Applegate was born inSteubenville, Ohio, the son of mayor and state representativeEarl Applegate, and was educated atSteubenville High School. He was elected to the state house in the 1960 election alongside Michael Blischak in a multi-member district and later became the sole representative from the district after defeating Blischak in 1962. He served in the state house until his election to the state senate in the 1968 election. During his tenure in the state senate he defeated incumbentRepublican senatorsJohn Longsworth andKenneth F. Berry.
Applegate had planned on running to succeedWayne Hays in the U.S. House of Representatives in the1978 election, but was selected to replace Hays as the Democratic nominee in the1976 election after Hays resignation. He served until his retirement in the1994 election during which he served on theTransportation,Public Works, andVeterans' Affairs committees. His ideological belief and ratings were mixed and ranged from liberal to conservative with theAmericans for Democratic Action giving him scores between 5% and 80% while theAmerican Conservative Union gave him scores ranging from 12.50% to 64.86%.
Applegate ran for the Democratic presidential nomination in the1988 primary as afavorite son. He only sought the six delegates from his districts, of which he won one, and voted forMichael Dukakis at theDemocratic National Convention. He attempted to have SenatorJohn Glenn, whom he had supported in the1984 primary, be given the vice-presidential nomination, but was unsuccessful. Applegate died in 2021.
Applegate and Michael Blischak were given the Democratic nomination to run for seats in the Ohio House of Representatives in the 1960 election and defeated Republican nominees Ed Griffith and William G. Powell.[5][6] On January 19, 1962, Applegate announced that he would run for reelection and as the multi-member district was eliminated he ran in the Democratic primary against Blischak.[7] He defeated Blischak in the primary and won reelection against Republican nominee Edward V. Miller in the general election.[8][9] He won reelection in 1964 and 1966.[10][11][12]
Applegate announced on January 29, 1968, that he would seek the Democratic nomination for a seat in the Ohio Senate from the 30th district. He defeated former Senator Danny D. Johnson, former Representative Joseph Loha, and former Representative Stuart Henderson in the Democratic primary.[13][14] He defeated incumbent Republican Senator John Longsworth in the general election, being the only person in Ohio to defeat an incumbent state senator in the 1968 election, after spending $2,585.53 during the campaign.[15][16][17]
Following the 1972 reapportionment of districts Applegate's 30th district was redrawn to include Republican SenatorKenneth F. Berry, who was originally from the 19th district.[18] Berry won renomination in the Republican primary against William A. Wallace while Applegate faced no opposition.[19][20] Applegate defeated Berry in the general election.[21]
In 1963, Applegate was selected to serve on the twelve-member House Democratic Policy committee.[22] During his tenure in the state house he served on the Elections and Federal Relations, Health, and Reference committees.[10] During his tenure in the state senate he served on the Commerce, Finance, Finance and Elections, Labor, and Ways and Means committees.[23][24] The Energy and Environment committee was created in 1974, and Applegate was selected to chair the committee.[25]
Minority LeaderAnthony O. Calabrese appointed Applegate to a five-member Democratic advisory committee to determine which Democratic senators would be placed onto committees for the 110th General Assembly.[26] During his tenure he served on the Ohio Controlling Board, Ohio Constitutional Revision Commission, Legislative Service Commission, and the Agriculture and Conservation committees.[27][28] In 1970, he was selected by Calabrese to serve as Assistant Minority Leader.[29]
Applegate supported RepresentativeWayne Hays during the1970 gubernatorial election and wanted to be the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor.[34][35] Applegate was one of the candidates included in a straw poll conducted by the Democratic Party inClark County which was won by Robert E. Cecile.[36]Anthony O. Calabrese Jr. won the lieutenant gubernatorial nomination, but lost in the general election to Republican nomineeJohn William Brown.[37][38]
In 1965, Applegate was named as one of America's outstanding young men by theU.S Junior Chamber of Commerce and was also nominated for the Ohio League of Young Democrat Clubs for their John F. Kennedy award.[13]
Applegate announced in 1975, that he would run for a seat in theUnited States House of Representatives from the 18th congressional district in the1978 election after Representative Hays announced that he would run for governor in the1978 election.[39] Hays withdrew from the1976 election following a sex scandal and later resigned from the house.[40][41] Fourteen of the eighteen Democratic leaders in the 18th congressional district voted in favor of Applegate, who was running against Alan Sherry and Joseph Loha, to replace Hays on the first ballot and then voted unanimously on the second ballot to give the nomination to Applegate on August 16.[42] Applegate initially sought reelection to the state senate in the 1976 election, butKinsey Milleson was later selected to replace him following Applegate's replacement of Hays.[43][44]
RepresentativeJohn Wargo accused Applegate of having been selected by Hays to succeed himself, but Applegate stated that Wargo was overreacting and that he had no political debts to Hays.[45][46] He selected former RepresentativeRobert T. Secrest to serve as his honorary campaign chair.[47] Applegate defeated Republican nominee Ralph R. McCoy andindependent candidate William Crabbe, who was the mayor of Steubenville, in the 1976 election.[48][49]
Applegate announced that he would seek reelection on January 13, 1978, and won against Republican nomineeBill Ress.[50][51][52] Hays, who had been elected to the state house, considered running against Applegate in the 1980 Democratic primary, but chose not to citing his health and pleas from Applegate's supporters.[53] He defeated Republican nominee Gary L. Hammersley in the 1980 election.[54]
Applegate won reelection in the 1982 election against Joseph Holmes' write-in candidacy.[55][56] He defeated Republican nominee Kenneth Burt Jr. in the 1984 election.[57] Applegate defeated Michael Palmer, a follower ofLyndon LaRouche, in the 1986 Democratic primary and faced no opposition in the general election.[58][59][60] He defeated Republican nominee William C. Abraham in the 1988 election.[61] He filed for reelection on February 14, 1990, and defeated Republican nominee John Hales in the 1990 election.[62][63] He defeated Ress in the 1992 election.[64]
Applegate announced that he would not seek reelection on January 3, 1994.[65] His decision made him the twenty-fourth incumbent in the House of Representatives to announce that they would not seek reelection in the1994 elections.[66] He formed apolitical action committee to use the remaining $150,186 in his campaign funds. He served as the honorary chair of Jim Hart's, who was his chief of staff, campaign to succeed him in the house.[67][68] His district was targeted by theNational Republican Congressional Committee and Republican nomineeBob Ney defeated Democratic nomineeGreg DiDonato in theelection.[69][70]
Applegate proposed afavorite son coalition with RepresentativeJames Traficant to bring a focus on regional issues during the1988 Democratic presidential primary stating that "our districts are contiguous and our problems are parallel". Both men would run to gain the delegates from their congressional districts.[93] Ohio Secretary of StateSherrod Brown stated that candidates would be allowed to appear on the presidential and other ballot lines. He ruled that despite laws preventing a candidate's name from appearing on the ballot twice the presidential ballot line did not count as the voters were voting for delegates and not the candidate themselves.[94]
Applegate announced on November 23, 1987, that he would run for president although he stated that "I don't have any great illusions of being sworn in as president of the United States" and would instead focus on winning the six delegates from his district.[95][96] Norma Agostini, the chair of theHarrison County Democratic Party, supported Applegate's campaign.[97] During his campaign Applegate raised $18,297 and spent $18,290.[98]
Applegate received 25,068 votes in the Ohio primary where he won one county and delegate. He placed second in the 18th congressional district behindMichael Dukakis. He stated that he had succeeded in his goal in putting the issues facing the 18th congressional district before multiple presidential delegates and that he and his one delegate would lobby Dukakis at thenational convention.[99][100][101] He was later unsatisfied with Dukakis' stance and plan for acid rain and stated that he might vote for himself, as he was an unpledged delegate, with Jane Eberts, the delegate he won in Ohio, as a protest vote.[102][103] Penny Federspill served as an alternate delegate for Applegate.[104] Applegate gave his support to Dukakis after an aide told him that Dukakis would work with him on acid rain legislation.[105][106] He received zero delegate votes for the presidential nomination.[107]
Applegate was in favor of Glenn being given the vice-presidential nomination and created 10,000 bumper stickers for a Dukakis-Glenn ticket.[108][109] Applegate andMarcy Kaptur worked together in support of Glenn and wrote letters to 210 Democratic members of Congress, who attended the convention assuperdelegates, stating that Glenn would help Dukakis in gaining the votes of blue-collar voters who had supported Reagan in the1984 presidential election.[110][111][112] He was critical of Dukakis' selection ofLloyd Bentsen stating that it would hinder the campaign as "Bentsen doesn't have the national image and there's very little that he can do for the Midwest, at least as far as I can see. John Glenn can do more for the South than Bentsen can in the Midwest, and the polls showed that."[113]
During the2006 election Applegate endorsedZack Space for the Democratic nomination in the 18th congressional district against Ralph Applegate, who he had to state that he did not support nor was related to.[114]Jason Wilson, who worked as a congressional intern for Applegate in 1990, was elected to the state senate in the 2006 election.[115] He moved toSpring Hill, Florida later in his life and his wife died on June 5, 2020, before his death on August 7, 2021.[116][117][118][119]
Applegate wrote a letter to GovernorMichael DiSalle in 1961, asking him to halt all executions, but DiSalle stated that the "law of Ohio is such that I do not feel I could legally create a freeze on executions".[120] He and Representative Sam Landes introduced legislation in the Ohio House of Representatives that would have made Ohio's laws against obscene movies more strict.[121] Applegate proposed legislation while serving in the Ohio House of Representatives that would make it illegal to huff glue or nail polish to become high and instituted a $25 fine for first-time offenders and a $50 fine for further violations.[122] Applegate proposed legislation to the state senate in 1971, that would have the state subsidize the salaries of full-time police, deputy sheriffs, and firemen at the county, municipal, or town level.[123]
Applegate proposed a resolution to the Ohio Senate which called for PresidentRichard Nixon to commuteWilliam Calley's sentence.[127] Applegate, Senator Robin Turner, and Senator Robert Secrest sponsored a resolution, which was passed by a unanimous vote in the state senate, to honorJ. Edgar Hoover for his forty-seven years in law enforcement.[128] In 1984, he voted against legislation which would have grantedamnesty to illegal immigrants.[129]
Applegate was one of fifteen Democrats who voted in favor of GovernorJim Rhodes' $1.3 billion budget in 1963.[130] In 1973, the state senate voted nineteen to fourteen, with Applegate voting in favor, in favor of a $9.9 billion budget proposed by GovernorJohn J. Gilligan.[131] He was given a score of 21% by theUnited States Chamber of Commerce in 1982.[132] He voted in favor of abalanced budget amendment in 1982.[133]
In 1979, Applegate voted in favor of a ten percent budget cut for theUnited States Department of State which would have reduced its budget by over $200 million.[134] Applegate opposed abolishing theUnited States Department of Veterans Affairs after an advisory panel appointed by PresidentRonald Reagan made a report suggesting that the department's responsibilities could be divided into other departments.[135]
The House of Representatives voted 282 to 131, with Applegate in favor, in favor of theTax Reduction and Simplification Act of 1977 although the house and Applegate voted against a permanent tax cut proposed by the Republicans.[136][137] He voted in favor of legislation to give a $1.5 billion bailout toChrysler.[138] He opposed an 10¢ fee on gasoline proposed by Carter.[139] He voted in favor of raising theminimum wage from $3.35 to $4.55 in 1989.[140]
A fifty-page report listed Applegate as one of the Democratic members of the state senate controlled as a block by the OhioAFL–CIO which was denied byFrank W. King, the head of the Ohio AFL-CIO.[141] The House of Representatives voted 217 to 205, with Applegate in favor, against legislation to increase the power of construction workers topicket.[142] The AFL-CIO gave him a score of 69% in 1982.[132] He opposed theNorth American Free Trade Agreement.[143]
In 1971, Applegate introduced legislation onEarth Day that would amend Ohio's Constitution to give the right to clean air, pure water, and a healthful environment to present and future generations.[144] He requested an investigation by the Ohio Pollution Control Board into pollution inYellow Creek after two people gave him samples of the creek showing that the water was highly acidic.[145] He proposed legislation that would increase the power of the Ohio Air Pollution Control Board, give local governments the ability to adopt air pollution standards if they were less strict than the standards of the board, and increase the penalty for violations of the legislation.[146]
Applegate co-sponsored legislation to reorganize Ohio's state cabinet to establish astate Department of Environmental Protection which would combine the Department of Natural Resources, Department of Health, Water Pollution Control Board, and the Air Pollution Control Board.[147] He opposed sulphur dioxide emissions controls imposed by theUnited States Environmental Protection Agency on the use of Ohio coal in 1977, stating that "If adopted, this plan would cause economic disaster in the Ohio Valley."[148] He voted in favor of reducing the EPA's budget by $133 million in 1978.[149]
Applegate was given a score of 35% by theLeague of Conservation Voters in his first year in office in 1977, and his last year in 1994, with a lifetime score of 46%. His lowest score from the organization was 25% in 1988, and his highest score was 75% in 1990.[150] TheSierra Club gave him a score of 44% in 1984.[151]
Applegate voted in favor of an amendment to a defense appropriations bill which prohibited the usage of the money on abortions except for when the life of the mother is at risk.[152] Noel Vaughn, the chair of the Freedom of Choice Coalition, stated that Applegate was one of Ohio's congressmen who had introduced and supported anti-abortion legislation.[153] He voted in favor of an amendment to legislation in 1981, to prohibit the usage of federal employee medical insurance to pay for abortions unless the life of the mother was at risk.[154] He and six other anti-abortion member of the house filed anamicus curiae inWebster v. Reproductive Health Services.[155] In the 1980s he considered changing his anti-abortion views and voted against theHyde Amendment in 1989.[156]
The House of Representatives voted 208 to 2015, with Applegate against, in favor of repealing the military aid embargo againstTurkey.[164] He voted against prohibiting the United States from manufacturingnerve gas for chemical warfare.[165] He supported anuclear freeze and a reduction of nuclear weapons.[166] He voted against sending $14 million in military aid to theContras during theNicaraguan Revolution and stated that the money should instead be spent on humanitarian aid and later voted against giving $100 million and $48 million in military aid.[167][168][169]
Applegate voted in favor of withholding $90 million in aid toSyria after Syrian soldiers killedLebanese Christians and later supported giving $50 million in aid to victims of theLebanese Civil War.[175][176] He voted against a resolution allowing theUnited States Marine Corps to stay in Lebanon for an additional eighteen months and he later supported withdrawing the United States' soldiers from Lebanon after the1983 Beirut barracks bombings.[177]
Applegate was given a score of 100% by theAmerican Security Council Foundation in 1980, and was the only Democratic member of Congress from Ohio to receive a 100%.[183] Applegate received score of 71% by theNuclear Control Institute which was above the overall 47% they gave the house.[184]
In 1967, Applegate proposed legislation in the Ohio House of Representatives which would increase the penalties for thedesecration of theAmerican andOhio flags by increasing the maximum fine from $100 to $1,000 and increasing the prison sentence from thirty days to one year. He stated that the point of the legislation was to crack down onanti-Vietnam War protesters who desecrated the flag. The legislation was passed in the state house with ninety votes in favor and no opposition.[185][186] Applegate proposed legislation in 1979, which would deport anyalien "who in any way desecrates or defiles the American flag".[187]
Applegate proposed legislation to expand the definition of what abuse towards the United States flag is in response to an art piece byDread Scott entitledWhat Is the Proper Way to Display a U.S. Flag in which the flag was on the floor.[188] He supported the passage of aFlag Desecration Amendment.[189]
Applegate stated that "I am mad as hell" and that "What in God's name is going on? This is an outrage. What will they allow next? Allow fornication in Times Square at high noon?" after theSupreme Court ruled five to four that flag desecration was protected by theFirst Amendment inTexas v. Johnson.[190] He also stated that the Supreme Court had humiliated the American flag with its decision.[191]
Ralph Nader'sCongress Watch gave Applegate a score of 40% on consumer protection, government reform, taxation, energy, and waste-subsidy in 1978. TheConsumer Federation of America gave him a score of 79% in 1982, and 67% in 1984.[192][132][193][194]Congressional Quarterly reported that by 1980, he had voted in favor of legislation supported by Carter thirty percent of the time and that by 1984, he had voted with Reagan twenty-seven percent of the time.[195][196] In 1991, he voted with the Democrats 68%, tied withCharlie Luken, meaning that he and Luken voted the most in favor of Bush Sr. out of the Democratic house delegation from Ohio.[197] He voted in favor of legislation supported by PresidentBill Clinton 66% of the time in 1993.[198]
Applegate was given a score of 30% by theAmericans for Democratic Action in his first year in office in 1977, while theAmerican Conservative Union gave him a score of 35.14%. He received his highest score from the American Conservative Union in 1979, when they gave him 64.85% while his lowest score from the organization was 12.5% in 1992.[199][200] He received his lowest score from the Americans for Democratic Action in 1991, when he was given 5%, and his highest score from the organization was 80% in 1993.[201][202] He was given a rating of 40% by the American Conservative Union, with a lifetime score of 34.20%, and 50% from the Americans for Democratic Action when he left office in 1994.[200][203]
Applegate and Representative Anthony Calabrese Jr. introduced legislation which would have placed a ballot proposition to decrease the voting age to nineteen onto the 1966 ballot. However, the legislation failed after the Ohio House of Representatives voted seventy-one to sixty-two in favor which was twelve votes short of a three-fifths majority.[221][222] He proposed legislation in 1970 and 1971, which would lower the voting age to eighteen while the minimum age for holding office would be twenty-one.[223][224]
In 1969, Applegate and Senator William B. Nye co-sponsored legislation by SenatorOliver Ocasek to change theConstitution of Ohio to allow people aged nineteen to vote, but the legislation stated that nobody under the age of twenty-one could be elected or appointed to office.[225] The Ohio Senate voted thirty to three in favor of the legislation.[226] However, the referendum failed with 1,274,334 people voting against while 1,226,592 voted in favor.[227] He stated that it was "paradoxical that 60 percent of the young men who are Vietnam battle casualties do not have the right to vote – a right they are fighting to defend".[228]
Applegate supported and introduced legislation to have all presidential primaries held at the same time on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in May.[229][230] He opposed the special election held to fill theOhio's 17th congressional district followingJohn M. Ashbrook's death stating that it was "a waste of the taxpayers' money" due to its $175,000 cost and that its sole purpose was "to get someone in who will do nothing, but vote the way the White House wants." He also criticized the special election as the 17th congressional district would not exist after 1982.[231][232]
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