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Joan Specter

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American politician (1934–2024)
Joan Specter
Member of the Philadelphia City Council from the at-large district
In office
January 7, 1980 – January 8, 1996
Preceded byEthel D. Allen
Succeeded byFrank Rizzo Jr.
Personal details
BornJoan Levy
(1934-03-05)March 5, 1934
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
DiedJune 29, 2024(2024-06-29) (aged 90)
Haverford, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse Arlen Specter ​ ​(m. 1953; died 2012)​
Children2
ResidencePhiladelphia, Pennsylvania
Alma materSouthern Connecticut College
Drexel University

Joan Levy Specter (March 5, 1934 – June 29, 2024) was an American businesswoman and politician. She was a member of the Philadelphia City Council, and the widow of U.S. Senator Arlen Specter.

Professional career

Specter held a BA from Southern Connecticut College and an MA in food and design from Drexel University. Upon her graduation from Drexel, she founded several cooking schools in the Philadelphia-area. In the 1970s, she hosted a consumer advice and food-related program on a local radio station, and wrote a weekly column for the Philadelphia Bulletin. Specter also began selling her pies to local restaurants. Eventually, the business grew into a wholesale distribution company which operated in several dozen states. Specter's pies were billed as "America's first gourmet frozen pies which require no baking, decorating or special preparations".

Political career

Specter left the business world in 1979, when she was elected to one of the two allotted minority Republican Party at-large seats on the Philadelphia City Council. She was re-elected three more times, though she finished third in the 1991 primary, behind her colleague on Council, W. Thacher Longstreth and Joseph Egan Jr. However, prior to the general election, former Democratic Mayor Frank Rizzo, who had switched to the Republican Party and was its nominee in that year's Mayoral election, died. Egan was subsequently selected to take Rizzo's spot on the ballot (and lost to former District Attorney Ed Rendell), and Longstreth and Specter were both re-elected.

In 1995, she and Longstreth were challenged by two high-profile Republicans–Rizzo's son, Frank Jr. and former Congressman Charles Dougherty.

Personal life and death

Specter was married to her husband, Arlen, from 1953 until his death in 2012. The couple had two sons, Shanin and Dr. Stephen E. Specter of West Hollywood, California. She resided in Haverford, Pennsylvania.

Joan Specter died from complications from dementia on June 29, 2024, at the age of 90.

References

  1. ^ Marder, Dianna (October 16, 1995). "Joan Specter Stirring For Battle For 5th Term". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved February 16, 2012.
  2. Stoneback, Diane (November 12, 1986). "Upper Crust Joan Specter's Gourmet Pies Are A Slice Of The Rich Life Food". The Morning Call. Retrieved February 16, 2012.
  3. "Joan Specter's Tough Race". The New York Times. October 29, 1995. Retrieved February 16, 2012.
  4. Terruso, Julia (1 July 2024). "Joan L. Specter, former city councilmember and wife of the late U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter, has died at 90". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 1 July 2024.
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