Karan English (born March 23, 1949) is an American politician who served in the

U.S. House of Representatives 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 ...

of the

103rd United States Congress The 103rd United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from January 3, 199 ...

from 1993 to 1995. A

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 ...

, English represented

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 ...

's 6th Congressional District, which in the 1990s included much of

Mesa A mesa is an isolated, flat-topped elevation, ridge or hill, which is bounded from all sides by steep escarpments and stands distinctly above a surrounding plain. Mesas characteristically consist of flat-lying soft sedimentary rocks capped by ...

, Scottsdale and northeast Arizona. Prior to her election to the U.S. House of Representatives, English served as an Arizona State Senator (1991–1993),

State Representative A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United Sta ...

(1987–1991), and

Coconino County Coconino County is a county in the north-central part of the U.S. state of Arizona. Its population was 145,101 at the 2020 census. The county seat is Flagstaff. The county takes its name from ''Cohonino'', a name applied to the Havasupai p ...

supervisor (1981–1987). In the Arizona senate, English developed a reputation as a

liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

on fiscal, social and environmental issues. Despite being heavily outspent during her campaign, English won her 1992 General Election race against

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

Doug Wead Roy Douglas Wead (17 May 1946 – 10 December 2021) was a conservative commentator and writer. He wrote 27 books.

after being endorsed by former

U.S. Senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

Barry Goldwater Barry Morris Goldwater (January 2, 1909 – May 29, 1998) was an American politician and United States Air Force officer who was a five-term U.S. Senator from Arizona (1953–1965, 1969–1987) and the Republican Party nominee for presiden ...

. Goldwater said he thought Wead was out of touch with Arizona because of his relatively brief residency in the state—two years to English's 22. Wead countered that Goldwater's support of abortion rights spurred the unexpected crossing of party lines. English may have also benefited from Democratic Party momentum in 1992, which was the year of

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...

's first presidential election victory. Clinton came within a few percentage points of winning Arizona, and two other Democratic Representatives (

Ed Pastor Edward Lopez Pastor (; June 28, 1943 – November 27, 2018) was an American politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Arizona from 1991 to 2015. A member of the Democratic Party, he represented Arizona's ...

and Sam Coppersmith) were elected along with English to give Democrats the majority of the state's House delegation. She was the second woman to represent Arizona in Congress, with Isabella Selmes Greenway (1933–1937) being the first. After serving a single term in Congress, English was defeated by Republican challenger

J.D. Hayworth John David Hayworth Jr. (born July 12, 1958) is an American television host and former politician. He served as a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from 1995 to 2007 from Arizona's 5th Congressional District. He curr ...

in 1994. She is now involved with the Center for Sustainable Environments at

Northern Arizona University Northern Arizona University (NAU) is a public research university based in Flagstaff, Arizona. It was founded in 1899 as the final public university established in the Arizona Territory, 13 years before Arizona was admitted as the 48th state. ...

and is a member of the ReFormers Caucus of

Issue One Issue One is an American nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that seeks to reduce the role of money in politics. It aims to increase public awareness of what it views as problems within the present campaign finance system, and to reduce the influ ...

Notes

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Arizona Women's Political Caucus

References

Sources

Biographical Directory of the United States Congress: Karan English

External links

Northern Arizona University: Cline Library Digital Archives search results for "Karan English"
* {{DEFAULTSORT:English, Karan 1949 births Democratic Party Arizona state senators County supervisors in Arizona Living people Politicians from Berkeley, California University of Arizona alumni Democratic Party members of the Arizona House of Representatives Female members of the United States House of Representatives Women state legislators in Arizona Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Arizona 21st-century American women

See also

Notes

References

Sources

External links