Halvorson, Debbie, 1958-

Deborah L. Halvorson (born March 1, 1958) is an American businesswoman, educator, and politician. A member of the Democratic Party, she served as the U.S. Representative for Illinois's 11th congressional district, serving from 2009 until 2011. Previously, she served in the Illinois Senate from 1997 through 2009.

Born Deborah L. DeFrancesco in Chicago Heights, Illinois, she was raised in Steger, Illinois. After graduating from Bloom High School in 1976, DeFrancesco married Gordon Halvorson and started a small business selling cosmetics. They later divorced, and Halvorson married Jim Bush. Halvorson was elected clerk of Crete, Illinois, a small town roughly 40 miles south of Chicago after 14 years in cosmetic sales. In the mid-1990s, Illinois state senator Emil Jones recruited Halvorson to run for the state senate. She defeated longtime incumbent Republican Aldo DeAngelis with 56 percent of the vote in the 1996 general election. In the state senate, Halvorson sponsored legislation to lower the cost of prescription drugs for seniors and prevent abuse in nursing homes. She also made several international trips to promote businesses in her district. Halvorson returned to school after her election to the state senate. She earned an associate’s degree from Prairie State College in 1998, her bachelor’s from Governors State University in 2001, and a master’s from the same university two years later.

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