Ron Packard
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Ron Packard | |
|---|---|
U.S. House of Representatives from California | |
| In office January 3, 1983 – January 3, 2001 | |
| Preceded by | Clair Burgener |
| Succeeded by | Darrell Issa |
| Constituency | 43rd district (1983–1993) 48th district (1993–2001) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | January 19, 1931 Meridian, Idaho, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) | Jean Packard, Verdie Packard |
| Alma mater | Brigham Young University[1] |
Ronald C. Packard (born January 19, 1931) is an American retired
Biography
Ronald C. Packard was born and raised in
after leaving the navy.Packard first entered politics as a trustee of the Carlsbad Unified School District in California, and served during 1962–1974. He was elected to the Carlsbad City Council in 1976, then elected Mayor of Carlsbad in 1978. While mayor, he was active in community and regional affairs, serving on the transportation policy committee of the League of California Cities, as a Director of North County Transit District, and as President of the Council of Mayors for San Diego County.[2]
1982 election
In 1982, Packard lost the
Eighteen Republicans were running in the primary for the seat being vacated by Rep. Clair Burgener (R). The winner was political novice Johnnie Crean, whose family wealth bankrolled his saturation of the airwaves in the district, situated just north of San Diego. Crean spent well over $750,000 in the primary, then a substantial amount, mostly attacking his fellow Republicans, while ducking candidate forums and personal appearances. Crean defeated Carlsbad Mayor Ron Packard in the primary by 92 votes out of more than 83,000 cast. Furious, Packard announced a write-in effort. Fearful that the GOP split in this overwhelming GOP district could end up electing a Democrat, there was great pressure on Packard to end his bid. But he refused, and won the seat with 37 percent of the vote. The Democrat, Roy "Pat" Archer, finished second with 32 percent; Crean received 31 percent.[4]
Packard was only the third person to be elected to Congress as a write-in candidate, a victory later documented in Campaigns and Elections and due in part to the efforts of Russell Reed Benedict. The two previously successful congressional write-in candidates were U.S. Rep. Joe Skeen (R-New Mexico 2d Dist.) in 1980 and Sen. Strom Thurmond (R-S. Carolina) in 1954. Subsequently, Alaska Republican U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski lost her party primary in 2010, but waged a successful write-in campaign against Joe Miller, the Republican primary winner and narrowly defeated him in the general election.[5] Upon being sworn in, Packard joined the Republican caucus. He was reelected as a Republican eight times with little opposition in the heavily Republican district.
Tenure
Packard's congressional career included membership on the
Retirement and private life
A U.S. Post Office building in Oceanside, California was named for him in 2002.
Packard and his wife Jean live in Utah. They had seven children. Packard works part-time as a
The westernmost 16.6-miles of California State Route 78 between Interstate 5 in Oceanside, California and Interstate 15 in Escondido, California is designated Ronald Packard Parkway.
References
- ^ "PACKARD, Ronald C. - Biographical Information". bioguide.congress.gov. Retrieved 2019-08-09.
- ^ SmartVoter-Ron Packard
- ^ Barone, Michael; and Ujifusa, Grant. The Almanac of American Politics 1988', p. 176. National Journal, 1987.
- ^ Ken Rudin. "Political Junkie". NPR.
- ^ "Murkowski certified Senate election winner". December 30, 2010. Archived from the original on January 1, 2011. Retrieved February 25, 2018.
External links
- United States Congress. "Ron Packard (id: P000005)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
- Appearances on C-SPAN
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