Tom Corcoran | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromIllinois | |
| In office January 3, 1977 – November 28, 1984 | |
| Preceded by | Tim Lee Hall |
| Succeeded by | John E. Grotberg |
| Constituency | 15th district (1977–1983) 14th district (1983–1984) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Thomas Joseph Corcoran (1939-05-23)May 23, 1939 (age 86) Ottawa, Illinois, U.S. |
| Party | Republican |
| Spouse | Helenmarie Corcoran |
| Children | Evan |
| Education | University of Notre Dame (BA) University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign University of Chicago Northwestern University |
Thomas Joseph Corcoran (born May 23, 1939) is an American businessman, military veteran and former politician. He served four terms in Congress as aU.S. Representative from Illinois from 1977 to 1984. He served in politics as a member of theRepublican.
Corcoran was born inOttawa, Illinois. He graduated fromMarquette High School in Ottawa in 1957. He received a B.A. from theUniversity of Notre Dame in 1961 and did graduate work atUniversity of Illinois, theUniversity of Chicago, andNorthwestern University.[1]
He served in theUnited States Army as an artillery officer from 1963 to 1965 and was stationed in Germany.[2]
He then went into politics, serving in staff positions for the State of Illinois Office inWashington, D.C. from 1969 to 1972 and forWilliam Harris while Harris wasPresident of theIllinois Senate.
After serving as vice president of the Chicago-North Western Transportation Co. from 1974 to 1976, he was elected to Congress in 1976 and was re-elected three times.[2]
In the1984 United States Senate election, Corcoran opted to challenge incumbent SenatorCharles Percy in the Republican primary as a conservative alternative to Percy's record as a moderate Republican.[3] Percy defeated Corcoran in the primary election before losing to Democratic candidatePaul Simon in the general election. Corcoran was succeeded in Congress by State SenatorJohn Grotberg.[4][5]
In 1985, Cocoran announced his intention to run for the United States Senate against Democratic incumbentAlan J. Dixon in the1986 Senate election. However, after losing several political allies toInland Steel Company executive George Ranney he dropped out of the primary election.[6] State RepresentativeJudy Koehler defeated Ranney in the Republican primary.[7]
He was appointed to the Board of Directors of United StatesSynthetic Fuels Corporation in 1984 by PresidentRonald Reagan.[8] His term was supposed to run through 1990, but the corporation was abolished in 1985.[9]
Evan Corcoran, known for being an attorney of Donald Trump, is Tom Corcoran's son.[10]
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromIllinois's 15th congressional district 1977–1983 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromIllinois's 14th congressional district 1983–1984 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial) | ||
| Preceded byas Former U.S. Representative | Order of precedence of the United States as Former U.S. Representative | Succeeded byas Former U.S. Representative |
This article incorporatespublic domain material fromBiographical Directory of the United States Congress.Federal government of the United States.
