Connie Marie Conway (born September 25, 1950) is an American politician who served as the

U.S. representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

for from 2022 to 2023. She served as a member of the

California State Assembly The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature, the upper house being the California State Senate. The Assembly convenes, along with the State Senate, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento. The A ...

from 2008 to 2014. Before that, Conway was a member of the

board of supervisors A board of supervisors is a governmental body that oversees the operation of county government in the U.S. states of Arizona, California, Iowa, Mississippi, Virginia, and Wisconsin, as well as 16 counties in New York. There are equivalent agenc ...

for

Tulare County Tulare County ( ) is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 473,117. The county seat is Visalia. The county is named for Tulare Lake, once the largest freshwater lake west of the Great Lakes. ...

from 2001 until 2008. She is a member of the Republican Party.

Early life and career

Conway was born in

Bakersfield, California Bakersfield is a city in Kern County, California, United States. It is the county seat and largest city of Kern County. The city covers about near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley and the Central Valley region. Bakersfield's populat ...

. She attended the

College of the Sequoias College of the Sequoias (COS) is a public two-year community college in Visalia, California. The college is named for the Giant Sequoia trees native to the nearby Sierra Nevada mountain range. History College of the Sequoias was originally esta ...

and

California State University, Fresno California State University, Fresno (Fresno State) is a public university in Fresno, California. It is one of 23 campuses in the California State University system. The university had a fall 2020 enrollment of 25,341 students. It offers bachelo ...

. Her father, John Conway, served on the

Board of Supervisors A board of supervisors is a governmental body that oversees the operation of county government in the U.S. states of Arizona, California, Iowa, Mississippi, Virginia, and Wisconsin, as well as 16 counties in New York. There are equivalent agenc ...

from 1981 until his death in 1991. From 1988 to 1991, Conway worked as a wellness coordinator at the Kaweah Delta Medical Center. From 1991 to 1994, she worked at Sweet's Home Medical. From 1994 to 2000, Conway worked as a district manager at CorVel Corporation.

Tulare County Board of Supervisors

Conway served on the Tulare County Board of Supervisors for eight years. She also chaired the board in 2005 and 2008. Conway also chaired the California Partnership for the San Joaquin Valley, an appointment she received from the governor. The partnership works to improve the economy and quality of life in the San Joaquin Valley by making policy recommendations to the governor. In 2006, Conway served as president of the

California State Association of Counties The California State Association of Counties (CSAC) is a lobbying, advocacy and service organization representing the state's 58 counties at the state and federal level. Areas of focus include the state budget, health-care reform, corrections refor ...

, which represents California's 58 counties at the state and federal levels. She later became a director of the

National Association of Counties The National Association of Counties (NACo) is an organization that represents county governments in the United States.Bill Maze Everet William Maze (born April 9, 1946) is an American politician from California and a member of the Republican Party. Maze is the president of Citizens for Saving California Farming Industries, a non-profit dedicated to dividing Californi ...

in the

. In the primary, she faced two candidates, Rebecca Maze (the incumbent's wife) and Bob Smith, a retired sheriff's deputy, and won. After her reelection to the Assembly on November 2, 2010, Conway was elected by her Republican colleagues as the Assembly Republican Leader after a closed-door meeting of Assembly Republicans on November 4. She said that outgoing Minority Leader

Martin Garrick Martin W. Garrick (born March 24, 1953) is an American politician who served in the California State Assembly from 2006 to 2012 and was Minority Leader in 2010. Garrick also served in the Reagan Administration and is a small business owner. ...

had voluntarily stepped down and she had been elected unanimously. Conway was the first woman to serve as GOP assembly leader since 1981.

U.S. House of Representatives

Elections

2022 special

Conway was a candidate in the 2022 special election in California's 22nd congressional district to replace

Devin Nunes Devin Gerald Nunes (; born October 1, 1973) is an American businessman and politician who is chief executive officer of the Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG). Before resigning from the House of Representatives and joining TMTG, Nunes was ...

, who stepped down in January 2022. In the April

nonpartisan blanket primary A nonpartisan blanket primary is a primary election in which all candidates for the same elected office run against each other at once, regardless of the political party. Partisan elections are, on the other hand, segregated by political party. ...

, she advanced to a runoff against Democrat Lourin Hubbard. On June 7, 2022, Conway defeated Hubbard in the runoff election.

Tenure

Conway was sworn in on June 14. On July 19, 2022, Conway voted against the

Respect for Marriage Act The Respect for Marriage Act (RFMA; ) is a landmark United States federal law passed by the 117th United States Congress and signed into law by President Joe Biden. It repeals the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), requires the U.S. federal gover ...

, which would protect the right to same-sex marriage at a federal level. On August 12, 2022, Conway voted against the Inflation Reduction Act. Conway did not run for reelection in November 2022.

Committee assignments

* Committee on Natural Resources ** Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources ** Subcommittee on Water, Oceans, and Wildlife * Committee on Veterans' Affairs ** Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs Source:

References

External links

* , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Conway, Connie 1950 births 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians County supervisors in California Female members of the United States House of Representatives Living people Republican Party members of the California State Assembly People from Tulare, California Politicians from Bakersfield, California Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from California Women state legislators in California College of the Sequoias alumni California State University, Fresno alumni