Kerry Bentivolio

Kerry Lynn Bentivolio (born October 6, 1951) is an American politician and educator who is the former United States Representative for MI's 11th congressional district, in office from 2013 to 2015.

Bentivolio was born in Detroit, Michigan in 1951.

Bentivolio was raised in the Detroit area with four brothers.

His father, a factory worker, served in World War II, while his grandfather served in World War I.

Bentivolio enlisted in the United States Army in November 1968 and served in South Vietnam from 1970 to 1971 as an infantry rifleman.

After a break in service, he later joined the Army National Guard in Michigan as a reservist and served for more than 20 years.

Bentivolio was trained as an MLRS/HIMARS crewmember.

He attended Oakland Community College from 1971 to 1983 where he earned an associate degree in Liberal Arts.

He transferred to Michigan State University in East Lansing to attend further courses in 1975 and met his future wife, Karen.

During the election, Bentivolio acknowledged that he had filed for bankruptcy in 1992 after homes he had built as a commercial builder did not sell, and Bentivolio faced judgments from creditor's collection suits in the Michigan counties of Oakland and Livingston.

Bentivolio also acknowledged having been involved in a lawsuit involving one of the creditors to whom he had owed money at that time; Bentivolio had started a new business doing Santa Claus appearances, and had obtained an appearance at the White House during the presidency of George H. W. Bush.

Bentivolio called a news conference in Milford, whereupon the creditor complained and newspapers reported on the bankruptcy story.

Bentivolio sued the vendor and several newspapers for slander and libel.

He won the case against his for slander and libel and was awarded $100,000.

The Free Press newspaper settled out of court.

He received his Bachelor of Arts in Social Science from Saint Mary's College in Michigan in 1999.

Later, he earned a master's degree in Education from Marygrove College in 2001.

He was deployed to Iraq in 2007 with an Artillery unit as a senior human resources sergeant performing combat convoy missions.

He retired as a sergeant first class after a neck injury in 2008.

Bentivolio's awards include the Meritorious Service Medal, Army Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal, and the Combat Infantryman Badge.

Bentiviolio has worked as an autoworker, reindeer rancher, automotive designer, teacher, commercial home builder, Santa Claus for hire, and amateur actor before running for political office.

He taught in private schools, public schools, and adult-education institutions.

Bentivolio said that he took up acting in movies to get rid of his stage fright in front of cameras.

In 2010, he acted in the low-budget movie Lucy's Law in the role of a TV News reporter.

In 2010, Bentivolio ran for the Michigan Senate for the 15th District but was defeated by Mike Kowall in the primary.

In 2011, he appeared in another low-budget political satire, The President Goes to Heaven.

In 2011, Bentivolio announced his candidacy for Michigan's 11th congressional district seat in the U.S. House of Representatives and was considered a long-shot to defeat incumbent Thaddeus McCotter for the Republican nomination.

However, Bentivolio's campaign was aided by reports that McCotter failed to qualify for the primary after failing to turn in enough valid petition signatures to qualify for the ballot.

Bentivolio, a Republican, defeated Democratic nominee Syed Taj, a physician, in the November 6, 2012 election.

Bentivolio was defeated for the Republican nomination in his bid for a second term by attorney David Trott.

McCotter's campaign released a statement on May 25, 2012, conceding that there were not enough valid signatures turned in with his ballot petition.

Although McCotter initially announced he would mount a write-in campaign for the seat, he opted to retire at the end of his term.

However, McCotter unexpectedly resigned on July 6, 2012, causing a scramble for the vacant nomination.

Bentivolio faced former state senator Nancy Cassis, a write-in candidate, for the district's Republican primary.

He launched a write-in campaign for the November 2014 general election but lost again to Trott.

After Trott announced he was not seeking reelection in 2018, Bentivolio again sought election in the eleventh district, but finished last in the primary.

In October 2019, Bentivolio announced that he would again run for his former congressional seat against Democrat Haley Stevens in the 2020 election.

Bentivolio would finish third in the Republican primary.

Bentivolio worked as a designer in the automotive industry for twenty years, followed by teaching for fifteen years in schools and institutions.

He is an Army veteran who served in the Vietnam War, the Gulf War, and the Iraq War.