Keith English (politician)

Keith English (November 4, 1967 – February 28, 2018) was an American politician, union electrician, and business owner from the state of Missouri. English served as a member of the Missouri House of Representatives from Florissant, Missouri. He was elected to his first two-year term in November 2012.

Keith English
Member of the Missouri House of Representatives
from the 68th district
In office
January 2013 – January 2017
Succeeded byJay Mosley
Personal details
Born(1967-11-04)November 4, 1967
St. Louis, Missouri
DiedFebruary 28, 2018(2018-02-28) (aged 50)
Jefferson City, Missouri
Political partyIndependent
Other political
affiliations		Democratic (before 2015)

Biography

English was born in St. Louis, Missouri. He graduated from Hazelwood Central High School in 1986 and attended Saint Louis University. He graduated from the IBEW Joint Apprenticeship Training Center in 1989.[1][2] He grew up in Florissant and previously served as a Florissant city councilman for more than five years.[3]

English was a former Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) trainer and enthusiast, who took up fighting professionally after the death of his mother in 2008. English fought as an MMA fighter from 2008 to the fall of 2012, when he retired, with a record of 10 wins and 0 losses. He routinely gave his winnings to charity. [4]

2014 tax cut vote

English made national news in 2014 when he was the only Democrat to vote to reduce Missouri's state income tax for the first time in nearly a century by voting to override the veto of Democratic Governor Jay Nixon. The vote was 109–46 with English providing the pivotal vote. English contended that the governor had spread "misinformation" about the bill.[5] Immediately following the vote, English was removed from four House committees by House Minority Leader and fellow union electrician Jake Hummel.[6]

English was re-elected to a second term in November 2014, and subsequently appealed to have his committee assignments restored. When that proved unsuccessful, English resigned his Democratic Party membership and announced that he would serve as an Independent.[7]

Marijuana

At the start of the 2015 legislative session, English introduced a bill that would, if enacted, legalize medical marijuana in the state.[8]

Death

English died of an apparent suicide on February 28, 2018, in a parking lot, in Jefferson City, Missouri. The police recovered a firearm from the scene.[9]

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References
  1. Votesmart.org.-Keith English
  2. "Representative Keith English, District 068, Democrat". Archived from the original on 2014-05-08. Retrieved 2014-05-08.
  3. "About Keith English". Archived from the original on 2012-05-01. Retrieved 2014-05-08.
  4. "Rep. Keith English, boxing background". 2013-02-26. Retrieved 2013-02-26.
  5. David A. Lieb (2014-05-06). "Missouri Lawmakers Override Veto, Enact Tax Cut". Retrieved 2014-05-08.
  6. "Democrat loses committee spots after tax cut vote". 2014-05-07. Archived from the original on 2014-05-08. Retrieved 2014-05-08.
  7. "Florissant Democrat switches to independent". 2015-01-27. Archived from the original on 2015-01-27. Retrieved 2015-01-27.
  8. "Missouri".
  9. Suntrup, Jack (2018-02-28). "Former Florissant lawmaker found dead of apparent suicide". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved 2018-02-28.
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