Justin Amash | |
|---|---|
_(cropped,_high_quality).jpg) Amash in 2023 | |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan's 3rd district | |
| In office January 3, 2011 – January 3, 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Vern Ehlers |
| Succeeded by | Peter Meijer |
| Member of the Michigan House of Representatives from the 72nd district | |
| In office January 14, 2009 – January 1, 2011 | |
| Preceded by | Glenn Steil |
| Succeeded by | Ken Yonker |
| Personal details | |
| Born | April 18, 1980 Grand Rapids, Michigan, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican (before 2019, 2024–present)[1] Independent (2019–2020) Libertarian (2020–2024) |
| Spouse | Kara Day |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | University of Michigan (AB, JD) |
Justin A. Amash[2] (/əˈmɑːʃ/ ə-MAHSH;[3] born April 18, 1980) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the U.S. representative for Michigan's 3rd congressional district from 2011 to 2021. He was the second Palestinian American and Syrian American member of Congress.[a] Originally a Republican, Amash became an independent in 2019.[5] He joined the Libertarian Party the following year, leaving Congress in January 2021 as the only Libertarian to serve in Congress. Amash returned to the Republican Party in 2024.
A native of Grand Rapids, Michigan, Amash was born to Palestinian and Syrian Christian parents who had immigrated to the United States. After high school, he studied economics at the University of Michigan, graduated from the University of Michigan Law School, and briefly worked as a corporate lawyer and consultant before entering politics.
Amash represented the 72nd district in the Michigan House of Representatives for one term before being elected to Congress in 2010. He was the founder and chairperson of the Liberty Caucus and was a founding member of the House Freedom Caucus, which he left in June 2019. Amash received national attention when he became the first Republican congressman to call for the impeachment of Donald Trump, a position he maintained after leaving the party.
Amash formed an exploratory committee to seek the Libertarian Party presidential nomination in the 2020 election, before announcing in May of that year that he would not run for president. He did not seek reelection to Congress in 2020.
Amash ran a candidacy for the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate in Michigan, losing to former congressman Mike Rogers.[6][7] He was endorsed by the Detroit Free Press.[8]
- ^ "Former Rep. Justin Amash enters Michigan's jumbled GOP Senate primary". NBC News. February 29, 2024.
- ^ Congressional Directory (PDF). 2020.
{{cite book}}:|work=ignored (help) - ^ "Biography". U.S. Representative Justin Amash. Archived from the original on September 12, 2014. Retrieved December 29, 2020.
- ^ "Reuters Corrects: Rashida Tlaib Not First Palestinian-American in Congress". Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America. July 20, 2023.
- ^ Welch, Matt (July 4, 2019). "Justin Amash Declares Independence From Republican Party". Reason.
- ^ "Former Rep. Justin Amash enters Michigan's jumbled GOP Senate primary". NBC News. February 29, 2024. Retrieved February 29, 2024.
- ^ Burke, Melissa Nann; Mauger, Craig; Noble, Breana (August 6, 2024). "Slotkin, Rogers win Michigan Senate primaries". The Detroit News. Retrieved August 7, 2024.
- ^ Detroit Free Press (June 10, 2024). "Michigan GOP voters: Choose Justin Amash, not Mike Rogers in Aug. 6 primary".
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