Robert Norton Shamansky (April 18, 1927 – August 11, 2011) was an American Democratic politician and attorney from the state of

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

. He served in the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

for a single term from 1981 until 1983. In 2018, the ''

Jewish Telegraphic Agency The Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) is an international news agency and wire service, founded in 1917, serving Jewish community newspapers and media around the world as well as non-Jewish press, with about 70 syndication clients listed on its web ...

'' wrote that "Shamansky's life was marked by hardship, Jewish pride and tilting at windmills".

Early life

Shamansky was born in 1927 in

Columbus Columbus is a Latinized version of the Italian surname "''Colombo''". It most commonly refers to: * Christopher Columbus (1451-1506), the Italian explorer * Columbus, Ohio, capital of the U.S. state of Ohio Columbus may also refer to: Places ...

, the son of Sarah (Greenberg) and Harry Solomon Shamansky. He attended

Bexley High School Bexley High School (BHS) is a public high school located in Bexley, Ohio, a suburb of Columbus. Athletics Bexley’s athletic program includes teams in the following sports: Football, Basketball, Baseball, Cheerleading, Cross Country, Field ...

. He was a 1947 graduate of

Ohio State University The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best publ ...

and a 1950 graduate of

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (Harvard Law or HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest continuously operating law school in the United States. Each class ...

. He was subsequently admitted to the

bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar * Chocolate bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud * Bar (u ...

in 1950. He was also a Special Agent 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 ...

's Counter Intelligence Corps from 1950 until 1952. He joined the Army as a private and was initially stationed in Georgia, followed by duty at Fort George G. Meade, Maryland.

Political career

1966 Events January * January 1 – In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa takes over as military ruler of the Central African Republic, ousting President David Dacko. * January 3 – 1966 Upper Voltan coup d'état: President Maurice Yaméogo i ...

, Shamansky ran for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. However, he lost to Republican incumbent

Samuel L. Devine Samuel Leeper Devine (December 21, 1915 – June 27, 1997) was an American politician of the Republican Party who served in the United States House of Representatives as Representative of the 12th congressional district of Ohio from January 3, 1 ...

. Fourteen years later, in

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning System time epoch begins at 00:00 UTC. * January 9 – ...

, Shamansky challenged Devine again. This time, he was successful in unseating the long-time incumbent Devine, becoming the first Democrat to represent the district since 1939. He was also the first Democrat to represent a significant portion of the state capital, Columbus, since 1967. As a member of the

97th Congress The 97th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from January 3, 198 ...

, Shamansky served on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and as a member of the Science and Technology Committee. In

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street bridges, 14th Street Bridge in ...

, after

reapportionment Apportionment is the process by which seats in a legislative body are distributed among administrative divisions, such as states or parties, entitled to representation. This page presents the general principles and issues related to apportionme ...

, Shamansky's district absorbed a large chunk of the more Republican-leaning 17th District. He was defeated in his bid for re-election by future

Governor of Ohio 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 ...

John Kasich. In

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...

, Shamansky ran for his old congressional seat. However, the 12th had been significantly redrawn since he'd last served in Congress, and he lost to Kasich's successor, Pat Tiberi, by 14 points.

Death

On August 11, 2011, Shamansky died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound at his home in Columbus at the age of 84. He had been treated for depression at a psychiatric hospital shortly before his death.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Shamansky, Bob 1927 births 2011 deaths 2011 suicides 20th-century American lawyers 20th-century American politicians American politicians who committed suicide Bexley High School alumni Candidates in the 2006 United States elections Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Ohio Harvard Law School alumni Jewish members of the United States House of Representatives John Kasich Lawyers from Columbus, Ohio Ohio lawyers Ohio State University alumni People from Bexley, Ohio Politicians from Columbus, Ohio Suicides by firearm in Ohio United States Army soldiers

Early life

Political career

Death

See also

References

External links