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Carlyle Begay
Carlyle Begay by Gage Skidmore.jpg
Member of the Arizona Senate
from the 7th district
In office
July 1, 2013 – January 9, 2017
Preceded by Jack Jackson, Jr.
Succeeded by Jamescita Peshlakai
Personal details
Born Tuba City, Arizona
Nationality Navajo, American
Political party Democratic (until 2015)
Republican (2015–present)
Spouse Chantelle K Begay (2021–present)
Children 1
Alma mater University of Arizona
Carlyle Begay (27148921404)
Begay speaking at a campaign rally for Donald Trump, June 2016
Carlyle Begay (45746776065)
Begay speaking with attendees at the 2019 Inauguration of Governor Doug Ducey at the Arizona State Capitol building in Phoenix, 2019

Carlyle W. Begay is a Diné-American politician. A member of the Republican Party, he represented the seventh district in the Arizona State Senate which is the largest Legislative State District in the Continental United States.

Early life

Begay is Navajo and was born on the Navajo Nation and he is Tó’tsohnii (Big Water), born for Kinyaa’áanii (Towering House) clans. His maternal grandparents are Tl'izi lani (Many Goats clan). His paternal grandparents are also of the Tl'izi lani (Many Goats clan). Begay is a lifetime resident of Arizona and grew up on the Navajo Nation near Black Mesa and was raised under the teachings of his ancestry, instilling in him the importance of remembering the story of his people and carrying it on to his descendants.

Begay graduated from the University of Arizona with a Bachelor of Science degree in Molecular and Cellular Biology and was a student in the Minority Medical Education Program at the University of Arizona College of Medicine. He also attended the Arizona International College's Natural Sciences and Mathematics program in Tucson, Arizona; Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health's Winter Institute, in Baltimore, Maryland; and the Harvard School of Public Health's Public Health Studies program in Boston, Massachusetts.

Political career

Begay succeeded Jack Jackson, Jr. in the Arizona State Senate in 2013 after Jackson's resignation. On November 23, 2015, Begay announced that he switched from the Democratic Party to the Republican Party.

In October 2020, he joined Navajo Nation Vice President Myron Lizer, Donald Trump Jr. and others in launching the Native Americans for Trump coalition in Williams, Arizona. He served as the co-chair of the Native Americans for Trump 2020 coalition, together with fellow Navajo Sharon Clahchischilliage.

Personal life

Begay, along with his wife and children, moved to Colorado in 2021. He is an avid golfer. He and his wife were baptized on Easter Sunday 2024. He enjoys spending time with his nephew Matthew, who frequently visits from Tucson.

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