Helen Delich Bentley

Infobox_Congressman
name = Helen Delich Bentley


date of birth = birth date and age|1923|11|28
place of birth = Ruth, Nevada
state = Maryland
district = 2nd
term_start = January 3, 1985
term_end = January 3, 1995
preceded = Clarence Long
succeeded = Robert Ehrlich
party = Republican
spouse = William Roy Bentley (deceased)
children =
religion = Eastern Orthodox

Helen Delich Bentley (born November 28, 1923, Ruth, Nevada) is an American politician and is a former Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from the State of Maryland (1985-95).

Bentley attended the University of Nevada and George Washington University. She earned a BA from The University of Missouri in 1944. She was a maritime reporter and editor of "The Baltimore Sun" and served on the Federal Maritime Commission from 1969 to 1975.

Bentley was an unsuccessful candidate for election to the 97th and 98th Congresses in 1980 and 1982, respectively. She was elected as a Republican to the 99th Congress in 1984, and to the four succeeding Congresses, serving from January 3 1985, to January 3 1995. During her time in office, Bentley was a strong advocate for protectionist trade policies in support of U.S. manufacturing and the U.S. Merchant Marine fleet.

Of Serbian origin, she was known to be sympathetic towards Serbians during the civil war in Yugoslavia in the 1990s, and opposed U.S. military involvement in that conflict. A member of the Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries, Bentley was recognized by her colleagues as a leading expert on federal maritime policy.

She was not a candidate for reelection to the 104th Congress in 1994, but was an unsuccessful candidate for nomination for Governor of Maryland. Bentley was then an unsuccessful candidate for election to the 108th Congress in 2002, losing to then-Baltimore County Executive C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger.

Before and since that time she has been an active businesswoman and lobbyist as the president and CEO of "Helen Delich Bentley & Associates, Inc.", and also as an international trade, business and government consultant. She also is a consultant for the Maryland Port Administration, Port of Baltimore, which was renamed in June 2006 by then-Governor Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr. as the "Helen Delich Bentley Port of Baltimore."

Bentley was married to William Roy Bentley, who died in 2003 from a stroke. The couple had no children.

References

Persondata
NAME= Bentley, Helen Delich
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=
DATE OF BIRTH= November 28, 1923
PLACE OF BIRTH= Ruth, Nevada
DATE OF DEATH=
PLACE OF DEATH=