Senator Ken Bennett Contact information

Ken Bennett, born as Kenneth Roy Bennett on August 1, 1959, is an American politician and a member of the Republican Party. He has been serving as a member of the Arizona Senate since 2023. However, his political career started much earlier. He was a member of the state Senate from 1999 to 2007, and served as the president of the state Senate from 2003 to 2007. He also held the position of Secretary of State of Arizona from 2009 to 2015.

Bennett was born in Tucson, Arizona. His parents moved to Prescott shortly thereafter, where he was raised and later graduated from Prescott High School. Upon graduation, Bennett served a two-year mission in southern Japan, and remains an active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In 1981, he graduated from Yavapai College under the President’s Scholarship. He then transferred to Arizona State University (ASU) in Tempe, graduating with a Bachelor’s in Accounting.

In 1984, Bennett began working for Bennett Oil Company, a fuel distribution business in northern Arizona. Initially working in finance, Bennett eventually inherited the position of chief executive officer, where he remained until 2006. In addition, he sits on the board of directors for Global Building Systems Inc., a sustainable building systems company, as well as Treasurer on the board of directors of Cancer Treatment Centers of America.

Bennett is an active member of Arizona Tea Party groups and regularly attends Tea Party events and meetings. He was elected to the Prescott City Council in 1985 and served as Mayor Pro Tem in 1988. He served on the City Council until 1989. He was appointed to the Arizona State Board of education in 1992, serving as president in 1996 and 1998. In 1998, he was elected to the Arizona State Senate, serving four two-year terms, the second as Chairman of the Education Committee, and the third and fourth as President of the Senate (2003–2007).

When Jan Brewer ascended from Arizona Secretary of State to governor upon Janet Napolitano’s resignation to become United States Secretary of Homeland Security, Bennett was selected as the new secretary of state, being sworn in on January 26, 2009.