Forrest Ridges
From Usgs
Michelle Forrest Ridges, better known M. Forrest Ridges or more commonly Forrest Ridges is a United States Congresswoman from California.
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Early Life
Ms. Ridges was born in New London, Connecticut, on May 17, 1988. Her father, Les Ridges, was a California native stationed in Connecticut with the United States Navy's Judge Advocate General Corps. Michelle's mother, Jewel Ridges, was also a Californian involved with the Navy, and worked as a chaplain. Michelle is the youngest of three siblings: Her brother Frank (b. 1978) is a former Naval sailor, Kosovo veteran, and is currently a civil engineer at Naval Station Mayport in northern Florida; her sister, Cassandra (b. 1981), is a public schoolteacher in San Francisco.
The Ridges family lived in Connecticut and Washington, D.C., before returning to California in 2000. Growing up, Ms. Ridges preferred going by her middle name, Forrest, mainly because of her hazel eyes, which she said reminded her of the forest. She graduated public schooling in Monterey, and then moved north to live with her sister in San Francisco while attending college. Forrest holds a bachelor's in women's studies from San Francisco State University and a J.D. from San Francisco Law School.
Like her father, Forrest enlisted in the Navy's JAG. She practiced law within the Corps for two years in New Orleans before returning to San Francisco.
Career
In 2014, Forrest entered the San Francisco District Attorney's staff. She stayed with the office for six years, and during those six years was a key pillar in enforcing the D.A.'s cases on women's issues. This was brought to light in 2018, when she successfully put away a serial killer away for murdering 16 schoolgirls in San Francisco's Inner Mission neighborhood. Other noted cases of hers involved former San Francisco Supervisors, state legislators, and business and non-profit executives.
Ms. Ridges reported she had long thougt about running for political office, but did not do so until early 2020, when a window opened for her to run for Congress in a special election. The primaries were a challenge, but once she clinched the nomination, she did not have a troublesome time winning the general election.
Politics and Voting Record
During her time in the D.A.'s office, Forrest presided over a few cases on abortion, and ultimately tried to turn the opinion of the court in favor of Roe v. Wade.
Probably the most visible mark on her record is her unwavering support of the LGBT community. She strongly supports same-sex marriage and stated during her 2020 campaign that the Federal government should not have any say as to whether or not the City-County of San Francisco or the State of California wants to legalize same-sex marriage. She further stated she is not apologetic for this position, and that "if I lose an election, I lose an election. Losing an election is better than saying that I'm aganist equal marriage."
Military issues are something close to Ms. Ridges's heart. She says that she wants to keep "the military a sustainable size, with a sustainable mission." She supports granting citizenship to eligible permanent residents serving in the military and raising military pay. In collation with her support of sexual minorities, Ms. Ridges wants to see "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" be repealed.
Forrest admitted to the San Francisco Chronicle that her maternal aunt has cancer. This has led her to support embryonic stem cell research.
Personal Life and Trivia
Representative Ridges resides in the Sea Cliff neighborhood of San Francisco. She lists her biggest interest as working on cars, and has owned 10 classic cars during her adult life. Other interests of hers include playing with her two dogs and skiing in the mountains of northern California and Oregon.
