Jennifer Dunn
Vice Chair of the House Republican Conference
In office
July 17, 1997 – January 3, 1999
LeaderNewt Gingrich
Preceded bySusan Molinari
Succeeded byTillie Fowler
Secretary of the House Republican Conference
In office
January 3, 1997 – July 17, 1997
LeaderNewt Gingrich
Preceded byBarbara Vucanovich
Succeeded byTillie Fowler
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Washington's 8th district
In office
January 3, 1993 – January 3, 2005
Preceded byRod Chandler
Succeeded byDave Reichert
Chair of the Washington Republican Party
In office
January 1, 1981 – January 1, 1992
Preceded byKen Eikenberry
Succeeded byBen Bettridge
Personal details
Born
Jennifer Jill Blackburn

(1941-07-29)July 29, 1941
Seattle, Washington, U.S.
DiedSeptember 5, 2007(2007-09-05) (aged 66)
Alexandria, Virginia, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)Dennis Dunn (1965–1977)
Keith Thomson (2003–2007)
Children2, including Reagan
EducationUniversity of Washington, Seattle
Stanford University (BA)
OccupationEngineer

Jennifer Jill Dunn (née Blackburn; July 29, 1941 – September 5, 2007)[1] was an American politician and engineer who served six terms as a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from 1993 to 2005, representing Washington's 8th congressional district.

Early life and education

Born in Seattle, Washington, Dunn grew up in the nearby city of Bellevue, and graduated from Bellevue High School in 1959. She attended the University of Washington, where she was a member of Gamma Phi Beta sorority,[2] before earning a Bachelor of Arts from Stanford University. After graduation, she worked as a systems engineer. She was a distant cousin of congressman Slade Gorton.[3]

Political career

Dunn was chair of the Washington State Republican Party from 1981 to 1992 and twice a delegate to the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (1984 and 1990).

In 1992, she ran for an open seat in the House, winning 60 percent of the vote. She was Washington's only Republican representative until the Republican Revolution of 1994 when Republicans swept all but two of Washington's nine House seats. In 1998, she became the first woman ever to run for the position of House Majority Leader.[4]

Dunn served as vice-chair of the Select Committee on Homeland Security and served on the House Ways and Means Committee and the Joint Economic Committee. On October 10, 2002, Dunn voted in favor of authorizing the War in Iraq.[5]

In 2000, she served on the presidential election exploratory committee for then-Texas Governor George W. Bush.

After Congress

Dunn announced in 2004 she would retire from Congress, choosing not to run for re-election. Her seat was eventually filled by King County Sheriff Dave Reichert. She co-chaired the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation with former Representative Calvin Dooley. She also served as co-chair of the campaign organization "Women for Mitt" for presidential candidate Mitt Romney at the time of her death in 2007. She was succeeded in the Romney organization by U.S. Representative Kay Granger of Fort Worth, Texas.

Personal life

Dunn has two children, including Reagan Dunn, an attorney and politician who has served as a member of the King County Council since 2005.[6]

Dunn collapsed and died of a pulmonary embolism in 2007, in her Alexandria, Virginia, apartment.[7] Her memorial service was held at St. James Cathedral, Seattle.[8]

Electoral history

Washington's 8th congressional district: Results 1992–2004[9]
Year Democrat Votes Pct Republican Votes Pct 3rd Party Party Votes Pct
1992 George O. Tamblyn 87,611 34% Jennifer Dunn 155,874 60% Bob Adams Independent 14,686 6%
1994 Jim Wyrick 44,165 24% Jennifer Dunn 140,409 76%
1996 Dave Little 90,340 35% Jennifer Dunn 170,691 65%
1998 Heidi Behrens-Benedict 91,371 40% Jennifer Dunn 135,539 60%
2000 Heidi Behrens-Benedict 104,944 36% Jennifer Dunn 183,255 62% Bernard McIlroy Libertarian 6,269 2%
2002 Heidi Behrens-Benedict 75,931 37% Jennifer Dunn 121,633 60% Mark A. Taff Libertarian 5,771 3%

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Jennifer Dunn honored in Legacy Project". Washington Secretary of State. February 9, 2010. Retrieved February 28, 2013.
  2. ↑ "Prominent Members". Gamma Phi Beta. Archived from the original on 2010-06-09. Retrieved 2010-09-28.
  3. ↑ "DUNN, Jennifer Blackburn | US House of Representatives: History, Art & Archives". history.house.gov. Retrieved 2020-06-26.
  4. ↑ http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/jennifer-dunn-former-congresswoman-dies Jennifer Dunn, former congresswoman, dies September 5, 2006/
  5. ↑ 2003 invasion of Iraq votes, govtrack.us; accessed November 9, 2015.
  6. ↑ www.sos.wa.gov https://www.sos.wa.gov/legacy/stories/jennifer-dunn/bio.html. Retrieved 2020-06-26. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  7. ↑ Jennifer Dunn, 66, Former Washington Representative, Is Dead, September 6, 2006.
  8. ↑ "Jennifer Dunn Remembered". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. September 12, 2007. Retrieved February 28, 2013.
  9. ↑ "Election Statistics". Office of the Clerk of the House of Representatives. Archived from the original on 2008-07-30. Retrieved 2007-08-08.
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