Paul G. Kirk, Jr.

Paul G. Kirk Jr. (born 1938) was chairman of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) from 1985 to 1989. He currently co-chairs the Commission on Presidential Debates, and is a lobbyist for the pharmaceutical industry.Verify source|date=August 2008

Kirk attended The Roxbury Latin School in West Roxbury, MA and graduated from St. Sebastian's School, class of 1956. He served as an assistant to Senator Ted Kennedy from 1969-1977. In 1983, he was named Treasurer of the Democratic Party.

In 1985, Kirk was elected as chairman of the DNC despite opposition from Virginia Governor Chuck Robb and a group of southern state Democrats who went on to form the Democratic Leadership Council.cite book
last = Rae
first = Nicol C.
title = Southern Democrats
publisher = Oxford University Press
date = 1994
pages = 113
isbn = 0195087097] Under Kirk's chairmanship the Democrats regained control of the Senate in the 1986 mid-term elections, which had been under a Republican majority since the 1980 elections. Kirk resigned shortly following Republican Vice President George H. W. Bush's victory over Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis in the 1988 Presidential Election. He was succeeded by Ron Brown as DNC chair.On May 2, 2008 Paul Kirk formally pledged his superdelegate vote to Barack Obama. [ [http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aAgwy.zgFK4w&refer=home Salant, Jonathan D. "Former Democratic Party Leader Paul Kirk Backs Obama" Bloomberg, May 2 2008] ] He has six nieces (Paula Cleary, Kate Cleary, Mikaela McDermott, Beth McDermott, Katharine Kirk, and Molly Kirk) as well as two nephews (Bill Cleary III and Andrew McDermott).

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