Rusty Bowers | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 54th Speaker of the Arizona House of Representatives | |
| In office January 14, 2019 – January 9, 2023 | |
| Preceded by | J. D. Mesnard |
| Succeeded by | Ben Toma |
| Member of the Arizona House of Representatives from the 25th district | |
| In office January 5, 2015 – January 9, 2023 Serving with Michelle Udall | |
| Preceded by | Justin Pierce |
| Succeeded by | Michael Carbone |
| Member of the Arizona Senate from the 21st district | |
| In office January 1997 – January 2003 | |
| Preceded by | Stan Barnes |
| Succeeded by | Jay Tibshraeny |
| Member of the Arizona House of Representatives from the 21st district | |
| In office January 1993 – January 1997 Serving with Leslie Whiting Johnson, Marilyn Jarrett | |
| Preceded by | Stan Barnes |
| Succeeded by | Dean Cooley |
| Personal details | |
| Born | October 20, 1952 Mesa, Arizona, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Children | 7 |
| Education | Mesa Community College Arizona State University, Tempe Brigham Young University (BFA) |
| Website | Official website |
Russell "Rusty" Bowers[1] (born October 20, 1952) is an American politician and the former Speaker of the Arizona House of Representatives. A member of the Republican Party, he represented the 25th legislative district from 2015 to 2023.[2][3] He was elected Speaker in 2019.
Bowers previously represented the 21st legislative district in the Arizona House from 1993 to 1997 and in the Arizona Senate from 1997 to 2001.[4] He is a classically trained artist specializing in watercolor, oil painting, and sculpting,[5] and he has also been involved in the construction and education industries.[6]
In February 2022, Bowers filed paperwork to run for the Arizona Senate in the 10th district.[7][8][9] He lost to Dave Farnsworth in the Republican primary.[10]
Bowers, who is a fourth-generation Arizonan,[11] grew up on a sheep ranch in Chino Valley.[12] He attended Mesa Community College, Arizona State University, and Brigham Young University. A member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, he spent two years as a Mormon missionary in Mexico.[13]
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Bowers, despite being a strong Republican along party lines, refused to cooperate with President Trump, Rudy Giuliani, and their unconstitutional attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election in Arizona. Bowers publicly stated that there was no evidence whatsoever of election fraud that would otherwise mandate rejection of the results of the 2020 United States presidential election in Arizona.[11][14] On June 21, 2022, Bowers testified before the House January 6 committee. As part of his testimony, Bowers stated that when he asked Rudy Giuliani for evidence regarding election fraud claims, Giuliani responded, "We have lots of theories, we just don't have the evidence".[15]
Bowers also denied a bill in the Arizona House of Representatives which would have allowed the state legislature to override the results of a presidential election in Arizona.[16]
In December 2020, colleague Senator Kelly Townsend wanted Bowers to call the legislature into session and appoint an alternate slate of electors. When he refused, Townsend doxed Bowers on Twitter, revealing his home address, and urged her militia followers to protest at his home.[17]
For his efforts in resisting the attempts to overturn the 2020 election results, Bowers was awarded the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award. He was one of five honorees to receive the award in 2022.[18] Nevertheless, on July 19, 2022, the Arizona Republican Party censured Bowers for his resistance.[19]
In 2022, Bowers ran for the State Senate, as he was being termed out from the State House. He lost the Republican primary for the State Senate by a nearly 2-to-1 margin, with the loss being attributed to his resistance to overturning the 2020 presidential election. In spite of the loss, Bowers said he had no regrets about his resistance and "would [have done] it again in a heartbeat".[20][11]
Bowers is married to Donetta Russell, with whom he has had seven children.[6][11] Bowers is a painter and rancher. His property was deeply affected by a 2021 fire that ravaged his farm, and burnt his painting studio where much of his work, as well as a significant portion of his legislative papers, was stored.[11]
In late January 2021, Bowers announced the death of his daughter, Kacey Rae Bowers at 42, who had been fighting hepatic cancer for a "long period of time."[21] Her last weeks were troubled by the presence of Trump supporters, one armed, demonstrating noisily outside Bowers' home.[21]
