Kerry A. Benninghoff is an American politician and

coroner A coroner is a government or judicial official who is empowered to conduct or order an inquest into the manner or cause of death, and to investigate or confirm the identity of an unknown person who has been found dead within the coroner's jur ...

serving as a member of the

Pennsylvania House of Representatives The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two-year terms from single member districts. It ...

from the 171st district. Elected in November 1996, he assumed office on January 7, 1997.

Early life and education

Benninghoff was born in

Lebanon, Pennsylvania Lebanon () is a city in and the county seat of Lebanon County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 26,814 at the 2020 census. Lebanon is located in the central part of the Lebanon Valley, east of Harrisburg and west of Reading. ...

. He graduated from

State College Area High School State College Area High School, often referred to locally as "State High," is a public high school in State College, Pennsylvania, United States. It is the only public high school in the State College Area School District and is within walking d ...

and attended

Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvan ...

from 1980 to 1981. He is also a graduate of the Certified Coroners Training Program of the

Pennsylvania State Police The Pennsylvania State Police (PSP) is the state police agency of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, responsible for statewide law enforcement. The Pennsylvania State Police is a full service law enforcement agency which handles both traffic and cr ...

Academy.

Career

While working as an orderly at

Mount Nittany Medical Center Mount Nittany Medical Center (MNMC) is a hospital in State College, Pennsylvania. It is an acute-care facility offering emergency, medical, surgical, diagnostic and community services. The hospital is located adjacent to the Pennsylvania State Un ...

State College, Pennsylvania State College is a home rule municipality in Centre County in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is a college town, dominated economically, culturally and demographically by the presence of the University Park campus of the Pennsylvania Sta ...

, Benninghoff was appointed as deputy coroner of

Centre County, Pennsylvania Centre County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 158,172. Its county seat is Bellefonte. Centre County comprises the State College, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area. History The lands ...

in 1985. In 1991, when Coroner Robert Neff retired, Benninghoff was elected to the office. He was re-elected in 1995. In 1996, when Representative

Ruth Rudy Ruth Corman Rudy (born January 3, 1938) is a former Democratic member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature o ...

retired, Benninghoff declared his candidacy to succeed her. He defeated Democrat Keith Bierly in the general election that year and has been re-elected to each succeeding session of the House. In 2018, after being re-elected to the House, Benninghoff was elected by members of the Republican Caucus to serve as House majority whip. On June 22, 2020, Bennighoff was elected House majority leader. As majority leader, Benninghoff is the second highest-ranking Republican in the chamber behind Speaker

Bryan Cutler Bryan Dean Cutler (born April 2, 1975) is an American politician who is the Speaker of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. A Republican, Cutler represents the 100th legislative district of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. He w ...

. Benninghoff is against legalizing adult-use

cannabis ''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae. The number of species within the genus is disputed. Three species may be recognized: ''Cannabis sativa'', '' C. indica'', and '' C. ruderalis''. Alternativel ...

in Pennsylvania. He has described it as a gateway drug and cites the opioid epidemic as a concern.

Personal life

Benninghoff lives in

Bellefonte, Pennsylvania Bellefonte is a borough in, and the county seat of, Centre County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It is approximately twelve miles northeast of State College and is part of the State College, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area. The boro ...

. He has five children.

References

External links

Representative Kerry Benninghoff's official web site
, - 21st-century American politicians American coroners Living people Republican Party members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives People from Centre County, Pennsylvania Year of birth missing (living people) {{Pennsylvania-PARepresentative-stub