Senator Harry Reid, Nevada: www.senate.gov/~reid/
Senator Reid, the youngest of four sons born to Harry and Inez Reid, was born and raised in the small rural mining town of Searchlight, Nevada. He was raised in a small cabin without indoor plumbing and attended a two-room elementary school. His father was a hardrock miner with an 8th grade education, and his mother never finished high school.  Since Searchlight had no high school, Harry would board with local families during the school week while he attended Basic High in Henderson. Before graduating, Senator Reid met Landra Gould, who became his wife a few years later.  After high school, the Henderson business community helped him pay for college, an act of generosity Harry Reid would work hard to repay in the coming years. He graduated from Utah State University in 1961 and went on to get a law degree from George Washington University. His law school years acquainted Harry Reid with Capitol Hill, where he worked nights as a police officer to pay for school.

After graduating from law school, Harry Reid returned to Nevada to begin his career.  As the City Attorney in Henderson, he revised the city charter and worked on extending Henderson's boundaries by acquiring federal land.  In 1968, at the age of 28, Harry Reid was elected to the Nevada State Assembly. The young Assemblyman introduced the first air pollution legislation in the state's history and worked on introducing laws to protect consumers.  In 1970, Harry Reid was elected as Nevada's youngest-ever Lieutenant Governor. Governor Mike O'Callaghan who had been Harry's mentor and high school teacher asked that he work on gaming issues.  In 1977, Harry was appointed as the Chairman of the Nevada Gaming Commission where, for five years, he fought to clean up Nevada's gaming industry. During his term, Harry Reid established the Nevada Gaming Commission's reputation as being independent from the state's Gaming Control Board.  In 1983 after returning to his private law practice for a few years, Harry Reid was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. In the House, he championed issues that were important to Nevadans and introduced the Taxpayer Bill of Rights as well as legislation to protect Nevada's wilderness.

Since Nevadans elected him to the Senate in 1986, Harry Reid has developed a reputation as a straight-shooter who can build bipartisan consensus.  In December of 1998, after being re-elected for a third term, Nevada's Senior Senator was unanimously elected by his Democratic colleagues to serve as the Assistant Democratic Leader or "whip." He is the right-hand advisor to the Minority Leader, Tom Daschle and is often at the helm of national issues that require the expertise of a trusted statesman. His Senate leadership position has given the small state of Nevada a strong voice in Congress.

While in high school, young Harry met and fell in love with another Basic High student, Landra Gould. In 1959, two years after he had graduated from Basic, they were married. Landra and Harry later converted to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints while attending Utah State University.  In 1961, their first child and only daughter--Lana--was born. Son Rory was born in 1962. The bustling Reid family eventually grew to include five children. Lana and Rory were followed by three brothers, Leif, Josh, and Key.  Of all his accomplishments, nothing makes Harry Reid more proud than his family.  Despite the demands of his career in government, Harry Reid's family has always been his first priority. The bonds forged in the tight-knit family have only grown stronger as the Reid children have grown up, embarked on their careers, and started their own families. Today, Senator Reid and his wife Landra are the proud grandparents of nine grandchildren.

Tom was born in Tucson, Arizona, on May 18, 1948. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from Prescott College in Arizona in 1970. Tom studied International Law at Cambridge University in England, where he received a Bachelor of Law in 1975. In 1977 he earned his Juris Doctor from the University of New Mexico Law School.

Following graduation, Tom served as a law clerk for Chief Justice Oliver Seth of the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals in Santa Fe. In 1978 he was appointed Assistant United States Attorney, where he tried and handled appeals fora full range of criminal cases. In 1981, he entered private practice in Santa Fe. His interest in the environment then led Tom to join the New Mexico Health and Environment Department as Chief Counsel in1983. In this role, he advised the department on state and federal health and environmental laws and directed department litigation. Following a five-year tenure as partner and shareholder with the Albuquerque law firm of Miller, Stratvert, Torgerson & Schlenker, P.A. from 1985 to 1990, Tom entered the race for New Mexico Attorney General and was successful.

Attorney General Tom Udall served the state for two four-year terms. During this time he was elected by his peers as President of the National Association of Attorneys General, and he was known for his work on behalf of consumers, aggressively prosecuting criminals who defrauded New Mexicans.

Tom has served on the boards of the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival and the LAW FUND, a regional environmental public interest law firm. He has also served as President of the Rio Chama Preservation Trust and as a board member of La Compania de Teatro de Albuquerque. From 1986-87, Tom served on New Mexico's Environmental Improvement Board and currently is a member of the Kiwanis Club of Albuquerque, Inc.

Tom comes from a family distinguished for its devotion to public service. In the 1800s, his relatives settled in western New Mexico and eastern Arizona. His father Stewart Udall, served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1954 to 1960, and subsequently as Secretary of the U.S. Interior Department during the Kennedy and Johnson Administrations. Tom's Uncle Morris "Mo" Udall represented Arizona in Congress from 1961 to 1991, serving as chairman of the U.S. House Interior Committee for 14 years; he ran for President of the United States in 1976. Tom's cousin, Mark Udall, also serves in Congress as the newly-elected Representative from Colorado's Second Congressional District.

Although he has only served for a short time in the House, Congressman Tom Udall has already had an impact in the lives of his fellow New Mexicans, dedicating himself to improving New Mexico's system of education, providing quality affordable health care to all New Mexicans, and working to build strong economic opportunities for our communities.

Tom is married to Jill Z. Cooper, a former Deputy New Mexico Attorney General. They have one daughter, Amanda Cooper.

Jim Matheson, 40, is a sixth-generation Utahn who was born and raised in Salt Lake City. Jim, his sister, and his two brothers all attended Salt Lake City public schools. He received his B.A. in Government from Harvard and his M.B.A. from UCLA.

For the past twelve years, Jim has worked in the energy industry for several local companies such as Bonneville Pacific, Energy Strategies, Inc., and his own business, The Matheson Group. Matheson managed the development of Bonneville Pacific's two most successful projects which helped companies improve energy efficiency. While working for ESI, he helped hospitals, industries, corporations, and other large energy-users develop ways to adapt to the changing world of energy deregulation.

Starting his own company in 1998, Matheson gained first-hand experience with the challenges facing small business owners. The Matheson Group worked with both the private and public sectors to improve the way businesses procure energy and to help local governments meet the challenges of a changing, deregulated energy sector.

During college, Jim worked in Washington, DC as a congressional intern for the Speaker of the House where he learned the importance of bi-partisanship and creating a positive vision for the future. After graduation, he worked as an advocate for the Environmental Policy Institute where he helped reduce government waste in the area of synthetic fuel subsidies.

Jim combines business know-how and environmental sensibility with a commitment to community service.  For several years he served on the Salt Lake Public Utilities Board where he helped set policy for public water, sewer, and storm water programs.  In addition, he served as a board member of the Scott M. Matheson Leadership Forum which helps make college more affordable for students who demonstrate leadership and a commitment to community service by providing tuition grants.

Jim has a long history of political involvement. At an early age, he learned the value of public service from his father and mother while working on two successful Matheson for Governor campaigns.  He was elected to the House of Representatives in November 2000.

Jim's spouse Amy is a pediatrician, and they have a son named Will.