Kirsten Engel

Kirsten Engel is an American lawyer and politician who has served as a member of the Arizona House of Representatives and the Arizona Senate. Engel was the Democratic nominee in 2022 for Arizona's 6th congressional district, losing narrowly to Republican Juan Ciscomani.

Early life and education
Engel was born and raised in Chicago. She graduated magna cum laude from Brown University in 1983 and Northwestern University School of Law in 1986.

Career
After law school, Engel clerked for Judge Myron H. Bright of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. Engel worked for the United States Environmental Protection Agency, then for Earthjustice under its former name. She was an assistant attorney general in the Massachusetts Attorney General's Office until 2005. She started working at the University of Arizona in 2005 and is a professor teaching environmental and administrative law at its James E. Rogers College of Law.

Engel was elected to the Arizona House of Representatives in 2016 and assumed office in January 2017. Engel did not seek re-election to the House in 2020 and was instead a candidate for the Arizona Senate. She assumed office in January 2021, serving until her resignation on September 8, 2021, to run for Congress.

Environment and energy
Engel's 2022 campaign emphasized her support for increasing the capture of solar energy in Arizona. Engel expressed support for strengthening federal measures to limit air and water pollution from power stations.

Engel has called for taking steps to make "it a pain to drive" gasoline-powered vehicles.

Education
Engel supports increasing funding for public schools and has said that observing conditions at her daughter's public school motivated her to run for office initially.

Immigration
Engel characterized the situation at the U.S.-Mexico border as "a humanitarian crisis" and expressed support for reforming asylum-seeking processes.

Personal life
Engel is married with one daughter and lives in Tucson, Arizona.