Nancy K. Barto (born in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

) is an American politician and a former Republican member of the

Arizona State Senate The Arizona State Senate is part of the Arizona Legislature, the state legislature (United States), state legislature of the US state of Arizona. The Senate consists of 30 members each representing an average of 219,859 constituents (2009 figure ...

from 2021 to 2023. She previously served in the

Arizona House of Representatives The Arizona House of Representatives is the lower house of the Arizona Legislature, the state legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of Arizona. The upper house is the Arizona Senate, Senate. The House convenes in the le ...

from 2019 to 2021 and the

Arizona Senate The Arizona State Senate is part of the Arizona Legislature, the state legislature (United States), state legislature of the US state of Arizona. The Senate consists of 30 members each representing an average of 219,859 constituents (2009 figure ...

representing District 15 from 2013 to 2019. Barto served consecutively in the

Arizona State Legislature The Arizona State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Arizona. It is a bicameral legislature that consists of a lower house, the House of Representatives, and an upper house, the Senate. Composed of 90 legislators, the ...

from January 2007 until January 10, 2011, in the

District 7 seat, then in the Arizona Senate in the District 7 seat from January 10, 2011, until January 14, 2013.

Tenure in office

Barto sponsored a bill to prohibit cities and counties in Arizona from

banning plastic bags A plastic bag ban or charge is a law that restricts the use of lightweight plastic bags at retail establishments. In the early 21st century, there has been a global trend towards the phase-out of lightweight plastic bags. Single-use plastic shopp ...

. The governor signed the bill into law in April 2015. A social conservative, Barto has promoted

anti-abortion Anti-abortion movements, also self-styled as pro-life movements, are involved in the abortion debate advocating against the practice of abortion and its Abortion by country, legality. Many anti-abortion movements began as countermovements in r ...

legislation.Bob Christie
Barto declares victory in race against sitting state senator
Associated Press (August 6, 2020). She is often allied with the

Center for Arizona Policy Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...

, a

Christian right The Christian right are Christian political factions characterized by their strong support of socially conservative and traditionalist policies. Christian conservatives seek to influence politics and public policy with their interpretation ...

group.Julia Shumway
Barto holds slim lead in LD15 showdown
''Arizona Capitol Times'' (August 4, 2020). In 2010, Barto sponsored a measure to extend Arizona's two-month mandatory waiting period to obtain a divorce to six months. In 2020, while in the state House, Barto sponsored legislation that banned

sex education Sex education, also known as sexual education, sexuality education or sex ed, is the instruction of issues relating to human sexuality, including human sexual anatomy, Human sexual activity, sexual activity, sexual reproduction, safe sex, birth ...

before the fifth grade and requiring written permission from parents (an "opt-in") before students could be taught about HIV/AIDS, sexuality,

gender identity Gender identity is the personal sense of one's own gender. Gender identity can correlate with a person's assigned sex or can differ from it. In most individuals, the various biological determinants of sex are congruent and consistent with the in ...

or gender expression. In 2020, she narrowly ousted incumbent state Senator

Heather Carter Heather Carter is an American politician and a former Republican member of the Arizona State Senate representing District 15 from 2019 to 2021. She previously served in the Arizona House of Representatives representing District 15 from 2013 to 2 ...

, defeating her in a Republican primary challenge from

the right Right-wing politics is the range of Ideology#Political ideologies, political ideologies that view certain social orders and Social stratification, hierarchies as inevitable, natural, normal, or desirable, typically supporting this position b ...

following a heated race. As chair of the House Health and Human Services Committee, Barto sponsored

anti-vaccination Anti-vaccine activism, which collectively constitutes the "anti-vax" movement, is a set of organized activities expressing opposition to vaccination, and these collaborating networks have often sought to increase vaccine hesitancy by dissem ...

bills, and supporting

vaping An electronic cigarette (e-cigarette), or vape, is a device that simulates smoking. It consists of an Construction of electronic cigarettes#Atomizer and tank, atomizer, a power source such as a battery, and a container such as a cartridge or ...

legislation supported by the

tobacco industry The tobacco industry comprises those persons and companies who are engaged in the growth, preparation for sale, shipment, advertisement, and distribution of tobacco and tobacco-related products. It is a global industry; tobacco can grow in any ...

. Public health officials warned that Barto's three bills in 2019 to expand vaccination exemptions and discourage vaccination would reduce immunization rates in Arizona and endanger public health. One bill, HB2470, would have added a non-medical "religious belief" exemption for childhood vaccines, and removed a signature requirement for parents.Jonathan J. Cooper
Arizona lawmakers consider religious exemption for vaccines
Associated Press (February 21, 2019). The proposed repeal would end a requirement that parents exempting children from vaccines acknowledge the risk of serious illness and death from

infectious disease An infection is the invasion of tissue (biology), tissues by pathogens, their multiplication, and the reaction of host (biology), host tissues to the infectious agent and the toxins they produce. An infectious disease, also known as a transmis ...

. Another bill, HB2471, would require doctors to inform parents about potential risks of vaccines and how to file for injury claims related to vaccines. The third bill, HB2472 would require doctors to offer a blood test prior to vaccination; the test would determine if a child already possesses the antibodies that would be developed from a vaccine. During the

COVID-19 pandemic in Arizona The COVID-19 pandemic was confirmed to have reached the U.S. state of Arizona in January 2020. As of June 3, 2021 Arizona public health authorities reported 322 new cases of COVID-19 and five deaths, bringing the cumulative totals since the st ...

, Barto promoted baseless claims that

hydroxychloroquine Hydroxychloroquine, sold under the brand name Plaquenil among others, is a medication used to prevent and treat malaria in areas where malaria remains sensitive to chloroquine. Other uses include treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, an ...

was a

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

cure, and discouraged

COVID-19 vaccination A COVID19 vaccine is a vaccine intended to provide acquired immunity against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 ( COVID19). Knowledge about the structure and func ...

. In 2020, Barto was one of 13 Arizona Republican state legislators who supported Donald Trump's failed attempt to overturn his loss in the 2020 presidential election. In 2022, she sponsored legislation that banned abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy. Barto lost reelection to

Christine Marsh Christine Porter Marsh is an American politician and public school teacher from Arizona. She was elected to the state senate in 2020, and served until 2025. A Democrat, she was first elected to represent district District 28, and later District 4, ...

Elections

2006: To challenge House District 7 incumbent Republican Representatives

Ray Barnes Ray Barnes was a member of the Arizona House of Representatives The Arizona House of Representatives is the lower house of the Arizona Legislature, the state legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of Arizona. The uppe ...

and David Smith, Barto ran in the four-way September 12, 2006 Republican Primary; Barto placed first with 7,218 votes and Representative Barnes placed second; in the five-way November 7, 2006 General election, Barto took the first seat with 29,952 votes and Representative Barnes took the second seat ahead of Democratic nominees Marilyn Fox, Jeanne Lunn, and Libertarian candidate Jim Iannuzo, who had run for a House seat in 2004. † Won nomination for general election '2008: Barto, Republican Representative Barnes, Democratic nominee Jeanne Lunn, and Libertarian candidate Jim Iannuzo were unopposed for their September 2, 2008 primaries, setting up a rematch; in the four-way November 4, 2008 General election, Barto took the first seat with 46,854 votes and Representative Barnes took the second seat ahead of Democratic nominee Jeanne Lunn and Libertarian candidate Jim Iannuzo. 2010: When Republican Senator

Jim Waring Jim Waring (born 27 December 1967) is an American politician, who served as state senator for seven years in the Arizona State Senate and now represents District 2 on the Phoenix City Council. A Republican, he represented State Legislative Di ...

ran for

Phoenix City Council The Phoenix City Council is the governing body of the city of Phoenix, Arizona. The council is made up of nine members, including a mayor and eight council members representing individual districts. While the mayor is elected in a citywide elect ...

and left the Senate District 7 seat open, Barto and Representative Barnes both ran in the four-way August 24, 2010 Republican Primary, where Barto placed first with 10,475 votes (46.2%); in the November 2, 2010 General election, winning with 41,849 votes (67.2%) against Democratic nominee Eric Shelley. † Won nomination for general election 2012: State Senator – District No. 15 Redistricted to District 15, Barto was unopposed for the August 28, 2012 Republican Primary, winning with 19,162 votes, and won the November 6, 2012 General election with 58,283 votes (73.2%) against

Libertarian Libertarianism (from ; or from ) is a political philosophy that holds freedom, personal sovereignty, and liberty as primary values. Many libertarians believe that the concept of freedom is in accord with the Non-Aggression Principle, according ...

nominee Dennis Grenier. 2014: State Senator – District No. 15: Barto defeated David Ryan in the primary, then ran unopposed in the general election. † Won nomination for general election 2016: State Senator – District No. 15 Barto ran unopposed in the primary, then defeated the Democratic candidate, Tonya MacBeth, in the general election. 2018: State Representative – District No. 15: Barto and John Allen ran unopposed in the primary, then both defeated the Democratic candidates, Julie Gunnigle and Jennifer Samuels, in the general election.

References

External links

Official page
at the

Campaign site
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Barto, Nancy Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Republican Party Arizona state senators Arizona State University alumni Republican Party members of the Arizona House of Representatives Politicians from Chicago Politicians from Phoenix, Arizona Women state legislators in Arizona 21st-century American women politicians 21st-century members of the Arizona State Legislature