Ethan Corson is an American politician and attorney who currently represents the 7th district in the

Kansas Senate The Kansas Senate is the upper house of the Kansas Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. State of Kansas. It is composed of 40 senators elected from single-member districts, each with a population of about 73,000 inhabitants. Members o ...

. Elected in 2020, he assumed office on January 11, 2021. He is a member of the Democratic Party.

Early life and education

Corson was raised in

Johnson County, Kansas Johnson County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Kansas, along the border of the state of Missouri. Its county seat is Olathe, Kansas, Olathe. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 609, ...

and attended

Shawnee Mission South High School Shawnee Mission South High School is a high school located in Overland Park, Kansas, United States, serving students in grades 9-12. The school is one of several public high schools located within Shawnee Mission and operated by Shawnee Mission ...

. After graduating from high school, Corson played baseball at

Garden City Community College Garden City Community College (Garden City CC or GCCC) is a public community college in Garden City, Kansas. It was established in 1919 to provide a means for post-secondary education for area residents. The school initially shared facilities i ...

. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in political science, journalism, and communication from the

Washington University in St. Louis Washington University in St. Louis (WashU) is a private research university in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Founded in 1853 by a group of civic leaders and named for George Washington, the university spans 355 acres across its Danforth ...

, followed by a

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

from the

Washington University School of Law The Washington University School of Law (WashU Law) is the law school of Washington University in St. Louis, a private research university in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1867, it is the oldest continuously operating law school west of the ...

Career

After graduating from law school, Corson worked as an attorney in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, and later served as a senior advisor to

Penny Pritzker Penny Sue Pritzker (born May 2, 1959) is an American billionaire heiress, businesswoman and lawyer who served as the 38th United States secretary of commerce in the Obama administration from 2013 to 2017. She was confirmed by a Senate vote of 97 ...

in the

United States Department of Commerce The United States Department of Commerce (DOC) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government. It is responsible for gathering data for business and governmental decision making, establishing industrial standards, catalyzing econ ...

. He also served as chief of staff of the

International Trade Administration The International Trade Administration (ITA) is an agency in the United States Department of Commerce that promotes United States exports of nonagricultural U.S. goods and services. Duties The ITA's stated goals are to # Provide practical info ...

and director of the Office of the Executive Secretariat in the Commerce Department. Corson returned to Kansas to serve as the executive director of the

Kansas Democratic Party The Kansas Democratic Party is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the state of Kansas and one of two major parties in the state, alongside the Republicans. The chair of the party is Jeanna Repass. The party currently controls the state's ...

. In 2019, he was a visiting fellow at the Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics at the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States. Two branch campuses are in the Kansas City metropolitan area on the Kansas side: the university's medical school and hospital ...

. After Barbara Bollier declined to seek re-election to the Kansas Senate and instead run for the 2020 United States Senate election, Corson announced his candidacy to succeed her. Corson did not face an opponent in the Democratic primary and defeated Republican nominee Laura McConwell in the November general election. 2021-2022 Kansas Senate Committee Assignments *Judiciary *Utilities *Assessment and Taxation *Legislative Post Audit Committee *Joint Committee on Administrative Rules and Regulations *Joint Committee on Corrections and Juvenile Justice Oversight

Personal life

Corson is married to Jenna Brofsky, an attorney and member of the

Fairway, Kansas Fairway is a city in Johnson County, Kansas, Johnson County, Kansas, United States. It is included in the Kansas City metropolitan area census designation and the Shawnee Mission, Kansas, Shawnee Mission postal services designation. As of the 2 ...

City Council. They have one son.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Corson, Ethan 1982 births 21st-century members of the Kansas Legislature Democratic Party Kansas state senators Garden City Community College alumni Kansas lawyers Living people Obama administration personnel People from Johnson County, Kansas Spouses of Kansas politicians United States Department of Commerce officials University of Kansas faculty Washington University in St. Louis alumni Washington University School of Law alumni