David Oh

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David Oh
Candidate David Oh, May 11, 2011
Member of the Philadelphia City Council from the At-Large District
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 2, 2012
Preceded by Jack Kelly
Personal details
Born (1960-03-08) March 8, 1960[1]
Southwest Philadelphia
Political party Republican
Spouse(s) Heesun
Children Two
Alma mater Dickinson College
Rutgers Law School (Camden)
Military service
Service/branch United States Army
Years of service 1988–1991[2]
Rank Second Lieutenant

David H. Oh is a Republican politician and attorney who is a member of the City Council of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Early life and education

Oh is a native of Southwest Philadelphia. His father, the Reverend Ki Hang, founded Philadelphia’s first Korean-American church in 1953 and served as its Pastor until his death in 2006. He graduated from Dickinson College and Rutgers University's Law School at its Camden Campus. Upon his graduation from law school, Oh worked for several years as an Assistant District Attorney in Philadelphia.[3]

Political career

In 1991, Oh was a member of Ed Rendell's Mayoral transition team. He also organized Governor Tom Ridge's 1999 trade mission to South Korea.[2] He also ran his own law practice for eighteen years, after which time he merged his firm into a larger firm, called Zarwin Baum DeVito Kaplan Schaer Toddy, PC.[3]

City Council

Elections

In 2003 and 2007, Oh mounted unsuccessful campaigns to win one of Philadelphia City Council's two minority party at-large seats. In both elections, Jack Kelly and Frank Rizzo outpolled Oh.[4] However in 2011, Kelly did not stand for re-election, and Rizzo was defeated in the Republican primary. In the general election, State Representative Denny O'Brien took one of the at-large seats, leaving Oh and former Mayoral candidate Al Taubenberger in a close race for the final seat. Oh led by 166 votes after the initial election day tally, and was able to maintain his lead after provisional ballots were counted.[5]

Military service and controversy

During the 2011 campaign, The Philadelphia Daily News reported that, despite Oh’s eight-year-old claims to have been a Green Beret, some officers felt the assertion represented a stretching of the truth. Oh initially criticized the paper for publishing the piece, and asserted that the story was based on a misunderstanding over military terminology, and noted that he did indeed attend Officer Candidate School and was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in the 20th Special Forces Group with the Maryland National Guard. He also asserted that he was designated 18-Alpha, or "Special Forces Officer," by his superior officers, and was also assigned a green beret which he had full authority to wear during his time of service.[6] Oh himself did not, however, complete full Special Forces training, which he asserted was what led to the misunderstanding. He defended his initial characterization of his qualifications, saying "I didn’t claim to be a Q-Force qualified A Team Green Beret,”[7] but did later apologize for any confusion that may have been caused.[8][9][10] Several veterans and related groups stepped-forward to defend Oh, including the officer who originally recruited him to join the Army reserves.[11] Others criticized the Daily News' original story, characterizing the inclusion of a picture of Oh with a green beret photoshopped onto his head as misleading.[6]

In 1991, Oh was activated with his National Guard unit, the 20th Special Forces Group, for Operation Desert Storm, but was not at that time considered Special Forces Qualified. The war ended before Oh's unit was to be deployed, and he was subsequently released with an honorable discharge.[3]

Tenure

With his election to Council, Oh became the first Asian-American elected to political office in Philadelphia.[3] He serves on the Council's Education, Environment, Disabled and Handicapped, Ethics, Licenses and Inspections, Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs, Public Property and Public Works, Streets and Services, and Technology and Information Services Committees. He is also Chairman of both the Committee on Commerce & Economic Development, as well as the Global Opportunities and The Creative/Innovative Economy Committee. Oh is also the Council's Minority Whip.[12]

Personal life

Oh lives in Southwest Philadelphia with his wife, Heesun, and three children.[3]

References

  1. ↑ "David Oh, At-Large". Philadelphia Elections Information. Committee of Seventy. Retrieved February 8, 2012. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "About David". David Oh for City Council. Retrieved February 10, 2012. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 "Councilman David Oh". Philadelphia City Council Members. The City of Philadelphia. Retrieved February 8, 2012. 
  4. ↑ "Oh, David H.". Our Campaigns. Retrieved February 10, 2012. 
  5. ↑ Brennan, Chris (November 15, 2011). "David Oh takes the cake in at-large Council race". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved February 10, 2012. 
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Thompson, Isaiah. "Hall monitor special: Who's behind the attacks on David Oh—and why?". The Naked City. The Philadelphia City Paper. Retrieved April 2, 2012. 
  7. ↑ Mayes, Eric (September 6, 2011). "Council Candidate Oh: Party Out To Get Him". The Philadelphia Tribune. Retrieved February 14, 2012. 
  8. ↑ Foster, Brittany (September 6, 2011). "David Oh’s Speedbumps, Courtesy of PhillyClout". PoliticsPA. Retrieved February 10, 2012. 
  9. ↑ Brennan, Chris (August 23, 2011). "Clout: Oh offers tepid apology for Green Beret claim". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved February 12, 2012. 
  10. ↑ Warner, Bob (August 25, 2011). "Green Beret claim threatens David Oh campaign". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved February 12, 2012. 
  11. ↑ Thompson, Isaiah. "Yet another former army official says Oh did not mistate his military credentials". The Naked City. The Philadelphia City Paper. Retrieved April 2, 2012. 
  12. ↑ "Standing Committees". Philadelphia City Council Committees. The City Of Philadelphia. Retrieved February 13, 2012. 

External links

Philadelphia City Council
Preceded by
Jack Kelly		 Member of the Philadelphia City Council for the At-Large District
2012–present 		Succeeded by
Incumbent
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