Roman Pucinski | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromIllinois's11th district | |
| In office January 3, 1959 – January 3, 1973 | |
| Preceded by | Timothy P. Sheehan |
| Succeeded by | Frank Annunzio |
| City of Chicago Alderman from the 41st Ward | |
| In office 1973–1991 | |
| Preceded by | Edward T. Scholl |
| Succeeded by | Brian Doherty |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1919-05-13)May 13, 1919 Buffalo, New York, U.S. |
| Died | September 25, 2002(2002-09-25) (aged 83) |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Residence(s) | Chicago, Illinois |
| Alma mater | Northwestern University John Marshall Law School |
| Profession | Politician Newspaper Reporter |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Branch/service | United States Army Air Corps |
| Years of service | 1941-1945 |
Roman Conrad Pucinski (May 13, 1919 – September 25, 2002) was an AmericanDemocratic politician fromChicago,Illinois. He was aU.S. Representative from 1959 to 1973 and alderman from the 41st Ward of Chicago from 1973 to 1991. He was considered a longtime leader ofChicago Polonia and was seen to represent its interests in Washington.
He was born inBuffalo, New York, but moved to Chicago with his family as a child. In 1941, he graduated fromNorthwestern University. DuringWorld War II, he served in theAir Force. After the war, he attendedJohn Marshall Law School in Chicago and graduated in 1949.
Pucinski worked in journalism for many years, notably at theChicago Sun-Times. In 1952, he was chief investigator for theCongressional Special Committee which investigated theKatyn Massacre. This was of special interest to him as aPolish-American.In 1958, Pucinski was elected U.S. Representative from the heavilyPolish-American 11th District on theNorthwest Side of Chicago. He was re-elected to six additional terms, serving from 1959 to 1973.
As a representative, Pucinski pushed for the installation of "black box"flight recorders on all passenger airliners and supported federal assistance tocommunity colleges.
When congressional districts were redrawn after the 1970Census, Pucinski's district remained solidly Democrat but he was chosen as the Democratic nominee for theUnited States Senate against incumbent SenatorCharles H. Percy; he lost in a landslide.
In 1973, he was first elected alderman from the 41st Ward of Chicago, which had been part of his old congressional district and was heavilyPolish-American. Pucinski also served as DemocraticWard Committeeman from the 41st Ward for many years. After MayorRichard J. Daley died in 1976, Pucinski ran in the Democratic primary of the special election to succeed him in 1977, even though the Democratic Party had endorsedMichael Bilandic. Bilandic won, Pucinski was the second-place finisher, andHarold Washington came in third with 11%.
During theCouncil Wars of Harold Washington's first term as mayor, Pucinski was part of theVrdolyak 29 opposition bloc.
In 1987, he proposed requiring employee voting on anyEmployee Stock Ownership Plan established by a corporation based in Chicago. In 1984, he supported a redistribution ofCommunity Development Block Grant funds that would have allocated $1.3 million to repave streets in the 41st Ward.
The 41st Ward usually voted for Republicans and the aging Pucinski was defeated in his campaign for re-election as alderman by RepublicanBrian Doherty in 1991.
Pucinski was aCatholic.[1] His daughterAurelia followed him into law and politics. She eventually left the Democratic Party for its Republican counterpart in 1997, but switched back to the Democrats seven years later. Pucinski died in Chicago in 2002, and his son Christopher in 2006.[2]
| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Democratic nominee forU.S. Senator fromIllinois (Class 2) 1972 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromIllinois's 11th congressional district 1959-1973 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
