A timeline of Sen. George Voinovich's political life
Created by jkroll on Nov 23, 2010
Last updated: 11/26/10 at 04:41 PM
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Jan. 12, 2009: Announces he won't run for re-election in 2010.
April 9, 2007: Voinovich states at a hearing on the war in Iraq: “We've kind of bankrupted this country [with the war spending]. We're in a recession . . . and God knows how long it's going to last.”
2007: Voinovich, with other members of Congress representing Great Lakes states, backs a $20 billion plan to improve water quality, restore fish and wildlife around the lakes and guard against invasive species that could inflict economic pain on the region.
2007: Voinovich, with other members of Congress representing Great Lakes states, backs a $20 billion plan to improve water quality, restore fish and wildlife around the lakes and guard against invasive species that could inflict economic pain on the region.
2005: Voinovich chokes up as he pleads with fellow Senate Republicans to reject John Bolton's nomination as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations. He later decides Bolton did a good job.
2003: Voinovich bucks President Bush's big tax cut. Voinovich insists the nation could not afford it, and though he ultimately sides with the president, he forces a compromise and a smaller tax cut.
2001: Voinovich votes against President George W. Bush's No Child Left Behind legislative package, saying later it was “yet another unfunded federal mandate” and because “the U.S. Senate and Congress are not the school board of the United States.”
1999: Voinovich becomes a U.S. senator.
1997: As part of a plea bargain, Mifsud pleads guilty to two misdemeanors for improperly accepting and then covering up free remodeling work from a state contractor.
1996: Mifsud resigns to spend time with his family and to help Voinovich land a U.S. Senate seat.
October 1995: Voinovich is fined $1,500 for violating a no-fly order issued by the Secret Service when President Bill Clinton was in Columbus. Voinovich, who had wanted to leave town in a state-owned plane, angrily told an air traffic controller: “If they shoot us down, they can. I'm going to tell them to go screw themselves.”
1995: Voinovich persuades legislators to give him control over the Bureau of Workers Compensation's $14 billion in investments – and has the BWC earmark a large portion of its investment contracts for Ohio-based firms. The agency, after Voinovich leaves office, later becomes the focus of the “Coingate” scandal after entrusting an Ohio Republican fund-raiser to invest million of dollars in rare coins.
1992: Voinovich sobs at the Statehouse after being questioned about his decision to cut funding for the poor. “I'm doing the best I can with what we got,” he said. “I really do love my fellow man.”
1991: Fires director of Governor's Office of Criminal Justice Services and later does not renew the term of the Ohio Inspector General. Both offices had or were investigating Voinovich's chief of staff, Paul Mifsud.
1990: Is elected Ohio governor and serves from 1991-98.
1988: Loses a campaign for U.S. Senate seat against Democratic Sen. Howard Metzenbaum.
1984: Voinovich, who fought to expand Cleveland Public Power, gets emotional when he tells a reporter: “Someday, when somebody writes a book about Cleveland, they will remember a man named George Voinovich who did more for public power than any other man but Tom L. Johnson.”
1982: Voinovich vetoes legislation to establish a civilian-run police review board after several police shootings of residents.
1980-1989: Voinovich serves as mayor.
1979: During his mayoral campaign, the Voinovichs' youngest daughter, Molly, 9, dies after being struck by a van.
1978: Gov. James Rhodes selects Voinovich as his running mate. He serves as lieutenant governor until leaving to run for Cleveland mayor.
1977-1978: Served as Cuyahoga County commissioner.
1977-1978: Served as Cuyahoga County commissioner.
1971-1976: Served as Cuyahoga County auditor.
1967-1971: Served as a state representative, winning election as the Republican nominee in 1966 over Democratic State Rep. Gerald Fuerst. Voinovich, who criticized Fuerst on his co-sponsorship of the state's fair housing law, won the Collinwood district, even though it was 2-to-1 Democratic.
1963-64: Served as an assistant Ohio attorney general.
Sept. 8, 1962: Married Janet Allan.
1961: Earned law degree from Ohio State University.
1958: Graduated from Ohio University with a bachelor of arts in government.
1954: Graduated from Collinwood High School.
July 15, 1936: Born in Cleveland to parents of Serbian and Slovenian heritage.
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