Ruth Ann Gaines (born 1947) is the Iowa State Representative from the 33rd District. A Democrat, she has served in the

Iowa House of Representatives The Iowa House of Representatives is the lower house of the Iowa General Assembly, the upper house being the Iowa Senate. There are 100 seats in the Iowa House of Representatives, representing 100 single-member districts across the state, formed ...

since 2011.

Early life and education

Gaines was born in 1947 in

Des Moines, Iowa Des Moines is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Iowa, most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is the county seat of Polk County, Iowa, Polk County with parts extending into Warren County, Iowa, Wa ...

. In 1965, she graduated from St. Joseph Academy. She received a B.A. in drama/speech from

Clarke College Clarke College may refer to: * Clarke College, the former name of Clarke University, in Dubuque, Iowa, U.S. * Clarke College, in 1992 merged into Mississippi College, in Clinton, Mississippi, U.S. * William Clarke College, in Sydney, New South Wale ...

in 1969 and an M.A. in dramatic art from the

University of California, Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Tracing its roots back to 1891 as an ...

in 1970.

Political career

, Gaines serves on several committees in the Iowa House: the Education, Public Safety, and Veterans Affairs committees. She also serves as the

ranking member In United States politics, a ranking member is the most senior member of a congressional or state legislative committee from the minority party. On many committees the ranking minority member, along with the Chair, serve as ''ex officio'' members ...

of the Government Oversight committee.

Legacy

The auditorium at East High School in Des Moines was named after Gaines.

Electoral history

*incumbent

References

External links

Representative Ruth Ann Gaines
''official Iowa General Assembly site'' *
Financial information (state office)
at the National Institute for Money in State Politics 1947 births Date of birth missing (living people) Living people Clarke University alumni University of California, Santa Barbara alumni Democratic Party members of the Iowa House of Representatives 21st-century members of the Iowa General Assembly Politicians from Des Moines, Iowa Women state legislators in Iowa 21st-century African-American women politicians African-American state legislators in Iowa 21st-century American women politicians 21st-century African-American politicians 20th-century African-American politicians 20th-century African-American women politicians 20th-century American women politicians {{Iowa-politician-stub