David Nelson (born August 6, 1941) is a Republican politician from the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

. He served four terms in the

Oregon State Senate The Oregon State Senate is the upper house of the State legislature (United States), statewide legislature for the US state of Oregon. Along with the lower chamber Oregon House of Representatives it makes up the Oregon Legislative Assembly. Ther ...

. He lives in Pendleton, and represented District 29.

Early life and education

David Nelson was born in

Pendleton, Oregon Pendleton is a city in and the county seat of Umatilla County, Oregon, Umatilla County, Oregon, United States. The population was 17,107 at the time of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, which includes approximately 1,600 people who are ...

, United States. He attended the

University of California at Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after the Anglo-Irish philosopher George Berkele ...

, but then transferred to the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a Public university, public research university in Eugene, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1876, the university is organized into nine colleges and schools and offers 420 undergraduate and gra ...

, where he earned a bachelor's degree in Political Science in 1964. He then managed, and later purchased, a wheat farm in Brady, Montana. He earned a law degree from the University of Montana Law School in 1967.

Political experience

Nelson was

County Attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, county prosecutor, state attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or solicitor is the chief prosecutor or chief law enforcement officer represen ...

for

Pondera County, Montana Pondera County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Montana. As of the 2020 census, the population was 5,898. Its county seat is Conrad. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is la ...

for 1971-1975. He served as a senator in the

from 1996 to 2013; and was Oregon State Senate Majority Leader in 2001.

Organizations

David Nelson has been a member of the following organizations:

American Bar Association The American Bar Association (ABA) is a voluntary association, voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students in the United States; national in scope, it is not specific to any single jurisdiction. Founded in 1878, the ABA's stated acti ...

, Babe Ruth Association, Eastern Oregon Symphony, Education Foundation of Pendleton, Oregon Wheat League, Pendleton Swim Association, and the

Rotary Club Rotary International is one of the largest Service club, service organizations in the world. The self-declared mission of Rotary, as stated on its website, is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, go ...

Personal life

Nelson and his wife Alice have four children and four grandchildren.

References

External links

Official web page, Oregon State Senate
Living people Republican Party Oregon state senators 21st-century members of the Oregon Legislative Assembly Politicians from Pendleton, Oregon University of Oregon alumni University of Montana alumni 1941 births University of California, Berkeley alumni {{Oregon-politician-stub