Five months after being shot in the head, Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords recently returned to the public eye with a trip to Tucson. Her husband, astronaut Mark Kelly, is retiring from NASA to support her continued recovery. One question remains: Will she return to politics?
It's been five months since Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords was shot in the head at an event in Tucson.
Her recovery has become a national drama and her release from a Houston-area rehabilitation center last week was greeted with cheers.
Now comes the more difficult question: Will Giffords ever return to public office?
The honest answer is that no one really knows.
Giffords chief of staff told the Arizona Republic that the congresswoman was using hand signals and pointing to communicate but that "when it comes to a bigger and more complex thought that requires words, that's where she's had the trouble."
Another Giffords strategist said that the congresswoman is entirely focused on her recovery and that "a decision on 2012 will most likely come in 2012."
Giffords has three options when it comes to her political future: leave office entirely, run for reelection to her southern Arizona House seat or run for an open seat being vacated by Sen. Jon Kyl.
The most likely outcome seems to be a run for her House seat, a race in which she would be a heavy favorite although Jesse Kelly, who nearly beat her in 2010, has filed to run again in 2012.
Giffords has until the state's May 2012 filing deadline to decide what she wants to do next. The country will be watching.
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