Allen West Politician
Allen Bernard West (born February 7, 1961) is an American political commentator, former member of the United States House of Representatives, and retired U.S. Army lieutenant colonel. A member of the Republican Party, he represented Florida's 22nd congressional district in the House from 2011 to 2013.West was born in Georgia and joined the United States Army in 1983. He was deployed to Kuwait in 1991 and Iraq in 2003. In 2003, West was charged in an incident that involved the beating and simulated execution of an Iraqi police officer. West was fined $5,000, accepted a Non-judicial punishment and allowed to retire as a lieutenant colonel after an Article 32 hearing.After leaving the military, he and his family moved to Florida where he taught at a high school for a year and worked for a defense contractor, part of his time spent in Afghanistan as a civilian adviser to the Afghan National Army. He entered politics in 2008 as the nominee for Florida's 22nd congressional district in 2008, losing to Democratic incumbent Ron Klein. In a re-match in 2010, he won the seat, coinciding with significant Republican gains in the 2010 midterm elections.West took office in January 2011 as the first African-American Republican Congressman from Florida since Josiah T. Walls left office in 1876 near the end of Reconstruction. In Congress, West served on the Armed Services and Small Business Committees and was a high-profile member of the Tea Party Caucus and the Tea Party movement.Redistricting due to the 2010 census resulted in West switching to Florida's 18th congressional district for the 2012 House elections. He lost by 2,146 votes to Democratic nominee Patrick Murphy. After a recount extended Murphy's lead, the original results were certified and West conceded to Murphy on November 20, 2012. In the 22nd district, West was succeeded by Democrat Lois Frankel. He is a contributor for Fox News and his first book, Guardian of the Republic, was published in April 2014.
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Politician
| awards | |
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| military command | 2nd Battalion 20th Field Artillery 4th Infantry Division |
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| service start | 1982 |
| service end | 2004 |