Biography

Karen Lorraine Jacqueline Speier (born May 14, 1950) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the U. S. representative for California's 14th congressional district, serving in Congress from 2008 to 2023. A member of the Democratic Party, Speier represented much of the territory that her political mentor, Leo Ryan, represented. In 1978, while working as his aide, Speier survived five gunshot wounds when Ryan was assassinated during the Jonestown massacre.