Randy Leonard Explained

Randy Leonard
Office:Portland City Commissioner
Term Start:November 2002
Term End:December 31, 2012
Predecessor:Charlie Hales
Successor:Steve Novick
Constituency:Portland, Oregon
State House1:Oregon
District1:21st
Term Start1:1999
Term End1:2002
Predecessor1:Lonnie J. Roberts
Successor1:Billy Dalto
State Senate2:Oregon
District2:9th
Term Start2:1993
Term End2:1999
Predecessor2:Frank L. Roberts
Successor2:Frank Shields
Birth Place:Portland, Oregon
Party:Democratic
Alma Mater:Portland State University, B.S., History

Charles Randall ‘Randy’ Leonard (born 1952) is a politician in the U.S. state of Oregon. He was a member of the Oregon Legislative Assembly from 1993 to 2002 and served as a city commissioner in Portland (a member of the Portland City Council) from 2002 through 2012.

Career

Prior to serving in Portland city government, Leonard served in the Oregon Legislative Assembly and was a lieutenant with the Portland Fire Bureau.

In 1985, Leonard was elected President of the Portland Firefighters Association. He was elected as the Portland Firefighters President four times, serving in that position until 1998.In 1993, he was appointed to the Oregon State Senate to serve Multnomah County in District 9 by the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners. In 1994 he was elected to the Senate for a four-year term. In 1998, because of term limits, Leonard became the first person in Oregon history to run for the Oregon House of Representatives while serving as a sitting State Senator.[1] A Democrat, he served in the Senate and Oregon House of Representatives from 1993 through the 2002 special sessions of the legislature.[2] [3] [4] [5]

Leonard was elected to the Portland City Council in 2002, in a special election held to fill a vacancy caused by the resignation of then-commissioner Charlie Hales.[6] He was sworn in as a Portland city commissioner in front of the Smith Memorial Center in the South Park Blocks on November 26, 2002, by city auditor Gary Blackmer.[7] He was re-elected in 2004 and 2008.[8]

While serving on the Portland City Council, Leonard was the appointed by the Mayor to be the administrative head of a number of different city bureaus, including the Portland Fire Bureau. Leonard was the Commissioner-in-charge of the Fire Bureau during his final four years on the city council.In 2011, Leonard announced that he would not run for re-election in 2012,[9] and his final term on the city council ended on December 31, 2012.[6]

Personal life

Leonard married his wife, Katie, in 2010.[6]

On May 8, 2011, Leonard's daughter, 31-year-old Kara Marie Leonard, died. She had struggled for several years with addiction, achieving brief episodes of sobriety with her father's help; he spoke publicly of her addiction in the 2007 documentary Finding Normal.[10]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. https://sos.oregon.gov/archives/Pages/records/legislators_guide.aspx Oregon Legislators and Staff Guide: 1995 Regular Session (68th).
  2. https://sos.oregon.gov/archives/Pages/records/legislators_guide.aspx Oregon Legislators and Staff Guide: 1997 Regular Session (69th).
  3. https://sos.oregon.gov/archives/Pages/records/legislators_guide.aspx Oregon Legislators and Staff Guide: 1999 Regular Session (70th).
  4. https://sos.oregon.gov/archives/Pages/records/legislators_guide.aspx Oregon Legislators and Staff Guide: 2001 Regular Session (71st).
  5. https://sos.oregon.gov/archives/Pages/records/legislators_guide.aspx Oregon Legislators and Staff Guide: 2002 Special Sessions (71st).
  6. News: Slovic. Beth. Randy Leonard: A controversial, get-it-done politician prepares to leave the Portland City Council. The Oregonian. December 23, 2012. January 4, 2013. December 30, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20121230185150/http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2012/12/randy_leonard.html. live.
  7. News: Leonard will be sworn in Nov. 26 in the Park Blocks . November 19, 2002 . The Oregonian. B2.
  8. News: Larabee. Mark. Your sneak preview of the city's new era. The Oregonian. November 27, 2008. January 4, 2013. December 30, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20121230185150/http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2012/12/randy_leonard.html. live.
  9. News: Steve Novick enters race for Portland Commissioner Randy Leonard's seat: Portland City Hall roundup. Slovic. Beth. The Oregonian. June 29, 2011. November 11, 2012. October 6, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20121006095832/http://blog.oregonlive.com/portlandcityhall/2011/06/steve_novick_enters_race_for_p.html. live.
  10. News: Jacquiss, Nigel. Nigel Jaquiss. Updated: Commissioner Randy Leonard's Daughter Dies. Willamette Week. May 9, 2011. November 11, 2012. May 24, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120524143918/http://wweek.com/portland/blog-27090-updated_commissioner_randy_leonards_daughter_dies.html. live.