Lou Barletta

Louis John Barletta (born January 28, 1956) is an American businessman and politician who served as the U.S. representative for PA's 11th congressional district from 2011 to 2019.

Barletta was born on January 28, 1956, in Hazleton, Pennsylvania, the son of Angeline (née DeAngelo) and Rocco Barletta, who married on September 6, 1943, and were both of Italian ancestry.

In 1984, Barletta founded a pavement marking company, Interstate Road Marking Corporation, which he sold in 2000.

At the time of the sale, his firm had grown to become the largest of its kind in Pennsylvania.

However, Barletta was viewed as a very strong candidate—the first credible Republican challenger Kanjorski had faced since his 1986 reelection bid—since he was a very popular Republican mayor from a heavily Democratic city.

Rocco Barletta helped manage several of the family's businesses, including Angela Park, which operated in nearby Drums until it closed in 1988, and served on the executive committee of the Democratic Party of Hazleton.

Rocco and Angeline passed away in 1994 and 1999, respectively.

At 18-months-old, Barletta was involved in a car crash, suffering a minor bruise to his left ear and to the right side of his head.

After high school, he attended Luzerne County Community College and Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania.

He graduated with a major in elementary education and made an unsuccessful tryout for the Cincinnati Reds baseball team, having been cut after failing to hit a curveball.

Barletta then went to work for his family's construction and heating oil business.

Republican Barletta was defeated for a seat on the Hazleton City Council in 1995, but won two years later.

In 1999, the incumbent Democratic mayor, Michael Marsicano, was beleaguered by the city's growing deficit, topping off at $855,000, and was primaried in an upset by Jack Mundie.

A member of the Republican Party, he served as mayor of Hazleton, Pennsylvania, from 2000 to 2010.

As mayor, he came to prominence due to a high-profile immigration ordinance.

Barletta took office January 3, 2000.

During Barletta's tenure, the Hispanic population of Hazleton climbed from 5 percent in 2000 to 30 percent in 2006.

That year, Barletta made headlines for his efforts opposing illegal immigration in Hazleton, vowing to make the city "one of the toughest places in the United States" for illegal immigrants.

Barletta introduced and the city council approved the Illegal Immigration Relief Act.

The ordinance allowed the city to deny a business permit to employers who hired illegal immigrants and gave the city authority to fine landlords up to $1,000 for leasing to illegal immigrants.

The act also made English the official language of Hazleton, prohibiting city employees from translating documents into any language without official authorization.

The widespread publicity saw support for Barletta emerge from Republican politicians such as former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani, and conservative figures such as Tucker Carlson and Neil Cavuto.

In response to the law, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund sued in federal district court to block the ordinance.

In 2002, Barletta ran as the Republican candidate in the 11th congressional district against nine-term Democratic incumbent Paul Kanjorski.

Barletta was reelected in 2003, defeating Democrat Jack Craig and Socialist Tim Mailhot, who campaigned on opposition to the Iraq War.

In 2004, Barletta was appointed to the United Nations Advisory Committee of Local Authorities by President George W. Bush.

Crime statistics in Hazleton showed a drop in crime every year between the years 2006 and 2011.

Barletta would defeat Mundie in the general election, overcoming a Democratic voter registration edge in the city (estimated at 5,771 to 3,509 in 2007).

In 2007, Barletta received 1,007 votes as a write-in candidate in the Democratic mayoral primary, enough to defeat former Mayor Marsicano, and be listed under both the Republican and Democratic parties in the general election.

During Barletta's first term, Hazleton received the Governor's Award for Fiscal Accountability and Best Management Practices.

In July 2007, Judge James Martin Munley ruled that the act was unconstitutional, claiming it interfered with federal immigration laws and violated the due process of individuals, employers, and landlords.

During his tenure, he challenged longtime Democratic incumbent Paul Kanjorski of the 11th congressional district three times, eventually defeating him in 2010.

Barletta was re-elected three times to serve in Congress.

The ruling was upheld on appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit on September 9, 2010.

In a public statement shortly after the decision, Barletta vowed to appeal once more.

The Supreme Court declined to hear the case.

The 11th had long been considered the most Democratic district in Pennsylvania outside of Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.

In 2014, four years after Barletta had left office, the town of Hazleton received a court order to reimburse the ACLU $1.4 million in legal fees, and the town, which was already $6 million in debt due to tax anticipation notes it had secured in 2010 and 2011, had to take additional loans to pay the fees.

In 2018, Barletta was the unsuccessful Republican nominee for the U.S. Senate, losing to Democratic incumbent Bob Casey Jr.. by a 13-point margin.

He also ran unsuccessfully in the 2022 Republican primary for governor of Pennsylvania, losing to Doug Mastriano.