Charlie Dent

For other people of the same name, see Charles Dent (disambiguation).

Charlie Dent
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania's 15th district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2005
Preceded by	Pat Toomey
Member of the Pennsylvania Senate from the 16th district
In office January 5, 1999 – November 30, 2004
Preceded by	Roy Afflerbach
Succeeded by	Pat Browne
Member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from the 132nd district
In office January 1, 1991 – November 25, 1998
Preceded by	John Pressman
Succeeded by	Jennifer Mann
Personal details
Born	May 24, 1960 (1960-05-24) Allentown, Pennsylvania
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Pamela Jane Serfass
Residence	Allentown, Pennsylvania
Alma mater	Penn State University (B.A.) Lehigh University (M.A.)
Occupation	Political assistant
Religion	Presbyterian
Website	Representative Charlie Dent

Charles "Charlie" Dent (born May 24, 1960) is the U.S. Representative for Pennsylvania's 15th congressional district, serving since 2005. He is a member of the Republican Party. The district includes all of Northampton County, most of Lehigh County, and small parts of Berks and Montgomery Counties.

Early life, education, and early career

Dent was born and raised in Allentown, Pennsylvania. He is a 1978 graduate of Allentown's William Allen High School. He received a Bachelor's in International Politics from Pennsylvania State University in 1982 and a Masters in Public Administration from Lehigh University in 1993. He is a member of the Phi Kappa Psi Fraternity.

He previously worked as a development officer for Lehigh University, an industrial electronics salesman, a hotel clerk, and an aide to U.S. Representative Donald L. Ritter.

Pennsylvania legislature

Before being elected to the United States Congress, Dent was a member of the State Legislature for 14 years. He represented Pennsylvania's 132nd house district from 1991 to 1999 after unseating Democratic incumbent Jack Pressman in a heavily Democratic district in 1990. In 1998, Dent won an open 16th District Senate seat when Democrat Roy Afflerbach (who later served as Mayor of Allentown from 2002 to 2006) retired to take up an ultimately unsuccessful bid for Congress.

U.S. House of Representatives

Elections

Dent was elected to the United States House of Representatives in 2004, succeeding Pat Toomey, who gave up his seat to challenge Arlen Specter for the U.S. Senate. He defeated Democrat Joe Driscoll 59%-39%.

2006

See also: United States House of Representatives elections in Pennsylvania, 2006#District 15, United States House of Representatives elections in Pennsylvania, 2008#District 15, and United States House of Representatives elections in Pennsylvania, 2010#District 15

He won re-election 54%-44% against Charles Dertinger.

2008

He won re-election 59%-41% against Allentown Democratic Party Chairman Sam Bennett.

2010

Dent won a re-election against Bethlehem Mayor John Callahan with 54% of the vote, the smallest percent of the vote he received in his four elections.

Tenure

Dent is a proponent of hydrogen fuel and is one of the four founding members of the House Hydrogen Fuel Cell Caucus. In 2006 he proposed legislation aimed at promoting the rollout of commercial hydrogen fueling stations. Dent envisions the development of a "Hydrogen Highway East," similar to California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's plans for a Hydrogen Highway on the West Coast.

Dent is a member of The Republican Main Street Partnership. In 2007 he was elected to co-chair the Republican "Tuesday Group," a centrist organization of Congressional Republicans.

As a Republican representing a district with Democratic leanings, he sometimes crosses party lines on legislation. In December 2010, Dent was one of fifteen Republican House members to vote in favor of repealing the United States military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" ban on openly gay service members.

Dent is a staunch advocate of a federal prohibition of online poker. In 2006, he cosponsored H.R. 4411, the Goodlatte-Leach Internet Gambling Prohibition Act

He voted against Federal intervention in the Terri Schiavo case. Dent replied afterwards that he opposed government intervention in a personal matter and would have voted the same way had courts sided with Schiavo's parents.

In April 2010, Dent introduced a resolution urging the U.S. State Department to issue a "certificate of loss of nationality" to Anwar al-Awlaki. He said al-Awlaki "preaches a culture of hate" and had been a functioning member of al-Qaeda "since before 9/11", and had effectively renounced his citizenship by engaging in treasonous acts.

In April 2011, Dent voted in favor of a 2012 budget proposal authored by Paul Ryan entitled The Path to Prosperity, which included several controversial changes to both health care and tax policy. Dent said of the bill that, "It's a serious, sober document...There are some things in there that I think are interesting."

In January 2012, en co-sponsored the Enemy Expatriation Act with Senator Joe Lieberman. The proposal would allow the United States government to strip U.S. citizens of their citizenship without requiring that the citizen have been convicted of a crime.

At the start of the 112th Congress, Dent received a new position on the coveted House Appropriations Committee, and continues to serve on the House Ethics Committee.

Committee assignments

• Committee on Appropriations
  • Subcommittee on Homeland Security
  • Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs
  • Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies
• Committee on Ethics

Caucus Memberships

• Congressional Arts Caucus

Electoral history

U.S. House, 15th District of Pennsylvania (General Election)
Year	Winning candidate	Party	Pct	Opponent	Party	Pct	Opponent	Party	Pct	Opponent	Party	Pct
2004	Charlie Dent	Republican	58.6%	Joe Driscoll	Democratic	39.4%	Frank Gonzalez	Libertarian	1.3%	Greta Browne	Green Party	0.7%
2006	Charlie Dent (inc.)	Republican	53.6%	Charles Dertinger	Democratic	43.5%				Greta Browne	Green Party	2.9%
2008	Charlie Dent (inc.)	Republican	58.6%	Sam Bennett	Democratic	41.4%
2010	Charlie Dent (inc.)	Republican	54%	John Callahan	Democratic	39%	Jake Towne	Independent	7%

Personal life

Dent is married to Pamela Dent and has three children.

External links

Media related to Charlie Dent at Wikimedia Commons

• Charlie Dent, United States Congressman official U.S. House site
• Charlie Dent for U.S. Congress official campaign site
• Biography at WhoRunsGov.com at The Washington Post
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
• Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
• Congressional profile at GovTrack
• Congressional profile at OpenCongress
• Issue positions and quotes at On The Issues
• Financial information at OpenSecrets.org
• Staff salaries, trips and personal finance at LegiStorm.com
• Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
• Campaign contributions at the National Institute for Money in State Politics
• Appearances on C-SPAN programs
• Charlie Dent at the Notable Names Database

United States House of Representatives
Preceded by Pat Toomey	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania's 15th congressional district 2005–present	Incumbent
United States order of precedence
Preceded by Geoff Davis R-Kentucky	United States Representatives by seniority 238th	Succeeded by Jeff Fortenberry R-Nebraska
Pennsylvania State Senate
Preceded by Roy Afflerbach	Member of the Pennsylvania Senate for the 16th District 1999–2004	Succeeded by Pat Browne
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Preceded by John Pressman	Member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for the 132nd District 1991–1998	Succeeded by Jennifer Mann