Doris Jean Allen (May 26, 1936 – September 22, 1999) was an American politician from California. Allen served in the

California 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 Ass ...

from 1982 to 1995, representing part of

Orange County Orange County most commonly refers to: *Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area Orange County may also refer to: U.S. counties *Orange County, Florida, containing Orlando *Orange County, Indiana *Orange County, New ...

, and as

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 that body from June 5 to September 14, 1995, before being recalled from office. Allen was the first woman to be elected to that office.

Early life and education

Allen was born in Kansas City, Missouri and raised in Cypress, California.

Career

Before entering politics, Allen owned a successful household lighting store. An amateur actress, she played the title role in the musical ''Mame'' in productions by the Westminster Community Theater and Sebastian's West in the early-1970s.

California State Assembly

On November 2, 1982, Allen won the election and became a member of California State Assembly for the 71st district. Allen unseated Chester B. Wray with 51.6% of the votes. Based in

Huntington Beach Huntington Beach is a seaside city in Orange County, California, Orange County in Southern California, located southeast of Downtown Los Angeles. The city is named after American businessman Henry E. Huntington. The population was 198,711 duri ...

, She compiled a relatively conservative record with special attention to environmental protection for her coastal district. Republicans gained a one-vote majority in the House in 1995, threatening longtime Democratic Speaker Willie Brown's 15-year tenure. At first, Brown persuaded moderate Republican turned Independent

Paul Horcher Paul V. Horcher (born August 31, 1951 in Texas) is an American former politician from California and a former member of the Republican Party. Early career A graduate of California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, Horcher practiced law befor ...

to keep him in power.

Recall

Meanwhile, Allen was running in a special election for the California State Senate. However, GOP party leaders endorsed fellow assemblyman Ross Johnson, who had moved into the district to run. Allen lost the election. When Horcher was recalled from office and replaced by a more loyal Republican, Speaker Brown convinced a still-angry Allen to vote with Democrats and become speaker herself. However, Brown continued to lead the legislative body as head of the Democratic Caucus. Allen's defection outraged her Republican colleagues, led by Curt Pringle, as well as her Republican constituents, who in November 1995 recalled her from office. Before her removal, Allen resigned as speaker and was succeeded by Brian Setencich. However, when Brown resigned his seat in the State Assembly to be sworn in as mayor of

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

, Setencich lost that vote, restoring the Republicans' majority electing Pringle as Speaker in January 1996. Setencich himself was defeated for reelection in that June's GOP primary. Following her recall, Allen eventually moved away from California, though she did make a final bid for her old seat in 1998.

Personal life

On September 22, 1999, Allen died from cancer in

Colorado Springs Colorado Springs is a home rule municipality in, and the county seat of, El Paso County, Colorado, United States. It is the largest city in El Paso County, with a population of 478,961 at the 2020 United States Census, a 15.02% increase since ...

. Allen was 63 years old.archive

References

External links

Doris Allen at ballotpedia.org

Join California Doris Allen

Doris Jean “Dori” Frazee Allen at findagrave.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Doris 1936 births 1999 deaths Deaths from cancer in Colorado Deaths from colorectal cancer Deaths from stomach cancer Politicians from Kansas City, Missouri People from Huntington Beach, California Recalled state legislators of the United States Speakers of the California State Assembly Republican Party members of the California State Assembly Women state legislators in California 20th-century American politicians 20th-century American women politicians Women legislative speakers Colorado Republicans