The Hill’s 2012 New Members Guide

Rep.-elect Matt Salmon (R-Ariz.-05)

DATE OF BIRTH: Jan. 21, 1958

BIRTHPLACE: Salt Lake City

RESIDENCE: Mesa, Ariz.

OCCUPATION: Partner, Upstream Consulting Inc. 

EDUCATION: B.A., Arizona State University 

PREVIOUS OFFICE HELD: House of Representatives, 1st congressional district of Arizona, 1995-2001; Arizona State Senate, 1991-1995

FAMILY: Wife, Nancy; four children 

Matt Salmon returns to Congress after a 12-year absence.

Formerly of Arizona’s 1st district, Salmon voluntarily gave up his seat in 2001, honoring a term-limit pledge. Soon after, he ran to be governor of Arizona in 2002. He narrowly lost by 12,000 votes to Democrat Janet Napolitano, who went on to become the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security in the Obama administration.

The 5th district seat opened when Republican Rep. Jeff Flake decided to run for the Senate. Salmon beat out Arizona House Speaker Kirk Adams by 8 points in the primary to fill the safe GOP seat.  

After leaving office in the early 2000s, Salmon worked as a lobbyist. He ended his tenure at Upstream Consulting Inc. in 2012 to run for Congress. 

A member of the Mormon Church, he completed his mission in Taiwan. Salmon speaks fluent Mandarin.