{{Short description|American politician and businessman (1945–2019)}} {{Infobox officeholder | honorific_prefix = | name = Bob Hanner | honorific_suffix = | image = Bob Hanner.png | alt = | office = Member of the Georgia House of Representatives | term_start = September 18, 1975 | term_end = January 14, 2013 | predecessor = John R. Irwin III | successor = ''District abolished'' | constituency = 130th district (1975–1983)<br>131st district (1983–1993)<br>159th district (1993–2003)<br>133rd district (2003–2005)<br>148th district (2005–2013) | prior_term = | birth_name = Robert Paul Hanner | birth_date = {{birth date|1945|4|19}} | birth_place = Americus, Georgia, U.S. | death_date = {{death date and age|2019|1|2|1945|4|19}} | death_place = Parrott, Georgia, U.S. | profession = | spouse = {{marriage|Linda Matthews|May 3, 1969}} | children = 2 | party = Republican (2010–2019) | other_party = Democratic (before 2010) }}
'''Robert Paul Hanner''' (April 19, 1945 – January 2, 2019) was an American politician and businessman.
== Biography == ===Early years and education=== Robert Paul Hanner was born in Americus, Georgia on April 19, 1945 to Jack and Yip Hanner. He attended Parrott Grammar School, Terrell High School, Gordon Military College in Barnesville and Georgia Southwestern State University. He served in the United States Coast Guard in 1967 and 1968 in South Vietnam.<ref name="Funeral" /> Hanner was a farmer. He was involved in the insurance business and estate planning. He lived in Parrott, Georgia for nearly all of his life.
===Political career=== Hanner was a member of the Georgia House of Representatives from 1974 to 2013. He was a loyal Democrat for most of his political career, advancing to the position of committee Chairman during the decades when Democrats exercised majority rule.<ref name="PictureBook">{{cite web|url=http://dlg.galileo.usg.edu/cgi/ggpd?userid=public;dbs=ggpd;ini=ggpd.ini;action=retrieve;format=.;grid=;rset=001;recno=30|title=Members Of The General Assembly Of Georgia First Session of 1989-90 Term|publisher=State of Georgia|date=January 1989|accessdate=April 27, 2019}}</ref><ref name="Grofman2003" /> Hanner served during a period when House Speaker Tom Murphy waged a fiercely partisan battle against Republicans, drawing district maps during reapportionment which were criticized as pro-Democrat gerrymanders.<ref name="Grofman2003">{{cite book|author=Bernard Grofman|title=Race and Redistricting in the 1990s|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iTdFWR4Y-y8C&pg=PA198|year=2003|publisher=Algora Publishing|isbn=978-0-87586-265-1|pages=197–200}}</ref><ref name="MURPHY" /> It was during this period that Congressman Newt Gingrich remarked that "The Speaker, by raising money and gerrymandering, has sincerely dedicated a part of his career to wiping me out."<ref name="NYT">{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/20/us/20murphy.html |title=Tom B. Murphy, a Longtime Power in Georgia, Dies at 83 |first=Brenda |last=Goodman |date=December 20, 2007 |newspaper=The New York Times |accessdate=June 18, 2018}}</ref> Murphy made Hanner his point man in this effort, as Chairman of the House Legislative & Congressional Reapportionment committee, specifically charged with creating the gerrymandered districts.<ref name="PictureBook" /><ref name="Grofman2003" /><ref name="MURPHY">{{cite web |url=http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/government-politics/tom-murphy-1924-2007 |title=Tom Murphy (1924-2007) |website=New Georgia Encyclopedia |accessdate=April 27, 2018}}</ref> With the fall of Speaker Murphy, and the shift of power from Democrats to Republicans, Hanner left the Democratic party and switched to the Republicans in 2010.<ref name="Funeral">{{cite web|url=https://www.harveyfuneralhome.com/notices/Robert-Hanner|title=Robert Paul Hanner April 19, 1945 - January 2, 2019 (age 73)|publisher=Harvey Funeral Home|accessdate=April 27, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://votesmart.org/candidate/biography/7891/bob-hanner#.VU0Sc9pViko|title=Project Vote Smart - The Voter's Self Defense System|work=Project Vote Smart|accessdate=8 May 2015}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Georgia General Assembly|url=https://www.legis.ga.gov/members/house/117/?session=2|access-date=2021-03-21|website=www.legis.ga.gov}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.walb.com/2019/01/03/long-time-south-georgia-state-representative-bob-hanner-dies/|title=Long time South Georgia state representative Bob Hanner dies|publisher=WALB.com - WAB News 10|date=January 3, 2019|accessdate=April 27, 2019}}</ref>
==Death and legacy== Hanner died on January 2, 2019.
==See also== * List of American politicians who switched parties in office
==References== {{Reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hanner, Bob}} Category:1945 births Category:2019 deaths Category:Democratic Party members of the Georgia House of Representatives Category:Republican Party members of the Georgia House of Representatives Category:People from Sumter County, Georgia Category:People from Terrell County, Georgia Category:Military personnel from Georgia (U.S. state) Category:Georgia Southwestern State University Category:Gordon State College alumni Category:Businesspeople from Georgia (U.S. state) Category:Farmers from Georgia (U.S. state) Category:20th-century American businesspeople Category:21st-century members of the Georgia General Assembly