Birth Name: Thomas Richard Harkin
Place of Birth: Cumming, Iowa, U.S.
Date of Birth: November 19, 1939
Ethnicity:
*Irish (father)
*Slovenian (mother)
Tom Harkin is an American politician. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as a Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Iowa, from January 3, 1975 to January 3, 1985, and a U.S. Senator from Iowa, from January 3, 1985 to January 3, 2015.
Tom was a candidate for the Democratic Party’s nomination for President of the United States in 1992.
Tom is the son of Franciska/Frances (Berčič/Bersich) Valentine and Patrick Francis Harkin. His father was born in Iowa, of Irish descent. His mother was born in Suha, Slovenia.
Tom’s paternal grandfather was John Harkin (the son of Daniel Harkin and Mary Rose Carney/Kearney). John was born in Wisconsin, to parents who were born in Donegal, Ireland. Daniel was son of Thomas H. Harkin and Mary McLaughlin.
Tom’s paternal grandmother was Mary Meade (the daughter of John Meade and Bridget McLaughlin). Mary was born in New York, to Irish parents. John was born in Meath, the son of Christopher Meade and Margaret Wall.
Tom’s maternal grandparents were Jakob Berčič and Marija Jugovec/Jugovic.
Tom is one of four people of significant Slavic ancestry to have won a major American political party’s Presidential caucus and/or primary. He won 1 state in 1992, Iowa. The other three people are:
*Harold Stassen (Republican; in 1944, he won 1 state, Nebraska; in 1948, he won 4 states; in 1952, he won 1 state, Minnesota; Stassen also sought the 1964, 1968, 1976, 1980, 1984, 1988, and 1992 Republican nominations; Stassen’s paternal grandmother was Czech)
*Edmund Muskie (1972; Democratic; won 4 states; Muskie was previously the 1968 Democratic nominee for Vice President of the United States; Muskie was of Polish descent)
*John Kasich (Republican; ran in 2000 and 2016: in 2016, he won 1 state, Ohio; Kasich is of Czech and Croatian descent)
Other people of significant Slavic ancestry who have mounted plausible or semi-plausible campaigns for a major party’s nomination for President of the United States are:
*George H. Bender (who sought the 1960 Republican nomination; Bender was of Czech descent)
*James Traficant (who sought the 1988 Democratic nomination; Traficant’s mother of Slovak descent)
*Dennis Kucinich (who sought the 2004 and 2008 Democratic nominations; Kucinich’s father was of Croatian descent)
*Tim Pawlenty (who sought the 2012 Republican nomination; Pawlenty’s father was of Polish descent)
*Gary Johnson (who sought the 2012 Republican nomination, was the Libertarian Party’s 2012 Presidential nominee, and is the Libertarian Party’s 2016 Presidential nominee; Johnson’s mother was of Ukrainian descent)
Source: Genealogy of Tom Harkin (focusing on his father’s side) – http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com