American politician. Kucinich was elected to the Cleveland City council at age 23. In 1977, at age 31, he was elected mayor of Cleveland, at the time the youngest person to be elected head of a major U.S. city. He lost his re-election bid in 1979 when the banks in Cleveland forced the city into default after Kucinich refused, on principle, to sell the city’s municipally-owned electric company to a private competitor.
Fifteen years later, in 1992, he won election to the Ohio Senate on the strength of the same light system. His campaign symbol was the light bulb. In 1998, the Cleveland City Council honored him for, his “courage and foresight” in not selling the electric system. In 1996, he won his bid for a seat in the House of Representatives with a promise to “light up Congress.” He announced his candidacy for the Democratic presidential primary on February 17, 2003, and his grassroots campaign is established on the progressive principles which he holds dear.
The eldest of seven children, he and his family lived in 21 places by the time he was 17 years old, including, he reports, a couple of cars.. He graduated from Case Western Reserve University with a BA and MA in 1973. A vegan because he values the sacredness of life, he says, “I live each day with a grateful heart and a desire to be of service to humanity.” Kucinich married Sandra Lee McCarthy on January 15, 1977 and they have one daughter; they divorced in August 1986. He married again, this time to Elizabeth Harper on August 21, 2005 in Cleveland, OH.
On December 11, 2006 the politician announced his decision to run again for US President. His brother Larry found their 51-year-old brother Perry dead in his Cleveland, OH apartment at about 9 AM local time on December 19, 2007. Investigators found no evidence of violence at the scene but no official cause of death has yet been given.
The U.S. Congressman ended his bid for the White House on January 25, 2008.
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