Speaker
Colonel Allen West
Allen Bernard West (born February 7, 1961) is an American politician and retired military officer. West represented Florida's 22nd congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 2011 to 2013.
West was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, and began his military career in 1983 after graduating from the University of Tennessee. He was deployed to Kuwait in 1991 and Iraq in 2003. In 2003, West retire as a lieutenant colonel. After leaving the army, West moved to Florida, where he taught at a high school for a year and worked for a defense contractor, part of this time spent in Afghanistan as a civilian adviser to the Afghan National Army.
West entered politics in 2008 as the nominee for Florida's 22nd congressional district, with one lose to the incumbent, he ran a 2nd time In a rematch in 2010 and he won the seat. West took office in January 2011. The census resulted in West switching to Florida's 18th congressional district for the 2012 House elections.
