Gabrielle Giffords

Gabrielle Giffords   (politician)
Born	Gabrielle Dee Giffords 1970-06-08 Tucson, Arizona, U.S.
Alma mater	Scripps College, Cornell University
Religion	Reform Judaism
Spouse	Mark Kelly
Member of	American Swiss Foundation/Young Leaders/2004, Truman Center for National Policy, WEF/Young Global Leaders/2010
Victim of	2011 Tucson shooting
Party	Democratic
US Democratic politician survived assassination attempt in 2011. Resigned from office, but still in Democratic party leadership.  Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Arizona's 8th district In office January 3, 2007 - January 25, 2012  Member of the Arizona Senate from the 28th district In office January 8, 2003 - December 1, 2005  Member of the Arizona House of Representatives from the 13th district In office January 1, 2001 - January 8, 2003

Gabrielle Dee Giffords is an American politician and gun control advocate who was a member of the United States House of Representatives representing Arizona from January 2007 until January 2012, when she resigned due to a severe brain injury suffered during an assassination attempt. A member of the Democratic Party, Giffords was the third woman in Arizona's history to be elected to the U.S. Congress.

Background

Born and raised in Tucson, Arizona, Giffords graduated from Scripps College and Cornell University.

Career

After initially moving to New York City, where she worked in regional economic development for Price Waterhouse, Giffords returned to Arizona to work as the CEO of El Campo Tire Warehouses, a family business started by her grandfather. She was in the Arizona House of Representatives from 2001 until 2003 and the Arizona Senate from 2003 until 2005 when she was elected to the U.S. House.

Assassination attempt

Giffords had just begun her third term in January 2011 when she was shot in the head in an assassination attempt and mass shooting just outside of Tucson during an event with constituents. Giffords has since recovered much of her ability to walk, speak, read, and write. She attended President Obama's State of the Union address on January 24, and appeared on the floor of the House on January 25, 2012, where she formally submitted her resignation.

Though a moderate on the issue during her time in Congress, Giffords has since become an ardent advocate for gun control. In January 2013, she and her husband launched Americans for Responsible Solutions, a non-profit organization and Super-PAC which later joined with the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence to become Giffords. She is married to former Space Shuttle Commander Mark Kelly, the junior United States Senator from Arizona.

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