Ernest P. "Ernie" Kline (June 20, 1929 – May 13, 2009) was a Democratic member of the

Pennsylvania State Senate The Pennsylvania State Senate is the upper house of the Pennsylvania General Assembly, the Pennsylvania state legislature. The State Senate meets in the State Capitol building in Harrisburg. Senators are elected for four-year terms, stagger ...

and the 25th

lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania The lieutenant governor is a constitutional officer of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The lieutenant governor is elected for a four-year term in the same year as the governor of Pennsylvania, governor. Each party picks a candidate for lieutena ...

, serving from 1971 to 1979.

Early life, career

Kline was born in

Allentown, Pennsylvania Allentown (Pennsylvania Dutch language, Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Allenschteddel'', ''Allenschtadt'', or ''Ellsdaun'') is a city in eastern Pennsylvania, United States. The county seat of Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, Lehigh County, it is the List o ...

and grew up in the Webster neighborhood of

Rostraver Township, Pennsylvania Rostraver Township is a township in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 11,374 at the 2020 census. History Rostraver Township is in the southwestern corner of Westmoreland County and is the location of the House ...

. He attended Rostraver High School, where he was the starting quarterback and graduated in 1947. He attended

Duquesne University Duquesne University of the Holy Spirit ( ; also known as Duquesne University or Duquesne) is a Private university, private Catholic higher education, Catholic research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded by members of ...

, but was unable to afford completing his degree. He took a career in radio news broadcasting in

Charleroi Charleroi (, , ; ) is a city and a municipality of Wallonia, located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. It is the largest city in both Hainaut and Wallonia. The city is situated in the valley of the Sambre, in the south-west of Belgium, not ...

, Connellsville, Kittanning, and at WBVP-AM in Beaver Falls. He entered politics after covering city council; he was elected to the Beaver Falls City Council in 1955. In 1961, he was appointed to be a workers' compensation referee for

Beaver Beavers (genus ''Castor'') are large, semiaquatic rodents of the Northern Hemisphere. There are two existing species: the North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') and the Eurasian beaver (''C. fiber''). Beavers are the second-large ...

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

, and

Greene Greene may refer to: Places United States *Greene, Indiana, an unincorporated community * Greene, Iowa, a city * Greene, Maine, a town ** Greene (CDP), Maine, in the town of Greene * Greene (town), New York **Greene (village), New York, in the to ...

Counties.

Politics

He was elected to the

in 1964, taking office in 1965. In August 1967, he was elected Democratic Floor Leader, becoming the youngest person to hold that position. He was elected

Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania The lieutenant governor is a constitutional officer of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The lieutenant governor is elected for a four-year term in the same year as the governor of Pennsylvania, governor. Each party picks a candidate for lieutena ...

on the

Milton Shapp Milton Jerrold Shapp (born Milton Jerrold Shapiro; June 25, 1912 – November 24, 1994) was an American businessman and politician who served as the 40th governor of Pennsylvania from 1971 to 1979 and the first Jewish governor of Pennsylvania. He ...

gubernatorial ticket in November 1970. As a Western Pennsylvanian, Kline provided balance to the Democratic ticket, which had Philadelphian

. Kline held that position from 1971 to 1979. He was the first Lieutenant Governor to live in

State House State House or statehouse may refer to: Buildings *Aso Villa or State House, the official residence of the President of Nigeria *Government House, Dominica or The State House, the official residence of the President of Dominica * State House, Bar ...

, the Lieutenant Governor's official residence. He served as a delegate to the

Democratic National Convention The Democratic National Convention (DNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 18 ...

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, ...

and

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

. He is credited for taking steps to establish the Governor's Energy Council during the

1973 oil crisis In October 1973, the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) announced that it was implementing a total oil embargo against countries that had supported Israel at any point during the 1973 Yom Kippur War, which began after Eg ...

and for leading the

Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency, also known as PEMA, is an independent cabinet-level agency in Pennsylvania tasked with the response to, preparedness for, recovery from, and the mitigation or prevention of disasters (natural and otherwi ...

. He ran for the Democratic nomination for governor in 1978, but lost a highly contested primary to Peter Flaherty, who eventually lost to

Dick Thornburgh Richard Lewis Thornburgh (July 16, 1932 – December 31, 2020) was an American lawyer, author, and politician who served as the 76th United States attorney general from 1988 to 1991 under presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush. A ...

Later life and death

Kline retired from political life after his stint as lieutenant governor and served as a

lobbyist Lobbying is a form of advocacy, which lawfully attempts to directly influence legislators or government officials, such as regulatory agencies or judiciary. Lobbying involves direct, face-to-face contact and is carried out by various entities, in ...

. He lived in

Palmyra, Pennsylvania Palmyra (Pennsylvania German: ''Pallemschteddel'') is a borough in Lebanon County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of the Lebanon, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 7,807 at the 2020 census. Geography Palmyr ...

until his death in 2009 at the age of 79.

References

External links

Pennsylvania State Archives
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kline, Ernest P. 1929 births 2009 deaths American radio reporters and correspondents Duquesne University alumni American lobbyists Lieutenant governors of Pennsylvania Politicians from Allentown, Pennsylvania Politicians from Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania Politicians from Lebanon County, Pennsylvania Democratic Party Pennsylvania state senators People from Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania 20th-century members of the Pennsylvania General Assembly