Edward "Ed" Stafman (born 1954) is an American attorney, rabbi, and former attorney serving as a member of the

Montana House of Representatives The Montana House of Representatives is, with the Montana Senate, one of the two houses of the Montana Legislature. Composed of 100 members, the House elects its leadership every two years. Composition of the House :''67th Legislature – 2021� ...

from the 62nd district. Elected in November 2020, he assumed office on January 4, 2021.

Early life and education

Stafman was born in

Key West, Florida Key West ( es, Cayo Hueso) is an island in the Straits of Florida, within the U.S. state of Florida. Together with all or parts of the separate islands of Sigsbee Park, Dredgers Key, Fleming Key, Sunset Key, and the northern part of Stock Isla ...

. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from

Stony Brook University Stony Brook University (SBU), officially the State University of New York at Stony Brook, is a public research university in Stony Brook, New York. Along with the University at Buffalo, it is one of the State University of New York system's ...

, a Master of Arts from

Florida State University Florida State University (FSU) is a public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher education in the st ...

, and a

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

from the Florida State University College of Law.

Career

Prior to entering politics, Stafman worked as a civil rights attorney in Tallahassee, Florida. During his legal career, Stafman specialized in death penalty cases. In 2000, Stafman was one of several lawyers who worked on ''

Bush v. Gore ''Bush v. Gore'', 531 U.S. 98 (2000), was a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court on December 12, 2000, that settled a recount dispute in Florida's 2000 presidential election between George W. Bush and Al Gore. On December 8, th ...

'' litigation. Stafman was later ordained as a rabbi and moved to

Bozeman, Montana Bozeman is a city and the county seat of Gallatin County, Montana, United States. Located in southwest Montana, the 2020 census put Bozeman's population at 53,293, making it the fourth-largest city in Montana. It is the principal city of th ...

with his wife and two children. He has since been affiliated with

T'ruah T'ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights, often referred to as T'ruah, is a nonprofit organization of rabbis who act on the Jewish imperative to respect and protect the human rights of all people in North America, Israel, and the Palestinian Ter ...

. Stafman was elected to the

in November 2020 and assumed office on January 4, 2021. During his tenure in the House, Stafman has sponsored legislation to abolish the death penalty in Montana.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stafman, Ed Living people 1954 births People from Key West, Florida Stony Brook University alumni Florida State University alumni Florida State University College of Law alumni Politicians from Tallahassee, Florida Florida lawyers Democratic Party members of the Montana House of Representatives People from Bozeman, Montana 21st-century American rabbis 21st-century American legislators 21st-century American lawyers 21st-century Montana politicians