreiber and La Follette would lose in the general election to the

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

ticket made up of

Lee S. Dreyfus Lee Sherman Dreyfus (pronounced ; June 20, 1926 – January 2, 2008) was an American educator and politician. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the List of Governors of Wisconsin, 40th Governor of W ...

and

Russell Olson Russell A. Olson (February 19, 1924April 14, 2010) was an American farmer and Republican Party (United States), Republican politician. He was the 39th Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin (1979–1983) and was afterward appointed Midwest Director ...

. McKenna died on March 4, 2009.Dale McKenna-obituary
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McKenna, Dale People from Dodge County, Wisconsin People from Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin Democratic Party Wisconsin state senators Wisconsin lawyers Military personnel from Wisconsin United States Army soldiers St. Norbert College alumni University of Wisconsin Law School alumni 1937 births 2009 deaths 20th-century American politicians Catholics from Wisconsin 20th-century American lawyers