Ryan Bingham
From Usgs
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| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| In Office: 2008 - Present | ||||
| Preceded by | Clyburn Harrison | |||
| Succeeded by | Incumbent | |||
| 28th House Minority Leader | ||||
| In Office: 2019 - Present Serving alongside: Minority Whip Brocklin | ||||
| Preceded by | Dale Thomas | |||
| Succeeded by | Incumbent | |||
| Born | 15 Jaunary, 1977 Louisville, Kentucky | |||
| Political Party | Democrat | |||
| Spouse | None | |||
| Religion | Unknown | |||
Ryan Mary Bingham (born 15 Jaunary 1977 in Louisville, Kentucky) is an American politician, activist, and heiress. She is the incumbent United States Representative for the Third Congressional District of Kentucky, which covers almost all of the Louisville Metro area. She is a member of the Democratic Party.
Early Life
Ryan was born to wealthy parents. Her mother, Emily, is the daugher of the late Louisville media mogul Barry Bingham, Jr., while her father, Owsley Brown IV, is current chairman of the Brown-Forman Corporation, the leading maker and licenser of wine and distilled spirits in the world. As an only child, Ryan wanted for nothing, and had all the advantages that attained to the wealthy. She attended Louisville Collegiate, a prestigous private school, and graduated as Salutorian of the Class of 1995. Four years later, she graduated in the top 5% of her class from the Brandeis Law School at the University of Louisville. She briefly worked as an interne at a prestigous Louisville law firm, but decided she needed more education, so she moved to California to attend Stanford University. It sas during her time on the "Left Coast" that her liberal tendancies surfaced, and in addition to her post-graduate law classes, she minored in Political Science, which would, she didn't know at the time, benefit her greatly in the years to come.
Political Career
After returning to Louisville, Ryan went to work in the family business, heading the Legal Affairs department for Brown-Forman. She might well have stayed there, had she not been raped at a company party on New Years Eve 2004. She was determined not to let it get her down, even when she discovered that she had become pregnant as a result. She opted for an abortion, but found to her dismay that it was next to impossible in Kentucky. It was only after a great deal of cajoling and spending a lot of money that she was able to terminate her pregnancy; even so, there was not, as she discovered, much of a support system for women in her position.
This situation nudged Ryan into the political realm when she ran as a Democrat for the open 8th District seat on the Louisville Metro Council. The local Bingham name recognition, as well as reputation for support of organized labor, and a ringing endorsement from the normally conservative Louisville Courier-Journal (which was owned by the Bingham family until the mid-80's), plus a good dose of family money, equalled a 53-47 win for Ryan.
Personal Life
Ryan Bingham is currently dating former Appalachia Minority Leader and Congresswoman Hillary Brocklin
