Preceded by John Shumaker Preceded by Joseph Hepford Spouse Denise Piccola (m. 1971) Succeeded by Rob Teplitz Succeeded by Jeff Haste Party Republican Party | Preceded by David Brightbill Name Jeffrey Piccola Succeeded by Jane Orie Role Politician | |
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Residence Susquehanna Township, Pennsylvania, United States Education Gettysburg College, George Washington University Law School | ||
Service/branch United States Air Force | ||
State Senator Jeff Piccola
Jeffrey E. Piccola is a Republican politician from Pennsylvania. He is a former member of the Pennsylvania State Senate, where he represented the 15th District, and the Pennsylvania State House, where he represented the 104th District.
Piccola is a 1970 graduate of Gettysburg College, and a 1973 graduate of George Washington University Law School. From 1973-74, he served in the United States Air Force. Since 1974, he has been employed at a Harrisburg law firm.
Piccola was elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in 1976. He held his seat there until he was elected to the Pennsylvania State Senate in 1994. He was made Majority Caucus Administrator of the State Senate in 1999. In 2001, he was elected Senate Majority Whip. He was considered a "[l]eader of the impatient hard right wing of the Pennsylvania Republican Senate."
In 2002, the political website PoliticsPA named him to the list of "Smartest Legislators," saying that he was known for being "[a]rticulate and quick on his feet."
In a 2002 PoliticsPA feature story designating politicians with yearbook superlatives, he was named the "Most Likely to Succeed."
In 2005, Piccola announced that he would run for Governor, seeking the Republican nomination against incumbent Democratic Governor Ed Rendell. Piccola dropped out of the race for governor in early 2006, after it became clear that former professional football player Lynn Swann had earned the support of most of the Pennsylvania Republican Party.
Following the 2006 elections, Piccola gave up his position as Senate Whip, and instead made a bid to become president pro tempore of the State Senate, after the sitting president pro tempore, Bob Jubelirer, lost the Republican Primary in his home district. State Senate Republicans ultimately chose Senator Joe Scarnati for the president pro tempore position instead of Piccola. Piccola was replaced as Republican Whip by Jane Orie.
Piccola considered running for a spot on the State Supreme Court in 2007 but withdrew after he was unable to secure support for the state committee endorsement. In 2009, the Pennsylvania Report noted that Piccola had been "left for dead" after the 2006 leadership election, but was able to return to a leadership role as Chairman of the Senate Education Committee. Piccola did not seek re-election in 2012, and was succeeded by Democrat Rob Teplitz.