Slade Mead is a former

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

State Senator and is Republican turned

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

Family life

Mead was born on September 6, 1961, in Torrington, Connecticut. Both of his parents were teachers, and later on his two siblings would become teachers as well. He graduated from

Taft School The Taft School is a private, coeducational school located in Watertown, Connecticut, United States. It teaches students in 9th through 12th grades and post-graduates. About three-quarters of Taft's roughly 600 students live on the school's ...

, studied at

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

, where he was a member of Wolf's Head Society and, for a year in between his undergraduate and law school education, taught high school as well. Is currently the college counselor at Trinity Pawling School in Pawling, New York and teaches there as well. In 1996, he and his wife, Alison, moved to Arizona with their two children, Lindsay and Sierra, from

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

. His eldest daughter, Lindsay, is a special needs child with a rare form of

epilepsy Epilepsy is a group of non-communicable neurological disorders characterized by recurrent epileptic seizures. Epileptic seizures can vary from brief and nearly undetectable periods to long periods of vigorous shaking due to abnormal electrical ...

, a severe seizure disorder. It is his daughter that eventually drove Slade into the political arena.

Early political career

As a result of his daughter's disorder, Slade became involved in her school, which then evolved into a seat on his local site council and finally a seat on the Kyrene School Board. While on the Kyrene School Board, Mead became "frustrated and dismayed" by the state's funding of their public schools. He then became frustrated with his State Senator, Lori Daniels, who seemed "indifferent to the situation". He decided to run against her.

State Senate career

Mead managed to defeat Daniels in the Republican

primary Primary or primaries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Primary (band), from Australia * Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea * Primary Music, Israeli record label Works * ...

, and took her senate seat for District 20. He was Vice-Chairman of the Education Committee, and sat on the Appropriations and Government Committees as well. In 2003, A fight ensued over the GOP's proposed budget. Mead eventually sided with the Democrats, citing a lack of funding for public education. This event resulted in Mead's exile from the party, and in 2004 State Representative John Huppenthal challenged him in the primary.Huppenthal, Mead personify rift in Ariz. GOP
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mead, Slade 1961 births Living people Yale Law School alumni Arizona state senators