Donna Hutchinson facts for kids

Donna Jean King Hutchinson (born August 23, 1949) is a Republican former member of the Arkansas House of Representatives. She represented District 98, which is in Benton County, Northwest Arkansas. She lives in Bella Vista.

Donna Hutchinson was first elected to the House in 2006. She started her work in January 2007. She served until January 2013.

About Donna Hutchinson's Family

Donna Hutchinson is a member of the Blackfeet tribe. She was born in a military family in New Bern, North Carolina. Because her family was in the military, she lived in many different places as a child.

She earned a master's degree in education. She studied at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville. Donna Hutchinson works as a professional mediator. This means she helps people solve disagreements. She is also a Christian.

Her son, Jeremy Hutchinson, is also a politician. He used to be a state representative. Since 2011, he has served in the Arkansas State Senate. His district is in Little Rock.

Jeremy has a twin brother named Timothy Chad Hutchinson. Timothy also served in the state House with his mother. The twins were born in 1974 in Kansas City, Kansas.

Donna Hutchinson has a third son, Joshua Luke Hutchinson. He was born in 1978.

Her former husband, Tim Hutchinson, was a U.S. senator for Arkansas. He served from 1997 to 2003. He was the first Republican U.S. senator from Arkansas since 1879.

Donna Hutchinson's former brother-in-law is Asa Hutchinson. He is also a Republican politician. He used to be a member of the United States House of Representatives. He also served as the Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration. In 2014, he was elected as the governor of Arkansas.

Donna Hutchinson's Political Work

As a state representative, Donna Hutchinson worked on important committees. She was part of the Arkansas House Education Committee. She also led the Subcommittee on Vocational-Technical Institutions. These institutions teach job skills.

She was also on the House State Agencies and Governmental Affairs Committee. She served on the Joint Budget Committee as well. For a time, she was the leader of the Arkansas Legislative Women's Caucus. This group supports women in the state legislature.

In 2012, Donna Hutchinson received a high score on the Arkansas Freedom Scorecard. This scorecard looks at how legislators vote. It measures their votes on topics like economic freedom and education reform. It also looks at good government and personal liberty.

Donna Hutchinson believed that education was very important for Arkansas. She noted that a large part of the state's budget goes to schools and universities.

In her last election in 2010, she won by a large amount. She ran against an Independent candidate, Jim Parsons. She could not run for a fourth term in 2012. Another Republican, John Burris, took her place. He represented a new version of District 98.