Background
The district includes the city of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he was born.
The district includes the city of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he was born.
After graduating from Milwaukee"s Don Bosco High School, in 1961, he attended the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee for two years.
Kleczka was elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly, serving from 1969 to 1974. Kleczka was elected to the House in a special election following the death of Representative Clement Zablocki, defeating Milwaukee County District Attorney East. Michael McCann in the Democratic primary. Kleczka was arrested at least twice for drunk driving.
A 1995 arrest for drunken driving - his blood alcohol content was twice the legal limit in Virginia - led him to acknowledge his alcoholism and seek treatment.
Friends say it softened his rough edges. He turned to God as part of his recovery and continues to meet regularly with fellow recovering alcoholics.
The pronunciation of Kleczka"s name often proved baffling to the uninformed. Republican Frank Annunzio (Doctorate-Illinois) repeatedly butchered it to the point that an exasperated Kleczka took to calling him "Republican
Annunciation."
Kleczka announced his retirement in 2004, and did not run for reelection.
He officially retired in January 2005 after 10 terms in Congress, and was succeeded by State Senator Gwen Moore, also a Democrat.
Afterward, he served as an accountant and a member of the National Guard. Later, he was a member of the Wisconsin State Senate from 1975 to 1984. While in Congress, Kleczka was a member of the House Ways and Means Committee and later the House Budget Committee.
He was known to be one of the more liberal members of Congress and helped to secure money for many programs for education, poverty relief, and housing improvements.