Mike Stack

Summary

Michael Joseph Stack III (born June 5, 1963) is an American attorney and former politician who served as the 33rd lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania from 2015 to 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as a member of the Pennsylvania State Senate for the 5th district from 2001 to 2015.

Mike Stack
Official portrait, 2015
33rd Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania
In office
January 20, 2015 – January 15, 2019
GovernorTom Wolf
Preceded byJim Cawley
Succeeded byJohn Fetterman
Member of the Pennsylvania State Senate
from the 5th district
In office
January 2, 2001 – January 20, 2015
Preceded byFrank Salvatore
Succeeded byJohn Sabatina
Personal details
Born
Michael Joseph Stack III

(1963-06-05) June 5, 1963 (age 60)
Washington, D.C., U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseTonya Stack
RelativesMichael J. Stack (grandfather)
EducationLa Salle University (BA)
Villanova University (JD)
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch/service United States Army
Years of service2008–present
UnitArmy Judge Advocate General's Corps[1]

Early life and education edit

Stack was born in Washington, D.C. He graduated from La Salle College High School, LaSalle University in 1987 and Villanova University School of Law in 1992.[2]

Stack attended the Judge Advocate General's Legal Center and School at the University of Virginia and entered the United States Army Judge Advocate General's Corps.[3]

Career edit

 
Stack as a state senator in 2009

State senate career edit

Stack served in the Pennsylvania Senate from 2001 until 2015. In 2009, Stack was Democratic leader of Philadelphia's 58th ward.[4]

Lieutenant governor term edit

He was the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania in the 2014 election, running with Democratic gubernatorial nominee Tom Wolf.[5] The Wolf/Stack ticket defeated the Republican Tom Corbett/Jim Cawley ticket in the 2014 gubernatorial election. Stack took the oath of office January 20, 2015.[6][7] While serving as lieutenant governor, Stack had a high-profile falling out with governor Tom Wolf, owing in part to Stack's alleged mistreatment of staff and a difference in management styles with Wolf.[8]

On May 15, 2018, Stack lost the state Democratic primary for lieutenant governor to Braddock Mayor John Fetterman,[9] placing fourth overall.[10] Stack is the only lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania to lose his renomination bid.

Stack ran briefly for a Philadelphia City Council at-large position, though withdrew in March 2019 after drawing a poor ballot position. His spokesman said Stack would continue to consider other opportunities for public service.[11]

Subsequent career edit

Following his withdrawal from the city council race, Stack moved to California, where he was operating as of January 2020 as a comedian under the name "Mikey Stacks".[12] Stack's routine involves self-deprecating jokes about his nickname "Mikey", as well as jokes around his mother's cooking, Donald Trump, Opioid use disorder and teenage suicide.[13]

In August 2021, Stack appeared on the AWE show Find Me a Luxury Home, wherein he described himself as a lawyer seeking to purchase a $7 million home in Manhattan Beach, California.[14] In October 2021, it was reported that Stack was contemplating a return to politics, considering a run in his old state senate district following incumbent senator John Sabatina's announcement that he would not seek re-election.[14] In 2022, Stack said he might run for Mayor of Philadelphia as an independent in 2023.[15] In January 2023, Stack announced he was running for mayor.[16] In February 2023, he dropped out of the race.[17]

Personal life edit

Stack's grandfather, Michael J. Stack, was a U.S congressman from 1935 to 1939.

In 2002, he was named to the PoliticsPA list of best-dressed legislators.[18]

Electoral history edit

Pennsylvania Senate, District 5, 1988
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Frank Salvatore (incumbent) 58,331 56.83
Democratic Michael Stack III 44,308 43.17
Total votes 102,639 100.00
Republican hold
Pennsylvania Senate, District 5, 1992
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Frank Salvatore (incumbent) 52,211 54.06
Democratic Michael Stack III 44,362 45.94
Total votes 96,573 100.00
Republican hold
Pennsylvania Senate, District 5, 2000
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Michael Stack III 46,980 52.55
Republican Frank Salvatore (incumbent) 42,416 47.45
Total votes 89,396 100.00
Democratic gain from Republican
Pennsylvania Senate, District 5, 2004
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Michael Stack III (incumbent) 66,844 65.74
Republican Sam Mirarchi 34,829 34.26
Total votes 101,673 100.00
Democratic hold
Pennsylvania Senate, District 5, 2008
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Michael Stack III (incumbent) 71,141 71.97
Republican John Farley 27,702 28.03
Total votes 98,843 100.00
Democratic hold
Pennsylvania Senate, District 5, 2012
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Michael Stack III (incumbent) 65,587 71.65
Republican Michael Tomlinson 25,954 28.35
Total votes 91,541 100.00
Democratic hold
2014 Pennsylvania lieutenant gubernatorial election, Democratic Primary
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Michael Stack III 351,627 46.79
Democratic Mark Critz 119,334 15.88
Democratic Mark Smith 109,519 14.57
Democratic Brad Koplinski 89,524 11.91
Democratic Brandon Neuman 81,438 10.84
Total votes 751,442 100.00
2014 Pennsylvania gubernatorial election[19]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Tom Wolf
Michael Stack III
1,920,355 54.93% +9.42%
Republican Tom Corbett (incumbent)
Jim Cawley (incumbent)
1,575,511 45.07% -9.42%
Total votes 3,495,866 100.00% N/A
Democratic gain from Republican
2018 Pennsylvania lieutenant gubernatorial election, Democratic Primary
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic John Fetterman 288,229 38.0
Democratic Nina Ahmad 182,309 23.8
Democratic Kathi Cozzone 142,410 18.6
Democratic Mike Stack (incumbent) 127,259 16.6
Democratic Ray Sosa 27,427 3.6
Total votes 767,634 100.0

References edit

  1. ^ "Training Ground" (PDF). The Philadelphia Lawyer. Summer 2008.
  2. ^ "Pennsylvania State Senate - Michael J Stack, III Biography". www.legis.state.pa.us. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  3. ^ "Training Ground". Philadelphia Bar Association. Retrieved 2022-07-11.
  4. ^ Committee of Seventy (2009-12-21). "2009 Citizen's Guide" (PDF). The Committee of Seventy, Philadelphia, PA 19103. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-04-19. Retrieved 2009-12-21.
  5. ^ Foster, Brittany (20 May 2014). "Lt. Gov.: Stack Wins Big". PoliticsPA. Retrieved 21 May 2014.
  6. ^ Lavender, Paige (4 November 2014). "Pennsylvania Governor Election Results: Tom Wolf Defeats Incumbent Tom Corbett". Huffington Post. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  7. ^ "NBC News Projects: PA's Corbett Ousted by Democrat Tom Wolf". NBC News. 4 November 2014. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  8. ^ "Your guide to who's running for Pa. lieutenant governor — and why you should care". The York Daily Record. 2018. Archived from the original on May 12, 2018.
  9. ^ Almukhtar, Sarah (2018-05-15). "Pennsylvania Primary Election Results". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2018-05-16.
  10. ^ McGoldrick, Gillian. "John Fetterman takes historic win over incumbent lieutenant governor Mike Stack". themorningcall.com. Retrieved 2018-05-16.
  11. ^ Cole, John (March 27, 2019). "Stack Ends Bid for Philly City Council". PoliticsPA. Retrieved October 31, 2019.
  12. ^ Brennan, Chris (January 23, 2020). "The former lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania is now doing stand-up comedy in California as 'Mikey Stacks'". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved February 4, 2021.
  13. ^ Marin, Max (January 23, 2020). "Former PA Lt. Gov. Mike Stack hits Hollywood with new standup comedy act". Billy Penn. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  14. ^ a b Brennan, Chris; Roebuck, Jeremy (October 8, 2021). "Mike Stack is back and hankering for his old Northeast Philly seat in the Pa. Senate". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved October 12, 2021.
  15. ^ "Three questions for every politician we could corner on Election Day". 11 November 2022.
  16. ^ Ulrich, Steve (January 19, 2023). "Mike Stack "Announces" Run For Philly Mayor". PoliticsPA. Retrieved 21 January 2023.
  17. ^ "Mike Stack leaves Philly voters wanting more". 21 February 2023.
  18. ^ "Sy Snyder's Best Dressed Legislators". PoliticsPA. The Publius Group. 2002. Archived from the original on 2002-08-03.
  19. ^ "Pennsylvania Elections - Summary Results".

External links edit

  • Stack for PA - official website
  • Project Vote Smart - Senator Michael J. 'Mike' Stack III (PA) profile
  • Follow the Money - Mike Stack
    • 2006 2004 2002 2000 campaign contributions
Pennsylvania State Senate
Preceded by Member of the Pennsylvania State Senate
from the 5th district

2001–2015
Succeeded by
Party political offices
Preceded by Democratic nominee for Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania
2014
Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania
2015–2019
Succeeded by
John Fetterman