Former Congressman Jerry Kleczka Dies

Former Wisconsin Congressman Jerry Kleczka (kletch’kuh) has died. The Milwaukee County Democratic Party announced the death on Facebook Sunday night but did not say where or how he died. The 77-year-old Kleczka represented the Milwaukee area in Congress from 1984 to 2005 in the seat now held by Democrat Gwen Moore. Kleczka also served in the Wisconsin Assembly from 1969 through ’74 and in the state Senate from ’75 through ’84 — and voters sent him to Washington in a special election after Clem Zablocki died from a heart attack in late 1983. The Milwaukee County Democrats called Kleczka a “champion for education, poverty relief, and housing improvements.”