VIDEO: Arizona politician Rusty Bowers to receive Presidential Citizens Medal at the White House

WASHINGTON — Arizona politician Rusty Bowers is set to receive a Presidential Citizens Medal this week at the White House.

Bowers was the Arizona House Speaker during the 2020 election and "(resisted) pressure from those seeking to overturn the election results,” according to the White House.

The ceremony will take place at the White House on Friday, Jan. 6, 2023.

President Joe Biden will deliver remarks and give the awards to “individuals who made exemplary contributions to our democracy surrounding January 6, 2021.”

Several law enforcement officers and Capitol Police officers will also be honored for their actions in defending the Capitol.

“These 12 heroes demonstrated courage and selflessness during a moment of peril for our nation. They include Capitol Police, Metropolitan Police, election workers, and officials at the state and local level,” the White House said.

The full list of those receiving the special honor is as follows:

• Rusty Bowers served as the Arizona House Speaker during the 2020 election, resisting pressure from those seeking to overturn the election results. He received the 2022 John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage award.
• Jocelyn Benson served as the Secretary of State of Michigan during the 2020 election and faced pressure from those seeking to overturn the election results, including armed protesters outside her home. Benson received the 2022 John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage award.
• Harry Dunn is a Capitol Police Officer who defended the Capitol on January 6^th, facing racial slurs and harassment from rioters. Dunn has served in the Capitol Police force for nearly fifteen years.
• Caroline Edwards was the first law enforcement officer injured by rioters on January 6^th. Even after suffering a traumatic brain injury, Officer Edwards worked to prevent rioters from entering the Capitol building. Officer Edwards has served in law enforcement for nearly six years.
• Michael Fanone served as a Metropolitan Police Department Officer and defended the Capitol on January 6^th, suffering injuries during the attack. After the attack, he resigned from the Metropolitan Police Department, having served for 20 years after joining in the wake of September 11^th.
• Ruby Freeman served as an election worker in Fulton County, Georgia, during the 2020 election. Ms. Freeman worked to ensure that the people of Georgia could vote freely and fairly, and, for simply doing her job, was forced to withstand efforts to overturn the election that targeted and threatened her and her family.
• Aquilino Gonell served as a Capitol Police Sergeant and defended the Capitol on January 6^th, suffering injuries during the attack. Sergeant Gonell is an emigrant from the Dominican Republic and a U.S. Army veteran who served in Iraq.
• Eugene Goodman is a Capitol Police Officer who defended the Capitol on January 6^th. He is credited with diverting rioters from the floor of the Senate while members were still evacuating. Officer Goodman is a U.S. Army veteran and, from January 20, 2021, to March 2, 2021, served as Acting Deputy Sergeant at Arms of the U.S. Senate.
• Daniel Hodges is a Metropolitan Police Department Officer who defended the Capitol on January 6^th, suffering injuries during the attack. The day of the attack was Hodges’s first time ever in the Capitol. Officer Hodges has served in the Metropolitan Police Department for over seven years.
• Shaye Moss served as an election worker in Fulton County, Georgia, during the 2020 election. Like her mother, Ruby Freeman – who was also a Fulton County election worker and will also receive the Presidential Citizen Medal – Ms. Moss was subjected to threats and harassment in the wake of the election. Ms. Moss received the 2022 John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage award.
• Al Schmidt is a former federal civil servant and served as a city commissioner on the Philadelphia County Board of Elections. During the 2020 election, he kept the vote tally going in the face of pressure and efforts to overturn the election.
• Brian Sicknick (posthumous) was a Capitol Police officer who defended the Capitol on January 6^th. After he lost his life protecting our elected representatives, Officer Sicknick was laid in honor in the Capitol rotunda in February 2021. The President, the First Lady, the Vice President, and the Second Gentleman visited to pay respects. In addition to guarding the Capitol for over a decade, Officer Sicknick also served in the New Jersey Air National Guard and was deployed to Saudi Arabia and Kyrgyzstan.