Frank Pecora

Frank Anthony Pecora (August 8, 1930 – June 12, 2017) was a member of the Pennsylvania State Senate who represented the 44th District from 1979 to 1994.

Political career Pecora was first elected to the Senate in 1978.

Several prominent Pennsylvania Democrats previously worked for Pecora, including former State Senator Sean Logan and Congressman Michael Doyle.

Reapportionment Pecora, as a political moderate, had fallen out of favor with his party's leadership by the early 1990s, despite the fact that he had served over thirteen years in the State Senate as a member of the Republican Party. In 1991, the Republican-controlled legislature passed a reapportionment plan that dismantled his old district, instead shifting his district number several hundred miles (over 400 km) to the east from Allegheny County to Chester County. Determined to continue in the Senate, Pecora rented an apartment in Chester County, and continued serving his new constituents.

Party switch By late 1992, Republicans held a 26-24 majority in the chamber. Pecora, still upset with the reapportionment decision, decided to switch parties and vote with the Democrats. He died on June 12, 2017.