Byron Donalds | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Official portrait, 2021 | |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Florida's 19th district | |
| Assumed office January 3, 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Francis Rooney |
| Member of the Florida House of Representatives from the 80th district | |
| In office November 8, 2016 – November 3, 2020 | |
| Preceded by | Matt Hudson |
| Succeeded by | Lauren Melo |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Byron Lowell Donalds October 28, 1978 Brooklyn, New York City, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican (since 2010)[1] |
| Other political affiliations | Democratic (until 2010)[1] |
| Spouses |
Bisa Hall
(m. 1999; div. 2002) |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | Florida A&M University Florida State University (BS) |
| Occupation |
|
| Website | House website |
Byron Lowell Donalds (born October 28, 1978)[2] is an American politician and financial analyst who has served as the U.S. representative for Florida's 19th congressional district since 2021, as a member of the Republican Party. His district includes much of Southwest Florida.[3][4]
Born and raised in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, Donalds attended Florida A&M University and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in finance and marketing from Florida State University in 2002. Before entering politics, Donalds worked in the finance, insurance, and banking industries.[2] In the conservative wing of the Republican Party,[5][6][7] Donalds was a member of the Tea Party movement and unsuccessfully ran for the U.S. House of Representatives in 2012. He represented the 80th district in the Florida House of Representatives from 2016 to 2020.[8][9][10]
Donalds was elected to Congress in 2020, defeating Democratic nominee Cindy Banyai. In the January 2023 Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives election, he was nominated for the speakership in the fourth through 11th rounds of voting.[11] Several months later, Donalds was a candidate in the third nomination for the October 2023 Speaker of the United States House of Representatives election.[12]
In January 2021, Donalds voted to object to the certification of electors from Arizona and Pennsylvania in the 2020 presidential election.[13] Donalds said that he did not "personally" believe that President Joe Biden was a "legitimate" president of the United States,[14] but that Biden was nevertheless the president.[15]
- ^ a b Ogles, Jacob (August 11, 2020). "Byron Donalds issues cease-and-desist letter to Casey Askar campaign". Florida Politics. Retrieved January 11, 2022.
- ^ a b "Meet Byron". Byron Donalds for Congress. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
- ^ Sarkissian, Arek (August 30, 2016). "Donalds, Rommel win state House seats". Naples News. Retrieved December 13, 2018.
- ^ "Florida House of Representatives - Byron Donalds - 2016-2018". Myfloridahouse.gov. Retrieved December 13, 2018.
- ^ Broadwater, Luke (October 24, 2023). "House Speaker Election: Third Republican Nominee for Speaker Is Out". The New York Times.
favorites of the party's right wing.
- ^ Bunn, Curtis (January 5, 2023). "Who is Byron Donalds? Rebel Republicans rally around the Florida congressman to defeat McCarthy". NBC News.
conservative Republican
- ^ Fineout, Gary (August 27, 2023). "DeSantis to GOP Rep. Donalds: Whose side are you on?". Politico.
DeSantis lumped the conservative Black Republican...
- ^ Conradis, Brandon (November 3, 2020). "Republican Byron Donalds wins House race in Florida". The Hill.
- ^ "Byron Donalds - 2018 - 2020 ( Speaker Oliva ) | Florida House of Representatives". Archived from the original on February 8, 2017. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
- ^ "Black-American Members by Congress, 1870–Present". U.S. House of Representatives: History, Art & Archives. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
- ^ Sangal, Aditi; Vogt, Adrienne; Hayes, Mike; Chowdhury, Maureen; Hammond, Elise (January 5, 2023). "Live updates: House speaker vote and news". CNN. Retrieved January 5, 2023.
- ^ Dolan, Paul (October 20, 2023). "Byron Donalds running for speaker of the House". WINK News. Retrieved October 21, 2023.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
:0was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Cite error: The named reference
:1was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Biden is the worst president this country has ever seen: Rep. Byron Donalds". Fox Business. February 14, 2024. Retrieved March 21, 2024.