LeAnne Pittman Burch (1960–)

LeAnne Pittman Burch of Monticello (Drew County) served in the Arkansas House of Representatives representing District 9 (parts of Drew and Ashley counties) from 2016 to 2020.

LeAnne Gail Pittman was born in Stuttgart (Arkansas County) on October 7, 1960, to Floyd Lee Pittman Jr. and Gail Gateley Pittman. She was raised in Point Deluce, a township in Arkansas County. When she was twelve, she moved to Monticello with her mother and siblings (Lynne Gateley Pittman and Floyd Lee Pittman III) so that her mother could obtain hours for a teaching certificate at the University of Arkansas at Monticello (UAM). They then returned to Arkansas County, where Pittman graduated from DeWitt High School in 1979.

She majored in elementary education and earned a BA from Hendrix College in Conway (Faulkner County) in 1982. She earned her Juris Doctorate from the University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law in 1985.

She began her legal career in the U.S. Army and served on active duty for twelve years. Her military deployments included tours as the senior legal advisor to the Afghan National Army and Afghan Ministry of Defense, and legal advisor on NATO issues as part of Operation Joint Guard in Bosnia-Herzegovina. She earned an LLM (Master of Laws) from the Judge Advocate General’s Legal Center and School (known as the JAG School) in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 1996 and also received a master’s degree in military strategic studies from the United States Army War College in 2005. She was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal, the Legion of Merit, and the Bronze Star.

She married U.S. Army dentist Robert Burch Jr., and in 1998, they left active duty and moved to his hometown of Monticello. LeAnne Burch joined the Office of Chief Counsel with the Arkansas Department of Human Services (ADHS) in 2002 as a legal specialist for child and adult welfare. She remained in the Army Reserve for eighteen years, rising to the rank of brigadier general, and was the first woman to command the U.S. Army Reserve Legal Command. She was the second female army reservist selected to serve as general officer in the Judge Advocate General’s Corps. As a general officer, she also served as the Reserve Component chief judge, U.S. Army Court of Criminal Appeals. Burch was the Drew County DHS Employee of the Year in 2012 and the Hendrix College Distinguished Alumna of 2014.

In November 2016, Burch was elected to the Arkansas House of Representatives to complete the term of Representative Sheilla Lampkin of Monticello, who died from ovarian cancer. The District 9 counties (Ashley and Drew) held a special Democratic convention to nominate a replacement candidate. The number of delegates to the district convention was based on the 2014 gubernatorial election. Drew County, which had more delegates to the convention (six total), voted to nominate Burch. Another Democrat—Candace Jeffress from Crossett (Ashley County)—received Ashley County’s five votes.

A special election to fill the remaining term of Lampkin was held on the same ballot as the general election on November 8, 2016. The Republican Party candidate, Jim Hall, was later disqualified by the Arkansas Supreme Court from both elections due to legal issues. Burch assumed office on November 16, 2016, to complete Lampkin’s unfilled seven weeks of that term. Burch started the new term in 2017 (the Ninety-first General Assembly).

Burch was reelected in 2018 without opposition. She served as the House Minority Whip in the Ninety-second General Assembly, making her the second-most-powerful Democrat in the House Minority Caucus. During her time in office, Burch served on the House Education, Transportation, and Joint Budget committees. She was also the co-chair of the House Hunger Caucus and chaired the House Military Caucus.

Burch was the lead sponsor for “Jacob’s Law,” which expanded and clarified Arkansas’s impaired driving law. She also sponsored legislation that created the Arkansas Medal of Honor Commission. Burch received the Arkansas Judicial Council First Branch Award, Arkansas Chamber of Commerce Award, Associated Industries of Arkansas Business Matters Leadership Award, and the Arkansas Municipal League Distinguished Legislator Award.

In 2020, Burch was defeated for reelection by 464 votes out of a little more than 10,000 cast. Burch remained active in Monticello as a member of First United Methodist Church, Master Gardeners, the Hospital Auxiliary, Daughters of the American Revolution, and the Vera Lloyd Presbyterian Services Board of Directors. She received the Monticello Rotary Club’s “Service Above Self” award and also received the Joseph T. Robinson Medal of Merit from the National Guard Association of Arkansas. For the 2024 spring semester, UAM hired Burch to teach Arkansas politics and government.

For additional information:
Moritz, John. “Democrats Pick Lawyer to Run for District 9 Seat.” Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, August 6, 2016. https://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2016/aug/06/democrats-pick-lawyer-to-run-for-distri/ (accessed September 25, 2024).

Smith, Lindsley, and Stephen Smith. Stateswomen: A Centennial History of Arkansas Women Lawmakers, 1922–2022. Fayetteville: University of Arkansas Press, 2022.

Zach Bledsoe
Henderson State University