Gabrielle Dee Giffords Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Arizona Date of Birth: 08.06.1970 Country: USA

1. Early Life and Education
2. Business and Politics
3. Congressional Career
4. Assassination Attempt
5. Recovery and Aftermath

Early Life and Education

Gabrielle Dee "Gabby" Giffords was born on June 8, 1970, in Tucson, Arizona. Her paternal grandfather, Akiba Hornstein, a Lithuanian rabbi's son, immigrated to southern Arizona in the 1940s and anglicized his name to Gif Giffords. Gabrielle's father, Spencer, was Jewish, while her mother, Gloria, was Christian. Giffords was raised in a Jewish household and became active in her state's Jewish religious community.

After graduating from Scripps College in 1993 with a BA in Latin American history and sociology, Giffords spent a year in Chihuahua, Mexico, as a Fulbright scholar. She then earned an MA in regional planning from Cornell University in either 1996 or 1997.

Business and Politics

Before entering politics, Giffords worked for a year at PricewaterhouseCoopers. In 1997, she returned to Tucson and became CEO of El Campo Tire, an auto supply company founded by her grandfather. In 2000, Giffords sold the family business and began her political career.

From 2001 to 2003, Giffords served in the Arizona House of Representatives. In 2002, she was elected as a Democrat to the Arizona State Senate, taking office in January 2003. She was involved with the Anti-Defamation League and volunteered with Hurricane Katrina relief efforts in 2005.

Congressional Career

In 2006, Giffords ran for the U.S. House of Representatives from Arizona's 8th Congressional District. She defeated Republican Randy Graf, becoming the first Jewish woman elected to Congress from the state. Giffords was sworn into office on January 3, 2007.

She was re-elected in 2008 and 2010, narrowly defeating Tea Party candidate Jesse Kelly in 2010. Giffords was known as a centrist in the House of Representatives. She supported increased border security but also voted to expand guest worker visas and was vice-chair of the Congressional Mexico-U.S. Interparliamentary Group.

Giffords served on the House Armed Services and NASA committees. In 2009, she opposed ending funding for the Constellation program for returning astronauts to the Moon. In 2010, she secured $1.45 billion in federal funding for a solar energy project in Arizona and supported reducing congressional salaries.

Assassination Attempt

On January 8, 2011, while meeting with constituents in Tucson, Giffords was shot in the head by Jared Lee Loughner. Six people were killed, including a federal judge and a 9-year-old girl. Fourteen others were injured. Loughner was quickly apprehended and identified as a Tucson resident with a possible accomplice.

Recovery and Aftermath

Giffords married astronaut Mark Kelly in 2007. Her cousin is actress and Oscar winner Gwyneth Paltrow.