Beth Halteman Harwell (born July 24, 1957, in

Norristown, Pennsylvania Norristown is a municipality with home rule status and the county seat of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania Montgomery County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is the third-most populous county in Pennsylvania and the 7 ...

) is a member of the board of directors of the

Tennessee Valley Authority The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is a federally owned electric utility corporation in the United States. TVA's service area covers all of Tennessee, portions of Alabama, Mississippi, and Kentucky, and small areas of Georgia, North Carolina ...

and the former

Speaker Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** I ...

of the

Tennessee House of Representatives The Tennessee House of Representatives is the lower house of the Tennessee General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Tennessee. Constitutional requirements According to the state constitution of 1870, this body is to consis ...

. She served as State Representative for

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...

and is a former chair of the

Tennessee Republican Party The Tennessee Republican Party (TRP or TNGOP) is the affiliate of the United States Republican Party in Tennessee. Since the mid-1960s, the state has become increasingly Republican. The current chairman of the Republican Party of Tennessee is Sco ...

. First elected to the

in 1988, Harwell served as a Republican Minority Whip and Commerce Committee chair before being elected to the Speakership. She is the first woman to serve as Tennessee's Speaker of the House. In 2017, she announced her candidacy for governor of Tennessee in the 2018 election.

College and early career

In 1978 Harwell received her

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

from

Lipscomb University Lipscomb University is a private university in Nashville, Tennessee. It is affiliated with the Churches of Christ. The campus is located in the Green Hills neighborhood of Nashville, between Belmont Boulevard to the west and Granny White Pike on ...

. She received a

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is a ...

from

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...

. She is married to Samuel Harwell. The couple has three children. Harwell received the Small Business award from the

National Federation of Independent Business The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) is an association of small businesses in the United States. It is headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee, with offices in Washington, D.C., and all 50 state capitals. The goal of NFIB is to ad ...

. Her husband Sam Harwell is the founder of Big Time Toys, LLC.

Political career

Harwell ran for office for the first time while she was teaching at

Belmont University Belmont University is a private Christian university in Nashville, Tennessee. Descended from Belmont Women's College, founded in 1890 by schoolteachers Ida Hood and Susan Heron, the institution was incorporated in 1951 as Belmont College. It be ...

, running for the 56th District in the Tennessee House of Representatives in 1986. While she lost that race, she ran again in 1988 and won. She has been representing her district ever since. Harwell explored a run for the 2006 U.S. Senate race; however she decided against seeking that seat. In May 2007 Harwell said that she was considering running in the 2010 state gubernatorial election. In the 2008 presidential election, Harwell was the state co-chair for

John McCain John Sidney McCain III (August 29, 1936 – August 25, 2018) was an American politician and United States Navy officer who served as a United States senator from Arizona from 1987 until his death in 2018. He previously served two terms ...

's presidential campaign. McCain won 56.9% of Tennessee's popular vote against Democrat

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...

. During the elections, the Republican Party gained control of both the Tennessee Senate and House for the first time since

Reconstruction Reconstruction may refer to: Politics, history, and sociology *Reconstruction (law), the transfer of a company's (or several companies') business to a new company *'' Perestroika'' (Russian for "reconstruction"), a late 20th century Soviet Unio ...

. In January 2009, Harwell was named chairwoman of the Commerce Committee. Following the 2010 elections, Harwell was elected in 2011 by her colleagues in the Tennessee House to serve as Speaker of the Tennessee House of Representatives, the first woman to be elected to that office.

Tennessee House of Representatives

Harwell's main focuses have been welfare reform, children's issues, sex abuse laws,

victims' rights Victims' rights are legal rights afforded to victims of crime. These may include the right to restitution, the right to a victims' advocate, the right not to be excluded from criminal justice proceedings, and the right to speak at criminal just ...

, and

education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty. Va ...

. Sex abuse laws/victims' rights Harwell's legislative record includes passing legislation "clarifying and toughening the penalties against stalkers". She has also secured the passage of laws increasing the jail time for rapists, and "strengthening" laws for child rape. Children's issues Harwell sponsored the "Children's Act for Clean Indoor Air", protecting kids from the effects of second-hand smoking. Welfare reform Harwell was the sponsor of the "Families First" legislation which reformed Tennessee's welfare program into what it is today. Anti-corruption In the wake of the FBI's Operation Tennessee Waltz investigation, Harwell introduced legislation increasing the punishment for bribing public servants or for public servants who accept bribes. Campaign finance reform During the 104th General Assembly (2005-2006), Harwell introduced legislation in the Tennessee House to impose limits to how much candidates for governor and the General Assembly could spend. In the 105th General Assembly (2007-2008), Harwell introduced legislation to ban donations to and campaigning for candidates for General Assembly from the Secretary of State, Comptroller of the Treasury, and State Treasurer, as the General Assembly elects those offices. Education In 2009, Harwell led the push for landmark

charter school A charter school is a school that receives government funding but operates independently of the established state school system in which it is located. It is independent in the sense that it operates according to the basic principle of auto ...

legislation, allowing more Tennessee students to enroll in charter schools. Additionally, she secured the passage of legislation that directed more funds to improve the training of day care workers. Crime Harwell sponsored legislation requiring someone subject to an order to protection to give up any firearms that person owns and establishing a punishment for those subject to an order of protection found to be in possession of a firearm. Harwell has served as Speaker of the Tennessee House of Representatives since the 107th General Assembly (2011-2012). Honors During her time in the State House, Harwell has been given many awards, including the following: * Tennessee Chamber of Commerce 'Champion of Commerce' Award * Harold Bradley Legislative Leadership Award *

American Cancer Society The American Cancer Society (ACS) is a nationwide voluntary health organization dedicated to eliminating cancer. Established in 1913, the society is organized into six geographical regions of both medical and lay volunteers operating in more than ...

Legislative Leadership Award * Champion for Children Award *

's Guardian of Small Business Award (twice)

Community involvement

Harwell currently serves or has previously served as a member of the following: *

Tennessee State Museum The Tennessee State Museum is a large museum in Nashville depicting the history of the U.S. state of Tennessee. The current facility opened on October 4, 2018, at the corner of Rosa Parks Boulevard and Jefferson Street at the foot of Capitol Hill ...

Foundation *

Advisory Council *

Montgomery Bell Academy Montgomery Bell Academy (MBA) is a preparatory day school for boys in grades 7 through 12 in Nashville, Tennessee. History MBA was established in 1867 in the aftermath of the American Civil War. It is the successor to two schools: the Western Mi ...

Board *

National Foundation for Women Legislators National Foundation for Women Legislators (NFWL) is a 501(c)#501.28c.29.283.29, 501(c)(3) tax-exempt foundation established by the National Order of Women Legislators (NOWL) in the USA. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., Alexandria, Virginia, it as ...

* Mental Health Association of Middle Tennessee * Nashville Children's Theater Board of Trustees * Leadership Nashville (alumni) Harwell has previously served on: * Agape Board of Directors *

American Heart Association The American Heart Association (AHA) is a nonprofit organization in the United States that funds cardiovascular medical research, educates consumers on healthy living and fosters appropriate cardiac care in an effort to reduce disability and death ...

* Exchange Club Family Center * Centennial Medical Center Board of Directors * Senior Citizens Board of Directors * Middle Tennessee Mental Health Center

Gubernatorial campaign

In July 2017, Harwell announced that she was running for

Governor of Tennessee The governor of Tennessee is the head of government of the U.S. state of Tennessee. The governor is the only official in Tennessee state government who is directly elected by the voters of the entire state. The current governor is Bill Lee, a ...

in the 2018 election. On August 2, 2018, she lost the Republican primary. Harwell's platform for the election was as follows: Support for President Trump Harwell was the first major state legislator to give public support to then-candidate

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...

during his bid for the presidency. Following the Tennessee primaries, Harwell said she would support Trump should he become the GOP nominee. She said that she would continue her support for the Trump Administration as governor. Opioid crisis Harwell supports tougher sentencing for dealers, more restrictions on prescriptions, and prioritizing rehab over prison sentences. As Speaker, Harwell created a task force in 2017 to hear from experts and those affected by the crisis. Among the task force's recommendations are adding more TBI agents, starting a pilot program of a recovery center in each grand division of the state, and modernizing pain-management curriculum for healthcare professionals. To read the full list of recommendations
follow this link
Some of these recommendations have already become law. Medical marijuana Harwell supports legalizing

medical cannabis Medical cannabis, or medical marijuana (MMJ), is cannabis and cannabinoids that are prescribed by physicians for their patients. The use of cannabis as medicine has not been rigorously tested due to production and governmental restrictions ...

in Tennessee. During the 2018 session of the

Tennessee General Assembly The Tennessee General Assembly (TNGA) is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is a part-time bicameral legislature consisting of a Senate and a House of Representatives. The Speaker of the Senate carries the additional title ...

, Speaker Harwell cast the tie-breaking vote in the House Criminal Justice Subcommittee to advance legislation legalizing medical cannabis. During a GOP candidate debate, Harwell stated that she believed it would be "cruel to withhold that from someone who needs that help". Each of the other candidates said they opposed such legislation, making Harwell the only GOP candidate to support legalizing medical cannabis. On July 20, Harwell held a press conference in the State Capitol Building reinforcing her support of medical cannabis and debuting a new ad touting her support for it. In the press conference, Harwell stated that to her, the issue is a "dignity of life" issue. Immigration Harwell is a strong opponent of

sanctuary cities Sanctuary city (; ) refers to municipal jurisdictions, typically in North America, that limit their cooperation with the national government's effort to enforce immigration law. Leaders of sanctuary cities say they want to reduce fear of deport ...

in Tennessee, helping to pass a law in 2017 which banned sanctuary cities in the state. The law was passed during a debate in Middle Tennessee over a proposed ordinance in the Nashville Metro City Council which would have made the city a sanctuary city. Education Harwell was the only educator in the race for governor, and education was one of her top priorities. As speaker, Harwell supported the efforts to end

Common Core The Common Core State Standards Initiative, also known as simply Common Core, is an educational initiative from 2010 that details what K–12 students throughout the United States should know in English language arts and mathematics at the conc ...

in Tennessee and to allow for

s, and was a leader in the fight for more investment in education. Tennessee is now one of the fastest-improving states in education. Harwell has advocated for a renewed focus on literacy in lower grades and more emphasis on how valuable technical school can be compared to college. TN Ready testing Following 2018 TN Ready testing period, Speaker Harwell led the push to ensure that the state's teachers were not hurt by the botched testing and to investigate what went wrong. Harwell directed the House Government Operations Committee to hold additional hearings on the issue, and asked the State Comptroller of the Treasury to review the testing vendor, Questar. The Tennessee Education Association has endorsed Harwell in the Republican primary, citing her experience as an educator, her knowledge on education issues facing the state, and her efforts to raise teachers' salaries in the state. Budget Harwell ensured that Tennessee's budget was balanced every year she served as speaker, something that the federal government hasn't done in years. Economy Following the

U.S. Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

's decision in ''

South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc. ''South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc.'', 585 U.S. ___ (2018), was a United States Supreme Court case that held by a 5–4 majority that states may charge tax on purchases made from out-of-state sellers even if the seller does not have a physical prese ...

'', Harwell stated she wanted to use the new income from taxes on online retailers to lower the state's sales tax. Abortion Harwell opposes the right to abortion and has for the last 10 years received a 100% score from the Tennessee Right to Life, an

anti-abortion Anti-abortion movements, also self-styled as pro-life or abolitionist movements, are involved in the abortion debate advocating against the practice of abortion and its legality. Many anti-abortion movements began as countermovements in respons ...

organization. Second Amendment Harwell has supported and advocated for the rights of gun owners for years as the Speaker of the Tennessee House of Representatives. Multiple laws protecting

2nd Amendment The Second Amendment (Amendment II) to the United States Constitution protects the right to keep and bear arms. It was ratified on December 15, 1791, along with nine other articles of the Bill of Rights. In ''District of Columbia v. Helle ...

rights were passed under her leadership.

Congressional campaign

On February 5, 2022, Harwell announced her intent to run for the state's 5th congressional district, after the state legislature approved a controversial redistricting plan dividing Nashville into three congressional districts in an effort to pick up an additional Republican to Tennessee's congressional delegation.

References

External links

Beth Harwell's profile
at the Tennessee General Assembly website
Representative Beth Harwell
at

Project Vote Smart Vote Smart, formerly called Project Vote Smart, is a non-profit, non-partisan research organization that collects and distributes information on candidates for public office in the United States. It covers candidates and elected officials in si ...

Rep. Beth Harwell
at Friedman Foundation
Political News and Views in Tennessee
at

Nashville Post ''NashvillePost.com'' is an online news service covering business, politics and sports in the Nashville metropolitan area. It is locally owned and available by subscription. ''NashvillePost.com'' competes with other daily news media in the Middl ...

Beth Harwell for Governor
, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Harwell, Beth Halteman 1957 births 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians American members of the Churches of Christ Candidates in the 2022 United States House of Representatives elections Lipscomb University alumni Living people People from Norristown, Pennsylvania Politicians from Nashville, Tennessee Speakers of the Tennessee House of Representatives State political party chairs of Tennessee Republican Party members of the Tennessee House of Representatives Vanderbilt University alumni Women legislative speakers Women state legislators in Tennessee