Justin Amash facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Justin Amash
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Amash in 2023
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| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan's 3rd district |
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| In office January 3, 2011 – January 3, 2021 |
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| Preceded by | Vern Ehlers |
| Succeeded by | Peter Meijer |
| Member of the Michigan House of Representatives from the 72nd district |
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| In office January 14, 2009 – January 1, 2011 |
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| 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) Independent (2019–2020) Libertarian (2020–2024) |
| Spouse | Kara Day |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | University of Michigan (BA, JD) |
Justin A. Amash (/əˈmɑːʃ/ Ə-mahsh; 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 member of Congress. Originally a Republican, Amash left the GOP and became an independent on July 4, 2019. In April 2020, he joined the Libertarian Party, leaving Congress in January 2021 as the only Libertarian to serve in Congress.
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.
On February 29, 2024, Amash announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate in Michigan.
Early life and education
Justin Amash was born on April 18, 1980, in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He is the second of three sons born to Arab Christian parents who had immigrated to the United States. His father, Attallah Amash, is a Palestinian Christian whose family lived in Ramla until they were forcibly expelled by Israeli soldiers during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. Attallah and his family immigrated to the United States in 1956 when he was 16 through the sponsorship of an American pastor in Muskegon, Michigan. Amash's mother, Mimi, is a Syrian Christian who met his father through family friends in Damascus, Syria, and the two married in 1974.
Amash grew up in Kentwood, Michigan. He first attended Kelloggsville Christian School in Kentwood, then Grand Rapids Christian High School, from which he graduated in 1998 as class valedictorian. He then attended the University of Michigan, graduating in 2002 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics with high honors. Amash then attended the University of Michigan Law School, graduating with a Juris Doctor in 2005.
After graduating from law school, Amash spent less than a year as a lawyer at the Grand Rapids law firm Varnum LLP. He then became a consultant to Michigan Industrial Tools Inc. (also known as Tekton Inc.), a company his father founded and owns. He worked for his family's business for a year before being elected to the Michigan House of Representatives in 2008. Amash's two brothers also have positions at Michigan Industrial Tools.
Amash and his wife Kara Day attended high school together and married after graduating from college. They have a son and two daughters.
- List of Arab and Middle-Eastern Americans in the United States Congress
- List of American politicians who switched parties in office
- List of United States representatives who switched parties
See also
In Spanish: Justin Amash para niños
