Jeff Flake facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jeff Flake
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Official portrait, 2021
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| United States Ambassador to Turkey | |
| In office January 26, 2022 – September 1, 2024 |
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| President | Joe Biden |
| Preceded by | David M. Satterfield |
| Succeeded by | Tom Barrack |
| United States Senator from Arizona |
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| In office January 3, 2013 – January 3, 2019 |
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| Preceded by | Jon Kyl |
| Succeeded by | Kyrsten Sinema |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Arizona |
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| In office January 3, 2001 – January 3, 2013 |
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| Preceded by | Matt Salmon |
| Succeeded by | Matt Salmon (redistricting) |
| Constituency | 1st district (2001–2003) 6th district (2003–2013) |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Jeffry Lane Flake
December 31, 1962 Snowflake, Arizona, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse |
Cheryl Bae
(m. 1985) |
| Children | 5 |
| Relatives | Jake Flake (uncle) William J. Flake (great-great-grandfather) |
| Education | Brigham Young University (BA, MA) |
Jeffry Lane Flake (born December 31, 1962) is an American politician and former diplomat. He served as a United States Senator for Arizona from 2013 to 2019. As a member of the Republican Party, he also served in the United States House of Representatives and was the U.S. ambassador to Turkey.
Flake was born in Snowflake, Arizona. He went to Brigham Young University and earned degrees in international relations and political science. In the early 1980s, he was a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in South Africa, where he learned to speak Afrikaans.
In 2000, Flake was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. He served there until he was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2012. In the Senate, he was part of a bipartisan group of eight senators called the "Gang of Eight," who worked on a major immigration reform bill.
Flake became known for being a critic of President Donald Trump. On October 24, 2017, he announced he would not run for re-election. After leaving the Senate, he worked as a news contributor for CBS. In 2021, President Joe Biden nominated him to be the U.S. Ambassador to Turkey, a role he held until 2024.
Early Life and Education
Jeffry Lane Flake was born in Snowflake, Arizona. The town was partly named after his great-great-grandfather, William J. Flake, who was a Mormon pioneer.
Flake earned his bachelor's and master's degrees from Brigham Young University. During college, he took two years off to be a missionary for his church in South Africa and Zimbabwe. There, he learned to speak Afrikaans.
After college, he worked in public affairs. He was the executive director of the Foundation for Democracy in Namibia. He also led the Goldwater Institute, a research group in Arizona, before he was elected to Congress.
Political Career
U.S. House of Representatives (2001–2013)
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Flake was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2000. He represented a district in Arizona that included parts of the East Valley. He was known for being a member of the Republican Liberty Caucus, a group of Republicans who believe in limited government and more personal freedom.
When he first ran, Flake promised to serve only three terms. However, in 2005, he decided to run for re-election, saying it was a mistake to limit his own terms. He won his elections easily, sometimes without a major opponent.
Committee Work
While in the House, Flake served on the important Committee on Appropriations. This committee decides how the U.S. government spends its money.
U.S. Senate (2013–2019)
2012 Election
In 2011, Flake announced he would run for the U.S. Senate. The current senator, Jon Kyl, was retiring. Flake won the Republican nomination and faced Democrat Richard Carmona in the main election. The race was close, but Flake won with 49% of the vote. He was helped by strong support in Maricopa County, where Phoenix is located.
Time in the Senate
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Flake took his seat in the Senate on January 3, 2013. He once appeared on a Discovery Channel TV show called Rival Survival with a Democratic senator, Martin Heinrich. They had to survive on a small island for six days. Flake later joked that sending the Senate leaders to a remote island might help them work together better.
On June 14, 2017, Flake was at a practice for the yearly Congressional Baseball Game when a shooting occurred. He said the police officers at the scene saved many lives.
On October 24, 2017, Flake gave a speech on the Senate floor announcing he would not run for a second term. In his speech, he criticized the political culture at the time. Many people called it one of the most important speeches of the year.
Committee Work
In the Senate, Flake served on several committees, including:
- Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
- Committee on Foreign Relations
- Committee on the Judiciary
- Special Committee on Aging
U.S. Ambassador to Turkey
After Joe Biden was elected president in 2020, many thought Flake might be offered a position in his administration. In July 2021, Biden officially nominated Flake to be the U.S. Ambassador to Turkey. The Senate confirmed him, and he was sworn in on December 10, 2021. He presented his credentials to the Turkish president in January 2022 and served until September 2024.
What Jeff Flake Believes
Jeff Flake has described himself as a "traditionally conservative Republican." This means he generally supports lower taxes, less government spending, and a strong national defense.
Government Spending
Flake is a fiscal conservative, which means he is careful with government money. He was a strong critic of "pork-barrel spending," which is when lawmakers add money to bills for projects in their home states. He often challenged these projects, which are also called "earmarks." He even had a tradition called the "Flake Hour," where he would ask lawmakers to explain their spending projects on the House floor.
Relationship with Donald Trump
Flake was a well-known critic of President Donald Trump. In 2017, he wrote a book called Conscience of a Conservative, which explained his criticisms of the president. When he announced his retirement from the Senate, he gave a speech that strongly criticized the Trump administration.
Despite his criticisms, Flake voted in line with Trump's positions about 84% of the time. In 2020, Flake endorsed Joe Biden for president. In 2024, he endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for president.
Foreign Policy
Flake supported normalizing relations with Cuba. He believed the longtime U.S. trade embargo had not worked. He traveled to Cuba several times and helped bring home Alan Gross, an American who had been held prisoner there.
In 2017, Flake co-sponsored the Israel Anti-Boycott Act. This bill aimed to prevent American states from boycotting Israel.
Immigration
Flake has long supported changing the country's immigration laws. In 2013, he was part of the "Gang of Eight," a group of four Republican and four Democratic senators. They wrote a bill to reform the immigration system, increase border security, and provide a path to citizenship for some undocumented immigrants. The bill passed the Senate but failed in the House.
Flake has said that the Republican Party needs to find a reasonable solution to immigration problems to be successful in national elections.
Social Issues
Flake has a mixed record on social issues. In 2010, he was one of 15 Republicans who voted to end the "don't ask, don't tell" policy, allowing gay people to serve openly in the military. However, he had previously voted for a constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage.
In 2017, he introduced a bill to remove certain internet privacy rules. This allowed internet service providers to share or sell users' browsing history without their permission.
Personal Life
Flake and his wife, Cheryl, have five children. They are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. His uncle, Jake Flake, was also a politician in Arizona.
Flake enjoys adventure. In 2009, he spent a week alone on a deserted island in the Marshall Islands, surviving on crabs, coconuts, and fish. He repeated the experience in 2013, this time bringing his two youngest sons with him for four days.
In February 2025, Flake was awarded the Order of the Polar Star by the King of Sweden. He received this honor for his important role in helping Sweden join NATO.
See also
In Spanish: Jeff Flake para niños
