George Gekas | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromPennsylvania's17th district | |
| In office January 3, 1983 – January 3, 2003 | |
| Preceded by | Allen E. Ertel |
| Succeeded by | Tim Holden |
| Member of thePennsylvania Senate from the15th district | |
| In office January 3, 1977 – December 31, 1982 | |
| Preceded by | William Lentz |
| Succeeded by | John Shumaker |
| Member of thePennsylvania House of Representatives from the103rd district | |
| In office January 7, 1969 – November 30, 1974 | |
| Preceded by | Constituency established |
| Succeeded by | Stephen R. Reed |
| Member of thePennsylvania House of Representatives from theDauphin County district | |
| In office January 2, 1967 – November 30, 1968 | |
| Preceded by | ??? |
| Succeeded by | Constituency abolished |
| Personal details | |
| Born | George William Gekas (1930-04-14)April 14, 1930 Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Died | December 16, 2021(2021-12-16) (aged 91) Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Education | Dickinson College (BA) Dickinson Law School (JD) |
| Signature |  |
| Military service | |
| Branch/service | United States Army |
| Years of service | 1953–1955 |
George William Gekas (April 14, 1930 – December 16, 2021) was an American politician fromPennsylvania who served as aRepublican member of the U.S. House of Representatives forPennsylvania's 17th congressional district from 1983 to 2003.
George Gekas was born inHarrisburg, Pennsylvania, the son of Mary (Touloumes) and William Gekas.[1] He graduated from William Penn High School in 1948. He received a B.A. degree fromDickinson College in 1952 and aJ.D. degree fromDickinson School of Law in 1958. He was a member of the fraternitySigma Alpha Epsilon. He served in theUnited States Army from 1953 to 1955.
He worked in a private law practice for two years and then served as assistantdistrict attorney forDauphin County from 1960 to 1966.[2]
In 1966, Gekas was elected to thePennsylvania House of Representatives for the103rd district.[3] He served there until 1974, when he was upset by future HarrisburgmayorSteven Reed in the anti-WatergateDemocratic landslide. Gekas served as a member of thePennsylvania State Senate for the15th district from 1977 to 1982.[4]
After the 1980 census, Pennsylvania lost two congressional districts. The Republican-controlled legislature drew a new Harrisburg-based district that Gekas won in 1982, becoming the secondGreek-American (afterGus Yatron of the neighboring6th district) elected to Congress from Pennsylvania. Gekas was reelected nine more times.
He was the only member of the House to vote against theGun-Free School Zones Act of 1990.
Gekas was one of theHouse managers in theimpeachment trials ofAlcee Hastings and PresidentBill Clinton.[5]
In a 2002PoliticsPAfeature story designating politicians withyearbook superlatives, he was named "Missing in Action."[6] Pennsylvania lost two districts after the 2000 census and resulting redistricting. One of the districts that was eliminated was theReading-based 6th District, represented by five-term moderate-to-conservative DemocratTim Holden. The legislature split the 6th among three other districts, with the largest slice, including Holden's home inSt. Clair, going to Gekas' 17th District.
Holden ran in the 17th, even though it was 65% new to him (a small portion of the even more Republican 9th District had been shifted to the 17th). On election night, Holden defeated Gekas by almost 6,000 votes. Gekas was the only Republican incumbent placed in a district with a Democratic incumbent to be defeated for re-election in 2002.[7]
After his electoral defeat in 2002, Gekas returned to Harrisburg, where he established a law practice.[8] He continued to reside in Harrisburg until his death on December 16, 2021, at the age of 91.[9]
Media related toGeorge Gekas at Wikimedia Commons
| Pennsylvania House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by ??? | Member of thePennsylvania House of Representatives from theDauphin County district 1967–1968 | Constituency abolished |
| New constituency | Member of thePennsylvania House of Representatives from the103rd district 1969–1974 | Succeeded by |
| Pennsylvania State Senate | ||
| Preceded by | Member of thePennsylvania Senate from the15th district 1977–1982 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromPennsylvania's 17th congressional district 1983–2003 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
