Mike Fleck

Michael E. Fleck (born 1973) is a Republican former member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for the 81st legislative district. He was first elected in 2006 to succeed the retiring Larry Sather, taking office on January 2, 2007.

On December 1, 2012, Fleck came out as gay. After his public announcement, he and Rep. Brian Sims (D - 182) became the two first openly gay state legislators in Pennsylvania. Fleck was the only out Republican legislator in the United States at the time. His coming-out announcement was ranked as one of "2012's Top Coming Out Stories" along with those of journalist Anderson Cooper, actor Matt Bomer and ''Good Morning America''s Sam Champion.

Mike Fleck ran unopposed until 2014 when fellow Republican and write-in candidate Richard Irvin defeated him in the Republican primary election. Fleck narrowly won the Democratic nomination as a write-in candidate, but lost to Irvin in the general election.

The 2014 election was one of the most followed legislative races in the country, with Fleck being profiled in the New York Times and Governing Magazine naming him as one of the "Top 12 Legislators to Watch in 2014."

In December 2014, Fleck was appointed to newly elected Governor Tom Wolf's transition committee. In June 2015, Fleck joined the Wolf Administration as the Director of the Bureau of Workforce Partnerships and Operations, with the Department of Labor and Industry, overseeing the state's 67 Careerlink Sites. Provided by Wikipedia