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Tom Petri (R)

Elected: 1979 (11th full term)
Hometown: Fond du Lac
Born: May 28, 1940; Marinette, Wis.
Religion: Lutheran
Family: Wife, Anne Neal Petri; one child
Education: Harvard U., A.B. 1962; J.D. 1965
Career: Lawyer
Political Highlights: White House aide, 1969-70; Wis. Senate, 1973-79; Republican nominee for U.S. Senate, 1974; U.S. House, 1979-present
Committees: Education & Workforce ( Education Reform; Select Education); Transportation & Infrastructure ( Railroads; Highways and Transit - chairman; Aviation)
Address: 2462 Rayburn House Office Building, Independence Ave. and S. Capitol St., S.W., Washington, DC, 20515-4906
Phone: (202) 225-2476
Fax: (202) 225-2356
E-mail: tompetri@mail.house.gov
Web site: www.house.gov/petri

Source: Congressional Quarterly (Updated: October 09, 2000). To suggest updates and corrections: politics.feedback@cq.com


Record and Rankings
RECORD AND RANKINGS

CQ Voting Studies are an annual analysis of a member's support or opposition to a given position. Interest Group Ratings are based on rankings from groups chosen to represent liberal, conservative, business and labor viewpoints.Voting Participation scores are based on the number of times a member voted "yea" or "nay" on roll call votes (not including quorum calls in the House).

CQ Vote Studies
Year Presidential
Support
Party
Unity
  S* O* S O
1998 30% 68% 85% 14%
1997 29 71 83 16
1996 46 54 82 17
1995 30 68 88 11
1994 41 59 93 7
1993 33 65 84 14
1992 67 33 73 27
1991 68 32 69 30
1990 69 31 78 20
S=Support; O=Oppose

Voting Participation
Year %
1998 99
1997 99
1996 99
1995 99
1994 99
1993 98
1992 99
1991 99
1990 97
Interest Groups
Year ADA AFL-CIO CCUS ACU
1998 15% n/a 94% 88 %
1997 25 38 80 80
1996 20 18 88 100
1995 5 0 92 75
1994 25 11 100 76
1993 20 36 73 83
1992 25 25 63 76
1991 10 8 90 85
1990 22 8 86 75

Note on Interest Groups: ADA=Americans for Democratic Action; AFL-CIO=American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations; CCUS=Chamber of Commerce of the United States; ACU=American Conservative Union

Source: Congressional Quarterly (Updated April 1999) AT A GLANCE
AT A GLANCE
Major Industry | Military Bases | Population | Cities | People | Race | Median Household Income | Unusual Features

WISCONSIN 6 : Central - Oshkosh; Fond du Lac; Manitowoc

The 6th carves a swath across the middle of Wisconsin from Lake Michigan to a point 30 miles east of the Mississippi River, encompassing industrial parks, rural small towns, farmland and the state's largest inland body of water, Lake Winebego.

To the west, farmers cultivate milk, cranberries and other crops on the flatlands, but manufacturing provides an economic backbone for many district towns. The paper industry remains a dominant employer to the north and east, and towns like Oshkosh, Fond du Lac and Manitowoc form a scattered industrial corridor.

Politically, the 6th is unusual. Although it has a higher percentage of blue-collar workers than any other district in the state, many vote Republican. Socially conservative Catholics and Lutherans, many with German ancestry, and a historical dominance by the local chambers of commerce forged a conservative region. Yet the district is still considered somewhat of a swing district. Voters chose Republican George Bush for president in 1992 and Bill Clinton in 1996.

Major Industry
Paper, dairy, cranberries, tourism

Military Bases
Fort McCoy (Army), 285 military, 1,812 civilian (1997)

Population
543,531 (1990)

Cities
Oshkosh, 57,957; Fond du Lac, 39,658; Manitowoc, 33,388 (1996)

People
47% rural, 28% suburban; 15% age 65+ (ranks second of nine in state; top third nationally); 63% married couples, 29% married couples with children; 13% college educated (ranks ninth of nine in state; bottom third nationally); 44% white collar (ranks ninth of nine in state; bottom third nationally), 36% blue collar (ranks first of nine in state; top third nationally) (1990)

Race
98% white, 0% black, 1% Asian; 1% Hispanic origin (1990)

Median Household Income
$28,038 (ranks sixth of nine in state; middle third nationally) (1990)

Unusual Features
Ripon was one of the birthplaces of the Republican Party in 1854; Meeting of the Experimental Aircraft Association draws nearly 1 million people and 12,000 airplanes to Oshkosh each year.

Source: Congressional Quarterly (Updated April 1999)


© 2002 The Washington Post Company

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