Ronald M. Mottl

Ronald Milton Mottl (February 6, 1934 – October 13, 2023) was an American lawyer and politician who served in the Ohio General Assembly for multiple decades. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served four terms in the United States House of Representatives from 1975 to 1983.

Early life

Ronald Milton Mottl was born in Cleveland, Ohio, to Miroslav Václav Josef Mottl and Anna Hummel, a couple of Czech descent.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> His father, an immigrant from Počaply, died from chronic valvular heart disease when he was 11.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> His mother, born in Pittsburgh to parents from Kvaň and Mýto, remarried to Václav Schovánek from Kladno.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Mottl graduated from Parma Schaaf High School in 1952 and later was inducted into the school’s athletic hall of fame.

College and military service

He attended the University of Notre Dame for which he played baseball in 1955.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name=bio>Template:Cite web</ref> He served in the United States Army Reserves in 1957.Template:Cn

Career

Mottl was a lawyer, and served on the city council of Parma, Ohio from 1960 to 1966<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and the Ohio state legislature from 1967 until 1975.Template:Cn

Congress

Mottl served four terms in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1975 to 1983.<ref name=bio /> A conservative Democrat, Mottl was an ally of Ronald Reagan's legislative agenda.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite news</ref> In 1982, Mottl lost the Democratic primary<ref name=bio /> to Ed Feighan, thereby losing his seat.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Return to state legislature

Mottl returned to local politics, serving on the Parma school board from 1985 until 1986, and as president of the school board in 1986, until he was elected to the Ohio House of Representatives, where he served until 1997.<ref name=bio /> He was also an unsuccessful candidate for mayor of North Royalton, Ohio in 1999.Template:Cn

Personal life

Mottl had four children.<ref name=":0" /> Ronald Jr. and a daughter are from his first marriage and a son and daughter are from his second marriage to Debbie.<ref name=":0" /> Ron Jr. was a representative in the Ohio House of Representatives for one term from 1997 to 1998 immediately succeeding his father.

Death

Mottl died on October 13, 2023, at the age of 89.<ref>Ronald Mottl obituary</ref>

See also

• List of United States representatives from Ohio

References

• Template:C-SPAN

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