Joseph A. Strohl (born March 19, 1946) is a

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

lobbyist In politics, lobbying, persuasion or interest representation is the act of lawfully attempting to influence the actions, policies, or decisions of government officials, most often legislators or members of regulatory agencies. Lobbying, which ...

and former Majority Leader of 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 ...

. He represented

Racine County Racine County (, sometimes also ) is a county in southeastern Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, its population was 197,727, making it Wisconsin's fifth-most populous county. Its county seat is Racine. The county was founded in 1836, then a par ...

as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

from 1979 through 1991.

Biography

Joseph Strohl was born on March 19, 1946, in

Evanston, Illinois Evanston ( ) is a city, suburb of Chicago. Located in Cook County, Illinois, United States, it is situated on the North Shore along Lake Michigan. Evanston is north of Downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, Wil ...

. He graduated from high school in

Stephenson, Michigan Stephenson is a city in Menominee County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 862 at the 2010 census. The city is surrounded by Stephenson Township but is administered autonomously. It is part of the Marinette, WI–MI Micr ...

, received his B.S. from

Northern Michigan University Northern Michigan University (Northern Michigan, Northern or NMU) is a public university in Marquette, Michigan. It was established in 1899 by the Michigan Legislature as Northern State Normal School. In 1963, the state designated Northern a uni ...

and attended graduate school at the

University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee The University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee (UW–Milwaukee, UWM, or Milwaukee) is a public urban research university in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It is the largest university in the Milwaukee metropolitan area and a member of the University of Wiscons ...

. Strohl is married with one child and one stepchild. He worked as a teacher before entering politics.

Political career

Strohl began his political career working as a

legislative aide A legislative assistant (LA) or legislative analyst is a person who works for a legislator as a legislative staffer, a government agency as a legislative affairs professional, or in the government relations and regulatory affairs industry by monitor ...

Congressman A Member of Congress (MOC) is a person who has been appointed or elected and inducted into an official body called a congress, typically to represent a particular constituency in a legislature. The term member of parliament (MP) is an equivalen ...

Les Aspin Leslie Aspin Jr. (July 21, 1938 – May 21, 1995) was an American Democratic Party politician who served as the U.S. representative for Wisconsin's 1st congressional district from 1971 to 1993 and as the 18th United States Secretary of Defens ...

, ( WI-01), from 1971 to 1978. In 1978, Strohl challenged 14-year incumbent Wisconsin Senator Henry Dorman in the 21st District Senate Primary. Dorman had been indicted earlier in the year for misuse of state telephone credit cards, and was plagued by other controversies, including a

nepotism Nepotism is an advantage, privilege, or position that is granted to relatives and friends in an occupation or field. These fields may include but are not limited to, business, politics, academia, entertainment, sports, fitness, religion, an ...

scandal. Strohl's opponent in the 1978 general election was Sister Michelle Olley, the President of the Racine Unified School Board and a Catholic

nun A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 599. The term is o ...

. Olley had been embroiled in a contentious, months-long teachers

strike Strike may refer to: People *Strike (surname) Physical confrontation or removal *Strike (attack), attack with an inanimate object or a part of the human body intended to cause harm *Airstrike, military strike by air forces on either a suspected ...

in 1977 which lead to dozens of arrests. Strohl defeated Olley in the general election, held November 7, 1978. He was re-elected in 1982 and 1986, ultimately serving twelve years in the Senate, including four years as Senate Majority Leader. In 1989, Strohl ran into controversy when, as Majority Leader, he prevented a

parental consent Parental consent laws (also known as parental involvement laws) in some countries require that one or more parents consent to or be notified before their minor child can legally engage in certain activities. Parental consent may refer to: *A pa ...

bill from coming to a vote on the Senate floor. This was exploited in the 1990 election by Strohl's opponent, Racine Unified School Board Member

George Petak George Petak (born November 6, 1949) is an American Republican politician and political consultant who was the first Wisconsin state legislator to be removed from office in a recall election. Early life and education Born in Warren, Ohio, Pet ...

. Strohl went on to lose that election, held November 6, 1990. Petak took office in 1991, the first time a Republican had held the 21st district senate seat since Edward F. Hilker died in office in 1949. Since leaving the Senate, Strohl has worked as a lobbyist in

Madison Madison may refer to: People * Madison (name), a given name and a surname * James Madison (1751–1836), fourth president of the United States Place names * Madison, Wisconsin, the state capital of Wisconsin and the largest city known by this ...

Electoral history

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References

External links

The Political Graveyard
{{DEFAULTSORT:Strohl, Joseph People from Evanston, Illinois People from Menominee County, Michigan Democratic Party Wisconsin state senators Northern Michigan University alumni University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee alumni 1946 births Living people