Mark Pryor : Ask Biography

Personal data

Date of birth

January 10, 1963(age 53)

Place of birth

Fayetteville, Arkansas

Nationality

American

Political party

Democratic

Spouse

Jill Pryor

Children

Adams Pryor
Porter Pryor

Residence

Little Rock, Arkansas

Alma mater

University of Arkansas (B.A., J.D.)

Occupation

Attorney
Politician

Religion

Southern Baptist

Assumed office

January 3, 2003

Serving with John Boozman

Preceded by

Tim Hutchinson

53rd Arkansas Attorney General

In office

January 12, 1999 - January 3, 2003

Governor

Mike Huckabee

Succeeded by

Mike Beebe

Preceded by

Winston Bryant

Home | Office Holder | Mark Pryor

Mark Lunsford Pryor (born January 10, 1963) is the senior United States Senator from Arkansas, serving since 2003. He is a member of the Democratic Party and former Attorney General of Arkansas.

Born in Fayetteville, Arkansas, Pryor is the son of former Arkansas Governor and U.S. Senator David Hampton Pryor. He received his bachelor's degree and law degree from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville. He worked in private practice for several years until being elected to the Arkansas House of Representatives in 1990. He was elected the state Attorney General in 1998. Pryor announced his candidacy for the U.S. Senate in 2001, running for the same Senate seat his father had held from 1979 to 1997. He was elected with 54 percent of the vote.

A moderate Democrat, Pryor was a member of the bipartisan Gang of 14 formed in 2005 to forge a compromise on the use of the Senate filibuster. He was re-elected with no Republican opposition in 2008. In January 2009 he briefly became the youngest member of the Senate. In the 112th Congress he is the chairman of the Commerce Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety, and Insurance.