Frank Ed Mrvan Jr. (born April 11, 1933) is an American politician who served as a Democratic member of the

Indiana Senate The Indiana State Senate is the upper house of the Indiana General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Indiana. The Senate is composed of 50 members representing an equal number of constituent districts. Senators serve four-year ...

, representing the 1st District from 1979 to 1994 and again from 1998, until his retirement in 2022.

Early life and education

Mrvan was born in

East Chicago, Indiana East Chicago is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The population was 26,370 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Centered around heavy industry, the city is home to the Indiana Harbor and Ship Canal, an artificial freshwa ...

in 1933, the son of the late Frank Edward and the late Antonina (née Spychalski) Mrvan. He is of Polish and Czechoslovakian descent. Known as Frank Ed Mrvan Jr., he attended Washington High School in East Chicago. He attended

Indiana University Northwest Indiana University Northwest (IU Northwest or IUN) is a public university in Gary, Indiana, United States. It is one of seven regional campuses of Indiana University and was established in 1963. The university enrolls approximately 3,500 degree ...

and the

American Institute of Banking The American Bankers Association (ABA) is an American trade association for the U.S. banking industry, founded in 1875. They lobby for banks of all sizes and bank charters, including community banks, regional and money center banks, Federal sa ...

. Mrvan enlisted in the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

, serving from 1952 to 1956. He served in the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

. He was an Airman 1st Class (E-3).

Career

Mrvan worked in industry and banking. He worked for the Mobil Oil Company, where he was a union member. He became a Cost Accountant for M and T Chemical Company, and Bank Financial Officer for National City Indiana. Mrvan entered politics, joining the Democratic Party, which became a force in the region by the 1930s. He was elected to the

in 1978, and, with repeated re-elections, served from 1979 through 1995. Mrvan was elected again in 1998. Redistricting passed by the Indiana General Assembly in 2011 shifted the State Senate 1st district's boundaries, effective January 2013. The district was changed to include Hammond's 4th, 5th, 6th city districts, the town of

Munster Munster ( or ) is the largest of the four provinces of Ireland, located in the south west of the island. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" (). Following the Nor ...

, the town of

Highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally, ''upland'' refers to a range of hills, typically from up to , while ''highland'' is usually reserved for range ...

, the west side of the town of

Griffith Griffith may refer to: People * Griffith (name) * Griffith (surname) * Griffith (given name) Places Antarctica * Mount Griffith, Ross Dependency * Griffith Peak (Antarctica), Marie Byrd Land * Griffith Glacier, Marie Byrd Land * Griffith Ridge, ...

, the north side of the town of Dyer, parts of the town of Schererville, and part of the City of Crown Point.

Personal life

Mrvan married and had two children. His son, Frank J. Mrvan, also entered politics from Lake County. He was elected as a North Township trustee. In 2019 the younger Frank Mrvan decided to run for the Democratic nomination in

Indiana's 1st congressional district Indiana's 1st congressional district is an List of United States congressional districts, electoral district for the United States Congress, U.S. Congress in Northwestern Indiana. The district is based in Gary, Indiana, Gary and its surrounding s ...

to succeed

Pete Visclosky Peter John Visclosky ( ; born August 13, 1949) is an American politician who served as the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for from 1985 until his retirement in 2021. He is a member of the United States Democratic Pa ...

, who was retiring after a long tenure in office. Supported by Visclosky as his successor, Frank Mrvan won the Democratic nomination over 13 other candidates, and also defeated his Republican rival in the general election. He was sworn in on January 3, 2021.

References

External links

State Senator Frank Mrvan
''official Indiana State Legislature site'' * Living people 1933 births Democratic Party Indiana state senators American politicians of Polish descent American people of Czechoslovak descent Indiana University Northwest alumni 21st-century members of the Indiana General Assembly {{Indiana-politician-stub