Wikipedia

Daniel Rodimer

Daniel Stephen Rodimer (born May 22, 1978), also known by his ring name Dan Rodman, is an American retired professional wrestler, former football player, and former political candidate. In 2006, he signed a one-year developmental contract with WWE.

Dan Rodimer
Rodimer in 2019
Personal details
Born
Daniel Stephen Rodimer

(1978-05-22) May 22, 1978 (age 46)
Denville Township, New Jersey, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
SpouseSarah Rodimer
Children6
EducationUniversity of South Florida (BA)
Ave Maria School of Law (JD)
Ring name(s)Dan Rodimer[1]
Dan Rodman[2]
Daniel Rodimer
Billed height6 ft 7 in (201 cm)[3][4]
Billed weight300 lb (136 kg)[3][4]
Billed fromClearwater, Florida[2]
Trained byDeep South Wrestling
Debut2004[5][better source needed]
Retired2007

Rodimer won the Republican primary for Nevada's 3rd congressional district in 2020. He lost narrowly to Democratic incumbent Susie Lee in the November 2020 general election.[6] He has garnered endorsements from President Donald Trump, Ted Cruz, the National Rifle Association (NRA), and the National Right to Life Committee (NRLC).[7][8][9][10] Just minutes before the March 5, 2021, filing deadline, he announced his candidacy for Texas's 6th congressional district special election.[11]

On March 6, 2024, an arrest warrant was issued for Rodimer in Las Vegas on a charge of open murder.[12] Rodimer surrendered to police the following day.[13]

Early life and education

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Rodimer grew up in Rockaway, New Jersey, and attended Seton Hall Preparatory High School in West Orange. He attended the University of South Florida and played college football for the South Florida Bulls.[14] He was a member of Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity. Rodimer attended the Ave Maria School of Law in Vineyards, Florida, where he graduated in 2013.[citation needed]

Career

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Rodimer played semi-pro football for the Tampa Bay Barracudas and in the Arena Football League. He also worked as a personal trainer.[3][15]

World Wrestling Entertainment (2006–2007)

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Rodimer got into wrestling by becoming a contestant in the 2004 Tough Enough competition.[15]

On July 12, 2006, Rodimer was signed to a developmental contract with World Wrestling Entertainment[16] and was assigned to Deep South Wrestling. His first match came on September 7, when he defeated Heath Miller. On September 24, he had his first televised match in DSW as Dan Rodimer, defeating Tommy Suede.[17]

Rodimer spent the first half of 2007 wrestling primarily in Ohio Valley Wrestling, WWE's other developmental territory. He feuded with Atlas DaBone throughout February and March.

Rodimer made his debut on Heat, beating Eugene. He then returned to OVW. Daniel appeared on Heat twice more that year. Rodimer was then transferred to the new Florida Championship Wrestling territory. However, he was released from his contract on August 22, 2007.[18]

Campaigns for public office

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In 2018, Rodimer ran for Nevada State Senate. He lost to Valerie Weber in the primary election by 142 votes, despite outspending her nearly two-to-one.[19]

In 2019, Rodimer announced his bid for Nevada's 3rd congressional district.[20] He narrowly lost to incumbent Susie Lee in the general election.[21]

In March 2021, Rodimer announced his candidacy for Texas's 6th congressional district special election. He was noted for dramatically changing his accent and persona in his campaign ad compared to his run in Nevada the previous year.[22] He placed eleventh in the crowded jungle primary, attaining 2.6 percent of the vote share.[23]

During his campaign, Rodimer cast doubt on the integrity of the 2020 presidential election, saying "I think that we had some serious issues with this election and we've got to make sure that doesn't happen again," in response to whether he believed the election was "stolen".[24] Rodimer also said of the storming of the Capitol by a mob of Trump supporters, "On January 6, people come to me all the time, they say, 'Big Dan Rodimer, what would you have done differently?' Well, you know what? I wouldn't have been hiding under my desk like all the other folks. I would have been out there, walking to the very, very front, top of the stairs saying, 'hey, the fact is we are all Americans. We want fair and free elections."[24]

Personal life

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Rodimer and his wife Sarah reside in Mansfield, Texas, where he moved with his family in 2021.[25] Prior to this, the family lived in Las Vegas, where Rodimer was a member of the Clark County School District Safety Advisory Committee in 2018.[26] They have six children.[27][28]

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Assault accusations

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Rodimer has been accused three times of assault but has no convictions.[29] After an arrest on charges of battery in 2010, Rodimer entered a deferred prosecution agreement. In that agreement he admitted to committing the offense, and upon completion of a six-week anger management training course the charge was dropped. He was also accused of assault in 2011 and 2013, according to records from the Collier County (Florida) Sheriff's Office; however, in both cases no charges were filed.[30][31][32]

Murder allegation

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On March 6, 2024, an arrest warrant was issued for Rodimer on an open murder charge in Las Vegas in connection with the death of Chris Tapp in Las Vegas the previous October.[12] Tapp was himself convicted of murder but later exonerated and served two decades in prison before being exonerated. Rodimer surrendered to police the following day.[13]

References

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  1. ^ "Dan Rodimer". Rajah.com. Archived from the original on February 4, 2009. Retrieved June 15, 2008.
  2. ^ a b "WWE Smackdown/ECW House Show Report". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved June 15, 2008.
  3. ^ a b c "$1,000,000 Tough Enough" Begins Tonight". WWE Corporate. October 21, 2004. Archived from the original on May 16, 2008. Retrieved June 15, 2008.
  4. ^ a b "OWoW Profile". onlineworldofwrestling.com. Retrieved June 1, 2007.
  5. ^ "Dan Rodiman Biography". Accelerator. Retrieved October 9, 2007.
  6. ^ "Republican Dan Rodimer wins Nevada House primary, will challenge Rep. Susie Lee". The Hill. June 12, 2020. Retrieved June 14, 2020.
  7. ^ "President Trump Endorses Jim Marchant, Dan Rodimer for Congress". www.ktvn.com. October 21, 2020. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
  8. ^ "Ex-WWE star launches Texas campaign video: "Commies...are ruining America"". Newsweek. March 26, 2021. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
  9. ^ "National Right to Life Endorses Dan Rodimer for Congress in Nevada's 3rd Congressional District". Nevada Business Magazine. April 16, 2020. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
  10. ^ "NRA Endorses "Big Dan" Rodimer for US Congress". finance.yahoo.com. Retrieved April 22, 2021.
  11. ^ Mutnick, Ally (March 4, 2021). "Las Vegas wrestler rattles Texas special election". POLITICO. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
  12. ^ a b McMahill, Kevin (March 6, 2024). "Update – Suspect Identified – Suspicious Death Now Being Investigated as a Homide". Las Metropolitan Police Department (Press release). Retrieved March 16, 2024.
  13. ^ a b "Former congressional candidate and pro wrestler arrested in Vegas murder of man who was wrongly imprisoned for cold-case killing - CBS News". CBS News. March 7, 2024. Retrieved March 7, 2024.
  14. ^ "Ranking the Top Eight Prospects in WWE Developmental". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved June 15, 2008.
  15. ^ a b Keller, Wade. "Tough Enough final eight determined". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved June 15, 2008.
  16. ^ "Dan Rodimer signs with WWE". WWE.
  17. ^ Pena, Daniel (September 28, 2006). "nWo vs. DX Feud Update, Cryme Tyme, Daniel Rodimer". ProWrestling.com. Archived from the original on February 3, 2009. Retrieved June 15, 2008.
  18. ^ "Dan Rodman released". WWE. Retrieved August 28, 2008.
  19. ^ Lochhead, Colton (June 13, 2018). "Most party-backed candidates cruise to wins in Nevada primary". The Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
  20. ^ Appleton, Rory (March 13, 2020). "Plenty of challengers flock to Nevada's congressional races". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
  21. ^ "Silver State 2020 Election Results - U.S. Congress". Nevada Secretary of State. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
  22. ^ Kilander, Gustaf (March 27, 2021). "Big Dan Rodimer goes full cowboy ahead of Texan congress run". The Independent. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
  23. ^ Rosenthal, Abigail (May 3, 2021). "This Yankee moved to Texas to run for Congress and it obviously didn't go well". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved May 3, 2021.
  24. ^ a b Foran, Clare Foran; O'Sullivan, Donie (April 30, 2021). "Texas congressional race showcases GOP fight over Trump, conspiracy theories and election lies". CNN. Archived from the original on April 30, 2021. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  25. ^ Congress, Rodimer For. "Dan Rodimer Announces Surprise Run for Congress in Texas' 6th District, Cites Personal Ties to Lone Star State As Reason". www.prnewswire.com (Press release). Retrieved March 27, 2021.
  26. ^ Cupid-McCoy, Jennifer (December 5, 2018). "CCSD Safety Advisory Board Recommendations" (PDF). Las Vegas Now. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 17, 2021.
  27. ^ Griffin, Allie (March 7, 2024). "Ex-GOP candidate and former pro-wrestler Dan Rodimer arrested for Las Vegas hotel room murder". New York Post. Retrieved March 25, 2024.
  28. ^ "Former congressional candidate and pro wrestler arrested in Vegas murder of man who was wrongly imprisoned for cold-case killing - CBS News". CBS News. March 7, 2024. Retrieved March 25, 2024.
  29. ^ "Sun issues correction, apology on Rodimer editorial - Las Vegas Sun Newspaper". lasvegassun.com. September 2, 2020. Retrieved November 2, 2020.
  30. ^ Snyder, Riley (May 17, 2018). "Staunch Republican, former professional wrestler attempting to become Nevada's Jesse Ventura". The Nevada Independent. Retrieved September 4, 2020.
  31. ^ Price, Michelle L. (October 4, 2019). "Wrestler vying for U.S. House seat in Nevada had 3 assault reports". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved September 4, 2020.
  32. ^ Riccardi, Nicholas (July 28, 2020). "Ex-wrestler running for Congress subject of 911 calls". Associated Press. Retrieved September 4, 2020.
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Daniel Rodimer's profile at Cagematch.net  

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