Bob Franks | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromNew Jersey's7th district | |
| In office January 3, 1993 – January 3, 2001 | |
| Preceded by | Matt Rinaldo |
| Succeeded by | Mike Ferguson |
| Member of theNew Jersey General Assembly from the22nd district | |
| In office January 1980 – January 1993 Serving with William J. Maguire andMaureen Ogden | |
| Preceded by | Donald DiFrancesco |
| Succeeded by | Alan Augustine |
| Chair of theNew Jersey Republican Party | |
| In office 1990–1992 | |
| Preceded by | Kathleen Donovan |
| Succeeded by | Virginia Littell |
| In office 1987–1989 | |
| Preceded by | Frank B. Holman |
| Succeeded by | Kathleen Donovan |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Robert Douglas Franks (1951-09-21)September 21, 1951 Hackensack, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Died | April 9, 2010(2010-04-09) (aged 58) New York City,New York, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Frances Smith |
| Children | 3 |
| Residence(s) | New Providence, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Alma mater | DePauw University (BA) Southern Methodist University (JD) |
| Occupation |
|
Robert Douglas Franks (September 21, 1951 – April 9, 2010) was an AmericanRepublican politician who served as aU.S. Representative fromNew Jersey.[1][2]
Franks was born on September 21, 1951, inHackensack, New Jersey, the son of Norman A. Franks (1921–2000) and June E. Franks. He grew up inGlen Rock, New Jersey before his family moved to suburban Chicago. They returned to New Jersey, where Franks attendedSummit High School.[3][4] He graduated fromDePauw University in 1973 where he was President of the Student Senate, and from theDedman School of Law atSouthern Methodist University in 1976.
He had been involved in Republican politics while growing up, including the races ofSenatorCharles H. Percy. As a teenager, he returned to his home state. While inSummit, he became involved with theYoung Republicans and the Kean for Assembly races. Franks helped to found the Union County Young Republicans Franks then served as an aide, consultant and campaign manager to several congressman includingJim Courter andDean Gallo as well asGovernorThomas Kean. The primary profession of Franks, however, was that of a newspaper publisher.
In 1979, Franks was a candidate forUnion CountyFreeholder when State SenatorPeter J. McDonough resigned. AssemblymanDonald DiFrancesco ran for the Senate, and Franks switched to the Assembly race. He defeated Marie Kissebeth, theBerkeley Heights mayor, at the Republican convention.
When he was redistricted into the22nd Legislative District, a Union/Essex district in 1981 and Essex Republicans demanded an Assembly seat, Franks survived and the Union Republicans dumped another incumbent,William J. Maguire. He was re-elected in 1981, 1983, 1985, 1987, 1989 and 1991.
While in the Assembly, he also served two terms as chairman of theNew Jersey Republican State Committee, 1987–89 and 1990–92. In the second term, finding widespread voter discontent with Governor Jim Florio's tax hikes, he led the Republican Party to winning veto-proof majorities in both houses of the Legislature.
He was succeeded in the Assembly byAlan Augustine.[5]
In 1992, Franks was elected to the U. S. House of Representatives (succeeding Matt Rinaldo), and served four terms in the House from 1993 to 2001. While he was a congressman, he was a member of the Transportation Committee and involved with transportation issues. He was known as a budget "hawk" and was a strong supporter of the Contract with America, including voluntary terms limits.
Franks was the New Jersey campaign chairman for U.S. Rep.Jack Kemp in the campaign for the 1988 Republican presidential nomination. He endorsed New Jersey publisherSteve Forbes in 1996, and U.S. Rep.John Kasich in 2000. Franks and Kasich served together on the House Budget Committee and became close friends. Kasich is the godfather of Franks' eldest daughter, Kelly, and was one of the eulogizers at Franks' 2010 funeral.
In2000, Franks gave up his House seat (true to his "term limits" vow) to become the Republican candidate to the openSenate seat from New Jersey. However, he was defeated byDemocratJon Corzine.
In this race Franks was far outspent by Corzine, a former CEO, by 48 million dollars, yet still was the closest the Republicans have come to winning a New Jersey United States Senate seat sinceClifford Case won a fourth term re-election in1972.[citation needed] Corzine defeated Franks by less than 100,000 votes and a vote percentage of 51.1% to 47.1% in the2000 US Senate election.
He was defeated for the Republican nomination for New Jersey governor in 2001 byBret Schundler, who ran on a more conservative platform. Franks entered the 2001 governor's race reluctantly, following the withdrawal of former GovernorDonald DiFrancesco, after having previous announced that he would not be a candidate. It is believed this late start cost him the primary as Schundler had a big head start in campaigning and fundraising.
Jack Abramoff helped Schundler raise funds against Franks because of his refusal to hold off a "Made in the USA" bill that harmed Abramoff's clients in theNorthern Marianas Islands despite assurances he wouldn't introduce the bill until further discussions occurred. The bill was introduced the next day without further discussions. Abramoff retaliated "He was running for governor. I raised a bunch of money for his opponent in the primary and made sure everyone knew I was doing it. He lost his primary. No other Republican tried to slap the CNMI while I was a lobbyist." Abramoff said in an interview.[6]
Franks remained involved in New Jersey politics and was often mentioned as a potential candidate for high offices, but Franks discouraged such speculation. Many thought that his next public office, if any, would have been appointive.
Franks served as President of the Health Care Institute of New Jersey. There was speculation he might run again for Congress when his successor,Mike Ferguson, announced in 2007 that he would not seek reelection in 2008. However, Franks then declined to run, saying "Representing the people of Central New Jersey in the House of Representatives from 1993 to 2001 was one of the important and rewarding experiences of my life; however I find my work at the HealthCare Institute of New Jersey very fulfilling and I'm enjoying nights and weekends with my family... I have no desire to run for Congress next year."[7]
A resident ofWarren Township, Franks died ofcancer atMemorial Sloan Kettering Hospital inNew York City on April 9, 2010.[8]
On September 24, 2013, at the dedication of a rail station in Union, New Jersey in honor of Franks, Gov.Chris Christie revealed that he had offered Franks the Republican nomination forLt. Governor on his ticket in 2009, but that he was turned down. Christie then went to his second choice,Kim Guadagno.[9]
| Year | Democrat | Votes | Pct | Republican | Votes | Pct | 3rd Party | Party | Votes | Pct | 3rd Party | Party | Votes | Pct | 3rd Party | Party | Votes | Pct | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | Leonard Sendelsky | 105,761 | 42.6% | Bob Franks | 132,174 | 53.3% | Eugene J. Gillespie | Independent | 4,043 | 1.6% | Bill Campbell | No Nonsense Government | 2,612 | 1.1% | Spencer Layman | Libertarian | 1,964 | 0.8% | * | |||||
| 1994 | Karen Carroll | 64,231 | 38.7% | Bob Franks(incumbent) | 98,814 | 59.6% | James J. Cleary | LaRouche Was Right | 2,331 | 1.4% | * | |||||||||||||
| 1996 | Larry Lerner | 97,285 | 41.83% | Bob Franks(incumbent) | 128,821 | 55.39% | Dorothy DeLaura | Independent | 4,076 | 1.75% | Nicholas Gentile | Independent | 1,693 | 0.73% | Robert G. Robertson | Independent | 696 | 0.30% | ||||||
| 1998 | Maryanne Connelly | 65,776 | 44% | Bob Franks(incumbent) | 77,751 | 53% | Richard C. Martin | Independent | 3,007 | 2% | Darren Young | Independent | 1,508 | 1% |
| Candidate | Pct | Candidate | Pct | Candidate | Pct | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bob Franks | 36% | William Gormley | 34% | Others | 30% |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Jon S. Corzine | 1,511,237 | 50 | ||
| Republican | Bob Franks | 1,420,267 | 47 | ||
| Independent | Bruce Afran | 32,841 | 1 | ||
| Independent | Pat DiNizio | 19,312 | 1 | ||
| Independent | Emerson Ellett | 7,241 | <1% | ||
| Independent | Dennis A. Breen | 6,061 | <1% | ||
| Independent | J. M. Carter | 5,657 | <1% | ||
| Independent | Lorraine LaNeve | 3,836 | <1% | ||
| Independent | Gregory Pason | 3,365 | <1% | ||
| Independent | Nancy Rosenstock | 3,309 | <1% | ||
| Independent | George Gostigian | 2,536 | <1% | ||
| Majority | 90,970 | 3 | |||
| Democratichold | Swing | ||||
| New Jersey General Assembly | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of theNew Jersey General Assembly from the22nd district 1980–1993 Served alongside:William J. Maguire andMaureen Ogden | Succeeded by |
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromNew Jersey's 7th congressional district 1993–2001 | Succeeded by |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Chairman of theNew Jersey Republican Party 1987–1989 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Chairman of theNew Jersey Republican Party 1990–1992 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Republican nominee forU.S. Senator fromNew Jersey (Class 1) 2000 | Succeeded by |
