Tim Holden

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Holden faced Republican Matthew Wertz, an Afghanistan War veteran, in the 2006. However, Wertz dropped out of the race before the general election citing personal reasons and Holden went on to easily win re-election with 65% of the total vote. [14]

2008

In 2008, he faced Republican Toni Gilhooley, a retired Pennsylvania State Trooper and 25-year veteran of the force, whom he defeated with 64% of the vote (one percent less than the previous election).

2010

Holden was challenged by Republican nominee, State Senator Dave Argall, [15] whose state senate district covered much of the eastern portion of the congressional district, including Holden's home. Unlike other Democrats in Eastern Pennsylvania like Paul Kanjorski, Chris Carney and Patrick Murphy, Holden won re-election, and did so with a 12-point margin, defeating Argall 56% to 44%.

Before Holden won the general election, he faced a primary challenge within his own party from political activist Sheila Dow Ford, who ran to the left of Holden, eviscerating the Congressman for voting against the Affordable Care Act in March 2010. Holden defeated Ford by a margin of 65% to 35% in the primary to regain the Democratic nomination.

2012

Holden's district was drastically reconfigured as a result of legislative redistricting done in the Pennsylvania legislature in late 2011 following the results of the 2010 Census. The district lost Harrisburg and Lebanon, along with its shares of portions of Berks, Dauphin, Lebanon and Perry counties. To make up for the loss in population, the legislature pushed the district well to the north and east, adding Scranton, Wilkes-Barre, Pittston, and Easton, among other various towns in Luzerne, Lackawanna, Carbon, Monroe and Northampton counties. Holden now found himself running in territory that he did not know and that did not know him. The only county retained from his old district was his home county, Schuylkill County. As a result of these changes, the 17th was now considerably more Democratic than its predecessor, nearing 60 percent Democratic registration and leaving Holden vulnerable to a challenge to his left in the Democratic primary. Also, the League of Conservation Voters put Tim Holden on their "Dirty Dozen" list, targeting him for supporting then-President George W. Bush's energy policy, favoring oil production, and opposing President Obama's policies including development of clean energy. [16]

In the April 24 primary, Holden was defeated by Moosic attorney Matt Cartwright, a considerably more liberal Democrat. Holden's opposition to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and climate-change legislation are believed to have contributed to his defeat. [17] He also could not overcome the demographics of the redrawn district, which was almost 80 percent new to him. [18]

Tenure

Holden was a member of the Blue Dog Coalition. [19] He was a somewhat conservative Democrat who often bucked his party's voting trend, especially on social issues. For instance, he opposed abortion and gun control. However, he supported Democratic priorities on a number of issues. While Holden voted with a minority of House Democrats in favor of the authorization for the use of U.S. force in Iraq in October 2002 for President George W. Bush, he strongly opposed Bush's "surge" policy in January 2007. While Holden voted against the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, the signature legislative domestic policy achievement of President Barack Obama, in March 2010, he did vote for the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, signed into law by Obama, in February 2009. While Holden voted for legislation supported by President Bush that toughened bankruptcy laws and enacted the Halliburton loophole, he voted for the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, signed into law by President Obama, in July 2010. According to opencongreess.com, Holden has voted with the Democratic leadership in Congress 73 percent of the time in recent years. He is ranked as one of the top fifteen most conservative Democrats in the House by the National Journal .

In 2011, Rep. Holden became a co-sponsor of Bill H.R.3261 otherwise known as the Stop Online Piracy Act. [20] Holden withdrew his co-sponsorship of SOPA on January 18, 2012. [21]

Committee assignments

Caucus memberships

Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board

Holden was nominated to the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board by Gov. Tom Corbett on June 14, 2013. He was unanimously confirmed by the state Senate on November 13, 2013. He was named chairman of the PLCB by Gov. Tom Wolf on February 17, 2015. He was unanimously confirmed for a second term by the state Senate on June 29, 2016, and sworn in on July 11, 2016. [24] He continued serving until his term in 2024 expired, when he retired. He was succeeded by Darrell L. Clarke. [25]

References

  1. 1 2 Bortner, Peter E. (April 22, 2012). "Holden seeks 11th term, says he stands for hard work". Republican & Herald . Retrieved April 22, 2012.
  2. Weisman, Jonathan. "Ten-Term Democrat Holden Loses in Pennsylvania Primary", New York Times , April 25, 2012.
  3. Devlin, Ron (December 1, 2024). "Tim Holden retires as head of Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board". Republican Herald . Retrieved June 24, 2025.
  4. "PA District 06 - D Primary Race - Apr 28, 1992". Our Campaigns. Retrieved August 17, 2012.
  5. "PA District 6 Race - Nov 03, 1992". Our Campaigns. Retrieved August 17, 2012.
  6. "PA District 6 Race - Nov 08, 1994". Our Campaigns. Retrieved August 17, 2012.
  7. "Commissioner Leinbach's Biography". Co.berks.pa.us. September 5, 2006. Retrieved August 17, 2012.
  8. "PA District 6 Race - Nov 05, 1996". Our Campaigns. Retrieved August 17, 2012.
  9. "PA District 6 Race - Nov 03, 1998". Our Campaigns. Retrieved August 17, 2012.
  10. "PA District 6 Race - Nov 07, 2000". Our Campaigns. Retrieved August 17, 2012.
  11. "Online NewsHour: Election 2002: High Stakes". Pbs.org. August 30, 2002. Archived from the original on September 10, 2012. Retrieved July 12, 2010.
  12. "Online NewsHour: The Pennsylvania 17th District Race". Pbs.org. Archived from the original on April 15, 2013. Retrieved July 12, 2010.
  13. Toland, Bill (April 28, 2004). "U.S. House races: Paterno's son beats crowded field in 17th". Post-gazette.com. Retrieved July 12, 2010.
  14. Lieberman, Brett (July 4, 2007). "State police retiree plans bid for Holden's seat". Harrisburg Patriot-News . Retrieved August 2, 2007.[ permanent dead link ]
  15. Pangonis, Dustin (April 1, 2010). "'No' vote on health care costs Holden primary endorsement from AFL-CIO". Republican & Herald . Retrieved April 2, 2010.
  16. "Dirty Dozen: Tim Holden". Archived from the original on November 3, 2012.
  17. Jonathan Weisman (April 25, 2012). "2 House Democrats Defeated After Opposing Health Law". The New York Times. Retrieved April 26, 2012.
  18. Gibson, Keegan (April 9, 2012). "Cartwright Poll: Cartwright Leads Holden 42-36". Politics Pa . Retrieved June 18, 2012.
  19. Issues Archived 2010-07-30 at the Wayback Machine , Tim Holden for U.S. Congress
  20. Bill H.R.3261; GovTrack.us;
  21. "Bill Summary & Status 112th Congress (2011 - 2012) H.R.3261 Cosponsors". thomas.loc.gov. Library of Congress. Retrieved January 20, 2012.[ permanent dead link ]
  22. Congressman Tim Holden Committee Information Archived 2009-04-29 at the Wayback Machine
  23. "In US-German relations, it's all about jobs". Deutsche Welle . October 4, 2011. Retrieved April 22, 2012.
  24. "Tim Holden". Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board . Retrieved April 7, 2021.
  25. Devlin, Ron (December 1, 2024). "Tim Holden retires as head of Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board". Republican Herald . Retrieved June 24, 2025.
Tim Holden
Tim Holden.jpg
Chair of the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board
In office
February 17, 2015 November 21, 2024
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the  U.S. House of Representatives
from Pennsylvania's 6th congressional district

1993–2003
Succeeded by
Preceded by Member of the  U.S. House of Representatives
from Pennsylvania's 17th congressional district

2003–2013
Succeeded by
U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial)
Preceded byas Former US Representative Order of precedence of the United States
as Former US Representative
Succeeded byas Former US Representative