Former State Rep. Jeanne Givens, the first Native American woman elected to the Idaho Statehouse, has died.
A member of the Coeur d’Alene Tribe born in Plummer, Idaho, she represented District 4 at the Statehouse . She served two terms from 1985 to 1989, and served on the Indian Affairs, Business, Education, State Affairs and Health and Welfare committees
In 1988, she became the first native woman to ever run for a seat in the U.S. congress, but was defeated by Republican Larry Craig. Givens was later a member and chair of the North Idaho College Board of Trustees. In 1997, President Bill Clinton appointed her to the board of Directors of the Institute of American Indian Arts.
In a statement, Nez Perce tribal member Trish Carter-Goodheart, who ran for a House seat representing District 6 in 2024, called Givens a visionary.
“Jeanne didn’t just open doors for people like me, she broke them down with love and fire,” she said. “In 1988, she became the first Native Woman to run for U.S. Congress, planting seeds that wouldn’t bloom until thirty years later. Her courage was a gift. Her strength made room for all of us.”
On social media, her family shared the 73 year old had died of cancer.
