REP. GRACIA YANCEY BACKER

Rep. Gracia Yancey Backer, a Democrat, represents part of Callaway County (District 20) in the Missouri House of Representatives.

Rep. Backer has the distinction of being the highest-ranking woman leader in the history of the Missouri House of Representatives serving as the current Majority Floor Leader and the Assistant Majority Floor Leader from January 1991 - December 1994. She also served on the Missouri Opportunity 2000 Commission, which examined Missouri's preparations for the 21st Century.

Rep. Backer belongs to the following organizations: Alpha Delta Pi Alumni; Friends of the Churchill Memorial; American Business Women's Association; NAACP; Callaway County Women's Democratic Club; and Democratic State Committee. Rep. Backer is also a member of the Young Democrats of Missouri Advisory Committee, Highway Employees and Highway Patrol Retirement Board; Missouri Historical Records Advisory Board; the Governor=s Steering Committee on Information and Data Sharing; Commission on Management and Productivity; Phi Alpha Theta, History Honor Society; the Information Technology Planning Board; and Fulton Area Development Corporation. She was a former president of the College Board of Associates and is currently a member of the board of governors for Memorial Community Hospital; Agriculture Leadership of Tomorrow board of directors; and Friends of the Archives board of directors.

In addition, she served as past chairperson of the Ninth Congressional District and in 1989, was elected the first woman president in the 85 year history of the Kingdom of Callaway Supper, an annual event in Fulton. Rep. Backer served as a Clinton delegate to the 1992 Democratic National convention in New York City.

Formerly, Rep. Backer was employed as secretary and administrative assistant to Senators Don Manford and Jack Gant, executive secretary of the Missouri Highway Reciprocity Commission and executive secretary of the Missouri League of Nursing Home Administrators, Inc.

A 1968 graduate of New Bloomfield High School, Rep. Backer attended Southwest Missouri State University and graduated from William Woods University in May, 1993.

Born January 25, 1950, Rep. Backer currently resides in New Bloomfield with her husband, Mike. They have one son, Justin Brown Backer.