Janice Kay Brewer (née Drinkwine, formerly Warren; born September 26, 1944)[1] is an American politician and author who served as the 22nd governor of Arizona from 2009 to 2015.

Brewer assumed the governorship as part of the line of succession, as determined by the Arizona Constitution, when Governor Janet Napolitano resigned to become U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security.

[4] Brewer and her older brother, Paul, lived in Hawthorne until she was ten years old, when the family moved to California, seeking "dry desert air and clean ocean breezes".

[7] One of their sons, Ronald Brewer, was declared not guilty by reason of insanity for the rape of a Phoenix woman in 1989; he was a psychiatric patient for many years in the Arizona State Hospital.

She also led a charge to block a monument for Vietnam War protesters which earned her the nickname Janbo,[12] a reference to the film character John Rambo.

[2] She won the Republican primary election with 45 percent of the vote, defeating Phoenix councilman Sal DiCiccio and gubernatorial aide Sharon Collins.

[15] As secretary of state, Brewer instituted a vote-by-fax program for overseas military troops, which was later adopted by other municipalities, including San Francisco.

Brewer helped to marshal changes brought about by Arizona Proposition 200 in 2004, which required citizens in the state to show proof of citizenship before registering to vote or applying for public benefits.

[41] When critics of the bill likened it to Nazism, Brewer falsely claimed that her father had died fighting Nazi Germany when he had lived for another ten years after the war.

[5] SB 1070 complicated Goddard's campaign not only because it brought Brewer ahead in the polls, but because his role as attorney general required him to defend Arizonan law in court.

Republicans criticized the new map as favoring the Democratic Party, so Brewer accused the independent chair Colleen Coyle Mathis of "gross misconduct" and refused to implement the redistricting.

[45] Brewer wrote a memoir in 2011 titled Scorpions for Breakfast: My Fight Against Special Interests, Liberal Media, and Cynical Politicos to Secure America's Border.

[53][54] Brewer resumed her focus on Arizona's economy when she entered her second term, passing a budget with the Republican-controlled legislature in 2011 that cut spending by $1.1 billion.

[58] In February 2014, Brewer reiterated that she was considering running for re-election,[60] but on March 12, 2014, she announced that she would not attempt to seek another term in office, which would have required what The Arizona Republic called a "long-shot court challenge".

Opponents blamed her support for SB 1070, her veto of a religious rights bill, and her corporate tax cuts for dissuading businesses from investing in the state.

The governor also armed the ACA with a $25 million deal closing fund[66] to help attract employers and replaced incentive programs with performance based tax credits.

[68] This allows the implementation of Arizona State University's plans to establish post-secondary education and research facilities closely tied to the Mayo Hospital's mission.

Brewer convened a task force in 2012 to develop recommendations that would simplify the tax code, reduce taxpayer confusion and improve compliance and efficiency.

This was criticized as a means to attack ethnic studies in general, but the only race-based instruction challenged by the law was a program to support Mexican American students in the Tucson Unified School District.

[20] This brought her in conflict with the Republican leader of the Arizona Senate, Andy Biggs, who was opposed by an alliance of Brewer's supporters and members of the Democratic Party.

[81] Brewer and the plaintiffs reached an agreement that ends this litigation by reaffirming Arizona's commitment to a community-based behavioral health system of care.

[91] Brewer created a Human Trafficking Council to implement best practices, promote greater collaboration with law enforcement, state agencies and the community-at-large and raise public awareness about victims' services, restitution and prevention.

[92] Brewer established the Arizona SERVES Task Force to improve the working relationships between the state, non-profit organizations and community and faith-based entities.

While speaking on the subject of crime related to illegal immigration, she said that "law enforcement agencies have found bodies in the desert either buried or just lying out there that have been beheaded", a claim that has been disputed.

[125] The NRRC prepared an Interim Report containing recommendations from five subcommittees (Clearinghouse, Engagement and Partnering, GIS, Mitigation and Conservation Banking and Planning).

Presented to Brewer and Sonora Governor Padres, both signed a Declaration of Cooperation between the two states to evaluate on an ongoing basis viable energy exchange opportunities.

[130] She also granted in-state student status for the purposes of tuition at any Arizona public university or community college to any person honorably discharged from the US Armed Forces.

Brewer signed a law repealing legislation put into place by former governor Janet Napolitano, which had granted domestic partners of state employees the ability to be considered as "dependents", similar to the way married spouses are handled.

"[136] On February 26, 2014, Brewer vetoed Arizona SB 1062 (a bill allowing business owners to refuse services to homosexuals) that was passed by the state legislature.

[141] There was speculation of Brewer being Trump's vice-presidential running mate in the 2016 United States presidential election,[142][143] but ultimately Mike Pence was selected.