Stanley J. Aronoff (June 8, 1932 – January 31, 2024) was an American politician of the Republican Party who served for a time as president of the Ohio Senate.

Biography

Stanley J. Aronoff was born on June 8, 1932. He was raised in a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

family in the

North Avondale North Avondale is one of the 52 List of Cincinnati neighborhoods, neighborhoods of Cincinnati, Ohio. It is home to Xavier University and the Avon Woods Preserve. The population was 3,405 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Demographi ...

neighborhood of

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

and attended high school at

Walnut Hills High School Walnut Hills High School is a public college-preparatory high school in Cincinnati, Ohio. Operated by Cincinnati Public Schools, it houses grades seven through twelve. The school was established in 1895 and has occupied its current building s ...

. He earned a bachelor's degree and a law degree from

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

, after which he returned to Cincinnati to enter into the private practice of law. In 1960, Ambrose Lindhorst (the head of the Hamilton County Republican Party), Walton Bachrach (mayor of Cincinnati), and Republican operative George Eyrich persuaded Aronoff to run for a seat in the

Ohio General Assembly The Ohio General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Ohio. It consists of the 99-member Ohio House of Representatives and the 33-member Ohio Senate. Both houses of the General Assembly meet at the Ohio Statehouse in Colu ...

. He began serving in the

Ohio House of Representatives The Ohio House of Representatives is the lower house of the Ohio General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Ohio; the other house of the bicameral legislature being the Ohio Senate. The House of Representatives first met in ...

in 1961 and was re-elected twice, serving until 1967. In 1966, Aronoff won a seat in the

Ohio Senate The Ohio Senate is the upper house of the Ohio General Assembly. The State Senate, which meets in the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus, first convened in 1803. Senators are elected for four year terms, staggered every two years such that half of t ...

. He was reelected in 1968 and 1972. In the 1974 primary election, he made an unsuccessful bid for the Republican nomination for

Ohio Attorney General The Ohio attorney general is the chief legal officer of the state of Ohio in the United States. The office is filled by general election, held every four years. The Ohio attorney general is Republican Dave Yost. History The office of the att ...

. He was re-elected to the Senate in 1976. In 1978, Aronoff sought the party's nomination for a seat in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

, but party bosses endorsed television news broadcaster Thearon "Tom" Atkins instead. It was suspected, with the Jewish Bill Gradison already representing the Hamilton County Republican Party in Congress, that party leaders shied away from endorsing another Jew for Cincinnati's other congressional seat. Nevertheless, Aronoff prevailed in the Republican primary, but lost narrowly in the general election to Democrat

Tom Luken Thomas Andrew Luken (July 9, 1925 – January 10, 2018) was an American politician of the Democratic Party from Ohio, serving in the United States House of Representatives during the 1970s and 1980s. Early life and education Luken received h ...

. By the 1980 elections, the Republican party achieved a majority in the Ohio Senate, and Aronoff was named chairman of the Finance Committee. However, the party was again in the minority two years later. In the 1984 campaign, Aronoff's success at fundraising was key to the Republican recapture of the Senate. The Senate Republican leader was

Paul Gillmor Paul Eugene Gillmor (February 1, 1939 – September 5, 2007) was an American politician of the Republican Party who served as the U.S. representative from the 5th congressional district of Ohio from 1989 until his death in 2007. Early life, ...

; when Gillmor won a seat in

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

in 1988, Aronoff became President of the state Senate. In 1995, Aronoff—and other legislators, including former Democratic Ohio House of Representatives

Speaker Speaker most commonly refers to: * Speaker, a person who produces speech * Loudspeaker, a device that produces sound ** Computer speakers Speaker, Speakers, or The Speaker may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * "Speaker" (song), by David ...

Vern Riffe Vernal G. Riffe Jr. (June 26, 1925 – July 31, 1997) was an American politician and member of the Democratic Party. Riffe served in the Ohio House of Representatives for 36 years, from 1959 to 1995, and served as speaker for 19 years, from 1 ...

—was investigated for the

misdemeanor A misdemeanor (American English, spelled misdemeanour elsewhere) is any "lesser" criminal act in some common law legal systems. Misdemeanors are generally punished less severely than more serious felonies, but theoretically more so than admi ...

of accepting multiple low fees from more than one source for the same event in order to avoid disclosure ("fee pancaking", like a stack of pancakes); the law required that legislators disclose the acceptance of any

speaking fee A speaking fee is a payment awarded to an individual for speaking at a public event. Motivational speakers, businesspersons, facilitators, and celebrities are able to garner significant earnings in speaking fees or honoraria. In 2013, $10,000 wa ...

exceeding

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500. Aronoff was indicted and pleaded guilty to not disclosing $4,500 in fees for the same speech accepted from various arms of

The Limited The Limited is an American clothing brand sold exclusively through Belk. The Limited began with operating retail stores between the early 1960s and the late 2010s. In 2017, it became a brand owned by the private equity firm Sycamore Partners. Hi ...

company. He was sentenced to community service, which he fulfilled by giving lectures to students on government ethics. In 1996 Aronoff retired from public service. He was connected with the law firm of Aronoff, Rosen and Hunt, established in 1928 by Irwin I. Aronoff. Aronoff died on January 31, 2024, at the age of 91.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Aronoff, Stan 1932 births 2024 deaths Presidents of the Ohio Senate Republican Party Ohio state senators Jewish state legislators in Ohio Politicians from Cincinnati Harvard Law School alumni 21st-century American Jews Jews from Ohio Walnut Hills High School alumni 20th-century members of the Ohio General Assembly

Biography

See also

References

External links