Vern Ehlers

Vernon James "Vern" Ehlers (February 6, 1934 – August 15, 2017) was the former U.S. Representative for , having served from 1993 until 2011. He was a member of the Republican Party.
Ehlers was the first research physicist to be elected to Congress; he was later joined by Rush Holt, Jr. (D-NJ) and Bill Foster (D-IL).
Ehlers served on the Kent County Board of Commissioners from 1975 to 1982. Ehlers served from 1983 to 1985 in the Michigan House of Representatives and then served from 1985 to 1993 in the Michigan Senate.
Ehlers died on August 15, 2017 in Grand Rapids, Michigan of Alzheimer's disease at the age of 83.