 | This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove these messages)
|
| Robert Borski | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania's 3rd district | |
| In office January 3, 1983 – January 3, 2003 | |
| Preceded by | Joseph Smith |
| Succeeded by | Joe Hoeffel (Redistricting) |
| Member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from the 175th district | |
| In office January 4, 1977 – November 30, 1982 | |
| Preceded by | Fortunato Perri |
| Succeeded by | Gerard Kosinski |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Robert Anthony Borski (1948-10-20) October 20, 1948 (age 76) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Karen |
| Children | 5 |
| Alma mater | University of Baltimore (BA) |
Robert Anthony Borski Jr. (born October 20, 1948) is an American politician. He was a Democratic Party state representative and later a Congressman from the U.S. state of Pennsylvania from 1983 until 2003, representing the state's 3rd congressional district.
Biography
Borski was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and he graduated from the University of Baltimore in 1971. He was a member of the Pennsylvania state house of representatives from 1977 to 1982.
Congress
In 1982, he took on GOP Representative Charles F. Dougherty in the 3rd Congressional District, which had been renumbered from the 4th after the 1980 Census. 1982 was a rough year for Republicans due to a recession and Borski would be a beneficiary of the public discontent. He also was helped by some friendly redistricting that shifted some heavily Democratic wards to the 3rd. Borski scored a narrow victory of less than 3,000 votes—in the process, ousting the last Republican to represent a significant portion of Philadelphia in the House. The Borski-Dougherty battles would be fought out in this district three more times in 1992, 1998, and 2000 with Borski victorious each time.
In his 20 years in Congress, Borski rose to become the second-ranking Democrat on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. He was generally classed as a liberal Democrat, but opposed abortion in most cases.
On October 10, 2002, Robert Borski was among the 81 House Democrats who voted in favor of authorizing the invasion of Iraq. In 2003, the post office where Borski's father once carried mail was renamed in his honor.
Redistricting
In 2002, the Republican-controlled State Legislature threw Borski a curve. Pennsylvania was due to lose two districts as a result of the 2000 United States Census, and the legislature dismantled his northeast Philadelphia district. Borski's home was drawn into the Montgomery County-based 13th District of two-term Democrat Joe Hoeffel. They expected that either Borski or Hoeffel would be bloodied from the resulting primary election. However, Borski decided not to run, instead retiring from Congress and allowing Hoeffel to avoid a costly primary campaign.
Later career
After retiring, Borski formed his own lobbying firm, Borski Associates. Governor Ed Rendell hired Borski in 2003 to help lobby for the state of Pennsylvania in Congress.
In 2010, Politics Magazine named him one of the most influential Democrats in Pennsylvania.
References
- "Our Campaigns - PA District 3 Race - Nov 02, 1982".
- "Robert A. Borski Post Office Building". U.S. House of Representatives. Archived from the original on 2003-04-01.Archive index at the Wayback Machine
- Roarty, Alex; Sean Coit (January 2010). "Pennsylvania Influencers" (PDF). Politics Magazine. pp. 44–49. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-12-29.
External links
Media related to Bob Borski at Wikimedia Commons
- United States Congress. "Robert Borski (id: B000644)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
- "Congressman Bob Borski Biography". house.gov/borski/. Archived from the original on 2002-11-02.Archive index at the Wayback Machine
- Congressman Robert Borski's Homepage at the Wayback Machine (archive index)
- PA redistricting lawsuit
- Appearances on C-SPAN
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded byJoseph Smith | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania's 3rd congressional district 1983–2003 |
Succeeded byPhil English |
| Pennsylvania House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded byFortunato Perri | Member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for the 175th District 1977–1982 |
Succeeded byGerard Kosinski |
| U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial) | ||
| Preceded byRobert Smith Walkeras Former US Representative | Order of precedence of the United States as Former US Representative |
Succeeded byCurt Weldonas Former US Representative |
- 1948 births
- Living people
- University of Baltimore alumni
- Democratic Party members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
- American lobbyists
- American politicians of Polish descent
- Politicians from Philadelphia
- Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania
- Members of Congress who became lobbyists
- 21st-century Pennsylvania politicians
- 21st-century members of the United States House of Representatives
- 20th-century members of the Pennsylvania General Assembly