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Draft:Karl Bohnak

Karl Bohnak
Member-elect of the Michigan House of Representatives
from the 109th district
Assuming office
January 1, 2025
SucceedingJenn Hill
Personal details
Born (1953-01-10) January 10, 1953 (age 71)
Political partyRepublican
Alma materUniversity of Wisconsin-Stevens Point
OccupationMeteorologist, author
Websitevotebohnak.com

Karl Bohnak (born January 10, 1953) is an American Republican politician from Michigan. He is the representative-elect for Michigan's 109th House of Representatives district, elected on November 5, 2024. Previous to his career in politics, Bohnak was a meteorologist for WLUC-TV and then WZMQ-TV in Marquette County, Michigan, plus several radio stations in the region. He is also an author, writing on local weather and history of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

Early life and education

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Karroll Robert Bohnak was born in place, Wisconsin, to mother and father on January 10, 1953.[citation needed] He is the number of number children.[citation needed] He developed an interest in the weather during a snow storm in Milwaukee when he was in the first grade. He later kept weather diaries in the the third or fourth grade and build his own weather station. He later developed an interest in TV meteorology in the fifth or sixth grades.[1] He attended John Marshall High School in Milwaukee, graduating in 1971.[citation needed] He attended the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point and graduated in December 1975.[2] While at UW-SP, Bohnak won a national prize at the DePauw University Undergraduate Honors Conference in March 1975.[3]

Afterwards, Bohnak then worked in radio as an announcer.[4] Bohnak then attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison to study meteorology[5] while working in radio and TV weather broadcasting in Madison.[4]

Career before politics

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Bohnak started in TV weather forecasting in 1983,[6] working first at WISC-TV in Madison, Wisconsin, until 1985,[7] and then at WTMJ-TV in Milwaukee.[5] He joined WLUC-TV in 1988, saying that forecasting the weather in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan was "one of the most challenging places in the U.S."[8] He has held the American Meteorological Society Broadcast Seal of Approval.[6][a] In addition to his work at WLUC-TV, Bohnak provided forecasts for local radio stations WKQS-FM,[6] WNBY-FM, WNBY-AM, WSOO-FM, and WSUE-FM.[11]

Starting in 2006, Bohnak wrote or cowrote three books. His first, So Cold a Sky: Upper Michigan Weather Stories was published that year. It was listed as a 2007 Michigan Notable Book by the Library of Michigan.[12] His second book debuted three years later. Michigan's Upper Peninsula Almanac was coauthored with Ron Jolly in 2009 and published by the University of Michigan Press. His last book, Sunburns to Snowstorm: Upper Michigan Weather in Pictures & Stories was coauthored with local photographer Jack Deo in 2017.

In September 2021, Bohnak was terminated from WLUC-TV for refusing to get a Covid-19 vaccination as mandated by station owner Gray Television.[13] At the time of his firing, The Newberry News called him "one of the most well-known residents of the Upper Peninsula—perhaps even the most famous one alive today."[11] His popularity even inspired his catchphrase, "That's what Karl says" to inspire a song and be used as a slogan for the station during the 1990s.[14]

After leaving WLUC-TV, Bohnak continued writing his "Karl's Korner" column for The Mining Journal, the local newspaper in Marquette, Michigan, until date.[citation needed] Bohnak joined the staff of WZMQ-TV when that station started a news division in October 2022 and continued working for the station until his entry into politics in January 2024.[15]

Political career

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Bohnak announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination for Michigan's 109th House of Representatives district on December 29, 2023.[16] He won the primary on August 6, 2024, after defeating challengers Burt Mason and Melody Wagner.[17] He defeated incumbent Jenn Hill on November 5, 2024. With the victory, Bohnak will be the first Republican to represent Marquette County in the State House since 1955.[18]

Political positions

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In a 2014 interview, Bohnak described himself as skeptical of climate change. He also called himself a libertarian, saying he was "more of a fiscal conservative and a social liberal".[1] He noted that in the past he was more liberal, but his journey to a more conservative position started over disagreements with policy regarding climate change.[1]

In 2021, Bohnak's opposition to Covid-19 vaccine mandates was covered in an article in The Washington Post. At the time, he had posted on Facebook, "the abrogation of our liberty and freedom under the guise of a pandemic is very disturbing to me.[19] At the time, Bohnak's decision was supported by Congressman Jack Bergman, who although vaccinated, supported the meteorologist's personal decision on whether or not to receive the vaccine.[19] Bohnak's social media announcement clarified that he was concerned about the lack of legal liability of vaccine makers in the event of injury or death.[20]

During his 2024 campaign for state representative, Bohnak staked out positions on five issues on his website. He called for changes related to energy sources, disagreeing with wind and solar mandates. Bohnak called for land use decisions to be made by local governments instead of the state government. On the topic of education, he advocates for parental input in school curricula. He also offered support for the constitutional carry of firearms and support for first responders.[21]

In an October 2024 profile, John Bowden of The Independent in London, called Bohank "QAnon-adjacent". The paper described him as skeptical of government oversight or regulations. They also noted a shift in his opinions to a more centrist viewpoint for his campaign in comparison to his previously stated views, which included comments comparing vaccines to Nazi experiments and election fraud in the 2020 presidential race.[22]

Electoral history

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2024 Michigan House of Representatives election, 109th District[23]
Primary election
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Karl Bohnak 6,849 74.7
Republican Burt Mason 1,389 15.2
Republican Melody Wagner 927 10.1
Total votes 9,165 100
General election
Republican Karl Bohnak 26,189 51.3
Democratic Jenn Hill (incumbent) 24,847 48.7
Total votes 51,036 100
Republican gain from Democratic

Personal life

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Bohnak married his first wife, Christine Rosenberg, in 1981. They had number children, names, and divorced in year.[citation needed]. He then married his second wife, Elizabeth Yelland, in year.[citation needed] He considers himself a "recovering Catholic" or agnostic.[1]

Bibliography

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  • Bohnak, Karl (2006). So Cold a Sky: Upper Michigan Weather Stories. Negaunee, Michigan: Cold Sky Publishing. ISBN 9780977818907. OCLC 69415616.
  • Bohnak, Karl & Deo, Jack (2017). Sunburns to Snowstorm: Upper Michigan Weather in Pictures & Stories. Negaunee, Michigan: Cold Sky Publishing. ISBN 9780977818914. OCLC 1018307135.
  • Bohnak, Karl (2000–2023). "Karl's Korner". The Mining Journal (Weekly column). Marquette, Michigan. ISSN 0026-5225.
  • Jolly, Ron & Bohnak, Karl (2009). Michigan's Upper Peninsula Almanac. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press. ISBN 9780472032488. OCLC 154707628.

Notes

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  1. ^ In the "About the author" page of So Cold A Sky, Bohnak notes that he received the award in 1988.[9] The AMS notes on their website that the certification has lapsed.[10]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Cabell, Brian (November 26, 2014). "STRAIGHTtalk: With Karl Bohnak". Marquette Magazine. Archived from the original on October 3, 2024. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  2. ^ "UW-SP Graduation: Advises Against Bargaining". Stevens Point Journal. December 20, 1975. p. 13. Retrieved November 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ "UW-SP Student One of 20 National Winners". Stevens Point Journal. March 25, 1975. p. 8. Retrieved November 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ a b "Naturalist Program at the Ice Age National Scientific Reserve". Kewaskum Statesman. June 26, 1987. p. 20. Retrieved November 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ a b Spitza, Ryan (September 16, 2021). "Longtime Weatherman Bohnak Out at WLUC". The Daily News. Iron Mountain, Michigan. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  6. ^ a b c "TV6 Chief Meteorologist Karl Bohnak to Give Weather Updates on Sunny 101.9". Upper Michigan's Source. Negaunee, Michigan: WLUC-TV. July 15, 2020. Archived from the original on July 17, 2020. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  7. ^ "WISC-TV Welcomes New Weatherperson". The Capital Times. Madison, Wisconsin. May 2, 1985. p. 55. Retrieved November 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Michigan TV Weatherman Out After Refusing to Get Vaccine". CBS Detroit. CBS News. Associated Press. September 16, 2021. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  9. ^ Bohnak, Karl (2006). So Cold a Sky: Upper Michigan Weather Stories. Negaunee, Michigan: Cold Sky Publisher. ISBN 9780977818907. OCLC 69415616.
  10. ^ "List of AMS Television Seal Holders". American Meteorological Society. Archived from the original on July 24, 2021. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  11. ^ a b "Karl Bohnak Fired from TV6". The Newberry News. September 22, 2021. Archived from the original on October 4, 2024. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  12. ^ "2007 Michigan Notable Books". Library of Michigan. July 1, 2010. Archived from the original on February 24, 2024. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  13. ^ Arshad, Minnah (September 20, 2021). "Michigan TV Meteorologist Says He Was Fired After 33 Years for Refusing COVID-19 Vaccine". Detroit Free Press. Archived from the original on May 31, 2023. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  14. ^ Hsu, Andrea (October 25, 2021). "A Small but Vocal Minority of Workers Are Choosing Firings Instead of the Vaccine". Alaska Public Media. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  15. ^ "WZMQ 19 Statement Regarding Karl Bohnak" (Press release). Marquette, Michigan: WZMQ-TV. January 3, 2024. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  16. ^ Blakely, Sarah (December 29, 2023). "Former TV Meteorologist Karl Bohnak Announces Plans to Run for State Representative". Marquette, Michigan: WZMQ-TV. Archived from the original on April 23, 2024. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  17. ^ Hall, Jack (August 7, 2024). "Jenn Hill, Karl Bohnak to Face Off in 109th State House Race After Primary Wins". Radio Results Network. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  18. ^ "Hill Concedes as Bohnak Unseats Incumbent, Wins State House Race". Upper Michigan's Source. Negaunee, Michigan: WLUC-TV. November 6, 2024. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  19. ^ a b Bella, Timothy (September 18, 2021). "A TV Meteorologist of 33 Years Declined the Vaccine, Citing Personal Freedoms. He Was Fired". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  20. ^ Bohnak, Karl (September 15, 2021). "Today, it is with a heavy heart, I announce after over 33 years, I am no longer employed at TV6..." Retrieved November 10, 2024 – via Facebook. I have decided against the vaccine option, first and foremost, because the manufacturers of these injections have absolutely no liability if injury or death occurs after the shot. I asked myself, would I buy brakes for my vehicle if the brake company had no liability if the brakes failed? No! So, I will certainly not allow a medicine in my body from a company that does not stand behind its product.
  21. ^ "Issues". VoteBohnak.com. Karl Bohnak 4 State Rep. Archived from the original on October 31, 2024. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  22. ^ Bowden, John (October 3, 2024). "In Michigan, a QAnon-Adjacent Fired Weatherman Rebrands as a 'Moderate' Republican". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on October 3, 2024. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  23. ^ "Michigan State House of Representatives District 109". Ballotpedia. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
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