Mike Kelly (R-Pa.)

U.S. Representative (since January 2011)

(Kelly campaign)

Why He Matters

In the 2010 midterms, wealthy auto dealership owner Kelly ousted freshman Rep. Kathy Dahlkemper (D) in Pennsylvania's 3rd district. (Follow results here.)

Kelly, a Butler City Councilman and political newcomer, wants to leverage his experience as a successful small-business owner to restore fiscal responsibility in Washington and stimulate job growth through reduced taxes regulations. An opponent of President Obama's health-care reform and Wall Street bailouts, Kelly believes lawmakers, including "old-guard" Republicans, need to learn from Americans like Kelly who live within their means and immediately cease "wasteful government spending."

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Background

At a Glance

Career History: Owner, Kelly Chevrolet-Cadillac, Inc. (1995-present); Employee, Kelly Chevrolet-Cadillac, Inc. (1970-1995); Chairman, Hyundai Eastern Region Dealer Council (present); Vice Chairman, Hyundai National Dealer Council (present)
Birthday: May 10, 1948
Hometown: Pittsburgh, Pa.
Alma Mater: University of Notre Dame, B.A., 1970
Spouse: Victoria

Religion: Roman Catholic
Campaign Office: 133 South Main Street, Butler, Pa. 16001
Email:
Web site:

Path To Power

Kelly was born in Pittsburgh in 1948 and has lived in Butler, Pa., since age 10.

A football player from a young age, Kelly received an academic/athletic scholarship to the University of Notre Dame in 1966. However, his football career was cut short by a severe knee injury in college.

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Small-Business Owner

Immediately after graduating from Notre Dame in 1970, Kelly began working for Kelly Chevrolet-Cadillac, Inc., the car business his father established in 1953. Over the next two-and-a-half decades, he excelled in the business, receiving industry awards and serving on the boards of the Chevrolet Dealers Advertising Association of Pittsburgh and the Cadillac Consultants of Western Pennsylvania.

Kelly bought the dealership from his father in 1995, and over the next several years expanded by buying Hyundai and KIA franchises.

Kelly now employs over a hundred workers and continues to serve on auto-industry boards. Currently, he is chairman of the Hyundai Eastern Region Dealer Council, vice-chairman of the Hyundai National Dealer Council and secretary and treasurer of the Hyundai Hope on Wheels charity initiative.

Community Involvement

An active volunteer in the Butler community, Kelly has coached and supported local youth-sports teams and donated vehicles to the Butler City Police Department and the Butler County Drug Task Force.

He and his wife, Victoria, also established the Mary McTighe Kelly Creative Teaching Grant for elementary school educators and the Lighthouse Foundation's One Warm Coat Program.

Kelly is on the Butler City Council and chair of the Redevelopment Authority of the City of Butler.

2010 House Campaign

Kelly won the May 2010 House primary in a crowded field of Republicans, all eager to recapture Pennsylvania's 3rd district, which encompasses the northwestern portion of the state.

Kelly said he never considered running for office until 2009, when he learned he might lose his auto dealerships in the government's takeover of General Motors. "I had over 100 people whose livelihoods depended on me," Kelly said in September 2010. "That one phone call hit a nerve...my family has had our business since the 1950s, and we had always made and exceeded our numbers, so I started thinking out loud about what I could do."

Kelly ran against freshman Rep. Kathy Dahlkemper (D), who upset six-term incumbent Phil English (R) in 2008.

He was endorsed in his run by the U.S. Chamber of Congress and the Business-Industry Political Action Committee. In August 2010, he was named a "Young Gun" by the National Republican Congressional Committee.

If elected, Kelly would like to serve on the House Budget and Veteran's Committees.

The Issues

Kelly is a fiscal conservative who has said that government spending and debt is a threat equal to World War II. He is a vocal opponent of the of 2008 Wall Street bailouts, holding both Democrats and "old guard" Republicans responsible for "wasteful government spending."

In October 2010, Kelly told a group of local business owners that he had dipped into his retirement savings and gone without pay for six months to ensure that his employees got paid during lean economic times. The federal government should be able to cut back too, Kelly told the group.

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The Network

Kelly is aligned with pro-business groups such as the U.S. Chamber of Congress and the Business-Industry Political Action Committee, which both endorsed him in his 2010 House campaign.

He was also endorsed by former Pennsylvania Congressional candidate Brian Lasher.

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Additional Resources