Early life and education
Elizabeth Nicole Schworak was born in Oregon in 1983, where she and her four siblings were raised by her single mother Candy. She graduated from North Salem High School inCareer
Nevada Senate
2010 election
She began her political career running as Elizabeth Halseth in 2010, running for Assembly District 13 in the Nevada Assembly before leaving the race before the fiing deadline to the Nevada Senate's 9th district. During the primary campaign, Halseth released a telephone recording of her opponent, long-term Republican Dennis Nolan, pressuring the ex-wife of his friend, Gordon Lawes, who had been sentenced to a ten-years in prison for raping her 16-year old sister, to "tell the truth" about the rape and that it would be "very financially beneficial" if she did. Nolan admitted to the call but insisted that he "made up" the statement that she would be paid if she told the truth. After defeating Nolan in the primary, she then went on to defeat millionaire jeweler Benny Yerushalmi who was heavily supported by the Democratic establishment in theTenure and resignation
While a Senator, she was a member of the Senate Revenue Committee, Senate Commerce, Labor and Energy Committee, and the Senate Transportation Committee. She announced her resignation from office on February 17, 2012, citing issues with balancing performance of her senatorial duties with being a single mother. She also wrote in her letter of resignation that she would likely seek employment outside of Nevada due to issues with finding employment. Her resignation followed criticism that she was missing meetings and not returning telephone calls. Her then-husband Daniel Halseth was later indicted on two felony counts: one of coercion and one of battery; he was also indicted on one misdemeanor count of open and gross lewdness.Post-Senate career and 2018 election
She moved to Alaska where she worked as a realtor, before ultimately returning to Nevada. In 2018, she announced that she would run for a vacant seat as Elizabeth Helgelien in the Nevada Senate's2024 congressional campaign
In March 2023, Helgelien announced that she would run for Congress to represent Nevada's 3rd congressional district, challenging Democratic incumbent Susie Lee. She was endorsed by Republican Congressman Matt Gaetz (R-FL). Helgelien placed third in the seven person Republican primary.Personal life
In 2001, she married Daniel Helseth; they divorced in 2012. In May 2012 after her February resignation from the Senate, she appeared in ''Maxim'''s "Hot 100" photo contest appearing in a bikini although she did not win the "Hot 100" contest but was later profiled by Maxim in October 2012 with an additional photoshoot. In April 2021, her then 16-year old daughter, Sierra, and Sierra's boyfriend, Aaron Guerrero, were arrested in Salt Lake City for the murder of Helgelien's ex-husband Daniel Halseth in Las Vegas; Halseth was stabbed, dismembered, and then burned in order to cover up the killing. On October 20, 2022, both were sentenced to 22 years to life in prison with the possibility of parole after pleading guilty to all counts on May 25, 2022. In a response to requests for comment, Helgelien stated: "This is the only time I will address this during the campaign. I will always love my daughter. It horrifies me that our system didn't take the abuse she was receiving seriously before it came to this. My daughter was abused by her father. That is a fact. That doesn't excuse all of her actions. At the time, she was a minor and has taken responsibility like an adult. She is now facing the consequences like an adult." Helgelien is Christian.References
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