Austin Davis (born October 4, 1989) is an American politician who is the 35th lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania, since 2023. Prior to that, he served as a Democratic member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, representing the 35th district from 2018 to 2022. He is both the first African American lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania and the youngest person to be elected lieutenant governor in the United States.
Austin Davis | |
|---|---|
 Davis in 2022 | |
| 35th Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania | |
| Assumed office January 17, 2023 | |
| Governor | Josh Shapiro |
| Preceded by | Kim Ward (acting) |
| Member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from the 35th district | |
| In office February 5, 2018 – December 7, 2022 | |
| Preceded by | Marc Gergely |
| Succeeded by | Matt Gergely |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Austin Ankarie Davis October 4, 1989 McKeesport, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse |
Blayre Holmes (m. 2017) |
| Children | 1 |
| Education | University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg (BA) |
Early life and education
editDavis was born October 4, 1989, in McKeesport, Pennsylvania. He attended McKeesport Area High School, where he founded and served as chairman of the Mayor's Youth Advisory Council under then McKeesport, Pennsylvania mayor James Brewster.[1]
After graduating from high school, he attended the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg, where he earned a BA in political science in 2012.[2][3]
Career
editWhile in college, Davis was hired as a legislative intern by the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. In a February 2011 article on Black History Month, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review highlighted him as "a veteran at the politics of helping others."[4]
Davis previously served as executive assistant to Allegheny County executive Rich Fitzgerald. In 2014, Davis became the youngest and the first black vice chair at the Allegheny County Democratic Committee.[5]
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
edit
Davis ran for the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in the 35th district in a 2018 special election.[6][7] Davis defeated Republican candidate Fawn Walker-Montgomery with over 73% of the vote and became the first African American to serve as State Representative for the district.[8]
Committee assignments
edit(2021–2022)
Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania
editElection
edit
On December 14, 2021, it was reported that Davis would enter the 2022 race for Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania, after being selected by presumptive Democratic gubernatorial nominee Josh Shapiro to be his running mate.[10] Pennsylvania law requires that a lieutenant gubernatorial candidate must run independent of the gubernatorial candidate in the primary.
On November 8, 2022, Shapiro and Davis handily defeated the Republican ticket of Doug Mastriano and Carrie DelRosso in the general election.[11] Davis became the first African American to be elected lieutenant governor and the first millennial to win statewide office in Pennsylvania.[12]
Tenure
editUpon his swearing in at age 33, Davis became the youngest lieutenant governor in Pennsylvania history.[13] He is also the youngest current lieutenant governor in the United States.[14]
Personal life
editDavis met his wife, Blayre Holmes, at the August Wilson Center in 2012. The two were married on September 1, 2017. They live in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.[15] The couple had their first child, a daughter Harper, in September of 2023.[16]
Davis has served on the board of directors of the YMCA of Greater Pittsburgh,[17] The Consortium for Public Education, Communities in Schools of Pittsburgh,[18] Auberle, Adonai Center for Black Males, Small Seeds Development, and the Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh Charter School.[5]
Electoral history
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Austin Davis | 3,209 | 73.69 | |
| Republican | Fawn Walker-Montgomery | 1,129 | 25.92 | |
| Write-in | 17 | 0.39 | ||
| Total votes | 4,355 | 100.00 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Austin Davis | 15,165 | 96.73 | |
| Write-in | 513 | 3.27 | ||
| Total votes | 15,678 | 100.00 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Austin Davis (incumbent) | 21,327 | 92.52 | |
| Write-in | 1,725 | 7.48 | ||
| Total votes | 23,052 | 100.00 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Austin Davis | 768,141 | 63.00 | |
| Democratic | Brian Sims | 305,959 | 25.09 | |
| Democratic | Raymond L. Sosa | 145,228 | 11.91 | |
| Total votes | 1,219,328 | 100.00 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Austin Davis | 15,241 | 65.90 | |
| Republican | Don Nevills | 7,817 | 33.80 | |
| Write-in | 71 | 0.31 | ||
| Total votes | 23,129 | 100.00 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic |
|
3,031,137 | 56.49 | |
| Republican | 2,238,477 | 41.71 | ||
| Libertarian |
|
51,611 | 0.96 | |
| Green |
|
24,436 | 0.46 | |
| Keystone |
|
20,518 | 0.38 | |
| Total votes | 5,366,179 | 100.00 | ||
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Bowling, Brian (September 27, 2007). "East Young Achiever: Austin Davis". TribLIVE.com. Archived from the original on August 13, 2019. Retrieved August 13, 2019.
- ^ "Past Alumnus of Distinction Awardees". Alumnus of Distinction Award. Greensburg, PA: University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg. 2021. Retrieved September 30, 2022.
- ^ "Member Biography, Austin Davis". Members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Harrisburg, PA: Pennsylvania House of Representatives. 2022. Retrieved September 30, 2022.
- ^ DiVittorio, Michael (February 7, 2011). "BLACK HISTORY MONTH: At 21, Davis is a veteran at the politics of helping others". TribLIVE.com. Archived from the original on August 13, 2019. Retrieved August 13, 2019.
- ^ a b Daniels, Melissa (November 26, 2014). "Davis becomes 1st African-American to be named vice chair of Allegheny County Democratic Committee". TribLIVE.com. Archived from the original on August 13, 2019. Retrieved August 13, 2019.
- ^ "Democrat wins special election for state House seat in Western Pa". York Daily Record. January 23, 2018. Archived from the original on September 30, 2020. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
- ^ "Democrat Davis wins Pa. House's 35th District to fill Gergely's seat". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. January 23, 2018. Archived from the original on January 24, 2018. Retrieved August 13, 2019.
- ^ "January 23, 2018 Special Election Results". Allegheny County. Retrieved August 13, 2019.
- ^ a b c d "Representative Austin A. Davis". The official website for the Pennsylvania General Assembly. Retrieved January 17, 2022.
- ^ Caruso, Stephen (December 14, 2021). "W.Pa. Rep. Austin Davis to enter Pa. Lt. Gov race with Dem Josh Shapiro's backing". Pennsylvania Capital-Star. Archived from the original on December 14, 2021. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
- ^ "Democrat Josh Shapiro defeats Republican Doug Mastriano in Pennsylvania governor's race". NBC News. Retrieved November 9, 2022.
- ^ "Meet the history-makers of the 2022 midterm elections | CNN Politics". CNN. November 9, 2022.
- ^ "Who is the new Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania?". January 17, 2023.
- ^ Urie, Daniel (May 6, 2023). "Pa. lieutenant governor announces wife's pregnancy". PennLive Patriot-News. Advance Local Media LLC. Retrieved May 8, 2023.
- ^ "Lt. Governor Austin Davis | Lt Governor | Commonwealth of Pennsylvania". www.pa.gov. Retrieved July 24, 2024.
- ^ Johnson, Kayleigh (September 4, 2023). "Lt. Gov. Austin Davis and wife Blayre welcome baby girl to the world". WPMT-TV. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
- ^ "Meet Pittsburgh YMCA Leadership and Staff". www.pittsburghymca.org. Retrieved August 13, 2019.
- ^ "Board - Communities in Schools of Pittsburgh - Allegheny County". cispac.org. Retrieved August 13, 2019.
- ^ "REPRESENTATIVE IN THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY 35TH DISTRICT". Allegheny County, PA January 23, 2018 Special Election. www.scytl.com. March 5, 2018. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
- ^ "REPRESENTATIVE IN THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY 35TH DISTRICT". Allegheny County, PA November 6, 2018 General Election. www.scytl.com. November 26, 2018. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
- ^ "REPRESENTATIVE IN THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY 35TH DISTRICT". Allegheny County, PA November 3, 2020 General Election. scytl.us. November 25, 2020. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
- ^ "2022 General Primary Tuesday, May 17, 2022 Official Returns Statewide". electionreturns.pa.gov. Pennsylvania Department of State. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
- ^ "REPRESENTATIVE IN THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY DISTRICT 35". Allegheny County, PA November 8, 2022 General Election. scytl.us. December 12, 2022. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
- ^ "2022 General Election". Pennsylvania Elections - Summary Results. Pennsylvania Department of State. Retrieved January 8, 2023.
External links
edit
- Lieutenant Governor Austin Davis Archived November 9, 2022, at the Wayback Machine official government website
- Austin Davis for Lieutenant Governor campaign website
- Appearances on C-SPAN