Paul D. Froehlich (born 1950) was a member of the

Illinois House of Representatives The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The House under the current constitution as amended in 1980 consists of 118 re ...

representing the 56th district, where he served from 2003 to 2011.

Education

Froehlich earned a B.A. in Political Science and an M.A. in History from

Northeastern Illinois University Northeastern Illinois University (NEIU) is a public university in Chicago, Illinois. NEIU serves approximately 9,000 students in the region and is a Hispanic-serving institution. The main campus is located in the community area of North Park wi ...

Republican Party posts

The biggest upset of his career came in 1998 when Froehlich was elected as the Schaumburg Township

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 ...

Committeeman In the United States, a political party committee is an organization, officially affiliated with a political party and registered with the Federal Elections Commission (FEC), which raises and spends money for political campaigning. Political party ...

, defeating a 32-year incumbent by 55-45%. Froehlich formed S.T.A.R., the Schaumburg Township Alliance of Republicans, and in 2001 led the Republican Schaumburg township ticket to a complete sweep of all nine seats, ousting long-term incumbents loyal to the old committeeman. Froehlich was Schaumburg township assessor.

Illinois State Representative (2003-2010)

When State Representative Kay Wojcik was appointed to a vacant senate seat in 2003, Froehlich was appointed to fill the vacated post. The appointment was made by three party leaders, one of whom was Froehlich. In 2004, Froehlich was elected without opposition. In 2006, he defeated a primary opponent, and was able to get his general election opponent tossed from the ballot. In June 2007, Froehlich switched parties and became 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 ...

. Republicans vowed revenge in the 2008 election. Froehlich won a primary challenge, and then defeated his Republican opponent by a landslide, 58-42%.

Cook County Cook County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of Illinois and the second-most-populous county in the United States, after Los Angeles County, California. More than 40% of all residents of Illinois live within Cook County. As of 20 ...

Board of Review commissioners and their staffs investigated whether Froehlich used any "undue influence" to get tax breaks for businesses in Froehlich's district. In April and May 2009, a grand jury subpoena sought records for 25 tax appeal cases. On July 29, 2009, the Board of Review, in a rare move, reversed four of the tax breaks, including the two hotels. Beginning as early as 2009, investigators for Cook County State's Attorney

Anita Alvarez Anita M. Alvarez (born January 16, 1960) is the former State's Attorney for Cook County, Illinois, United States. Alvarez was the first Hispanic woman elected to this position, after being the first Latina to win the Democratic nomination for ...

investigated whether Froehlich helped arrange property tax breaks for residents and businesses in exchange for campaign contributions and favors. Froehlich denied any wrongdoing, and no charges were filed. In July, 2009, Froehlich announced his decision to not run again. His successor is Rep. Michelle Mussman, also a Democrat.

Personal life

Schaumburg Schaumburg is a district (''Landkreis'') of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is bounded by (clockwise from the north) the districts of Nienburg, Hanover and Hamelin-Pyrmont, and the state of North Rhine-Westphalia (districts of Lippe and Minden-Lübbe ...

resident, Froehlich is married and has three children.

References

External links

Illinois General Assembly - Representative Paul D. Froehlich (D) 56th District
official IL House website
BillsCommitteesProject Vote Smart - Representative Paul D. Froehlich (IL)
profile *''Follow the Money'' - Paul Froehlich
20062004
campaign contributions 1950 births Living people Members of the Illinois House of Representatives 21st-century American legislators People from Franklin Park, Illinois 21st-century Illinois politicians {{Illinois-Ilrepresentative-stub