Sharice Davids

Sharice Lynnette Davids /ʃəˈris/[1] (born May 22, 1980) is an American attorney, former mixed martial artist, and politician serving as the U.S. Representative from Kansas's 3rd congressional district since 2019.[2] A member of the Democratic Party, she represents a district that includes most of the Kansas side of the Kansas City metropolitan area, including cities such as Kansas City, Overland Park, Prairie Village, Leawood, Lenexa, as well as Olathe.

Sharice Davids
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Kansas's 3rd district
Assumed office
January 3, 2019
Preceded byKevin Yoder
Personal details
Born
Sharice Lynnette Davids

(1980-05-22) May 22, 1980
Frankfurt, West Germany
Political partyDemocratic
EducationUniversity of Missouri–Kansas City (BBA)
Cornell University (JD)
WebsiteHouse website

Elected in 2018, Davids became the first Democrat elected to represent a Kansas congressional district in a decade.[3] Davids is the first openly LGBT Native American elected to the U.S. Congress, the first openly gay person elected to the U.S. Congress from Kansas, and one of the first two Native American women elected to Congress, along with Deb Haaland of New Mexico.[4][5][6] She is also the second Native American to represent Kansas in Congress, after Charles Curtis. As of 2020, Davids remains the only Democrat in Kansas's congressional delegation.

A lawyer educated at the University of Missouri–Kansas City and Cornell Law School, Davids was a professional mixed martial artist in the 2010s.

Early life and education

Davids was born on May 22, 1980, in Frankfurt, West Germany.[7]

Davids is a member of the Ho-Chunk (Winnebago) people, and an enrolled member of the Ho-Chunk Nation of Wisconsin. She lives in Roeland Park, Kansas.[8]

Her maternal grandfather, Fredrick J. Davids, a United States Army veteran, was born into the Mohican Nation Stockbridge-Munsee Band, in Oneida, Wisconsin.[9] Sharice was raised by Fredrick's daughter, her mother Crystal Herriage,[10] a single mother who served in the U.S. Army.

Davids attended Leavenworth High School, Haskell Indian Nations University, the University of Kansas, Johnson County Community College, and the University of Missouri–Kansas City, graduating from the last with a bachelor's degree in business administration in 2007.[11][12][13] Davids earned her Juris Doctor from Cornell Law School in 2010.[14]

Mixed martial arts career

Davids began competing in mixed martial arts (MMA) as an amateur in 2006, and went professional in 2013. She had a 5–1 win–loss record as an amateur and a 1–1 record as a professional.[15] She tried out for The Ultimate Fighter but did not make it onto the show, leading her to shift her focus away from MMA to travel the U.S. and live on Native American reservations to work with the communities on economic and community development programs.[12]

Record

Professional

Res. Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Loss 1–1 Rosa Acevedo Decision (unanimous) LCS 18 March 1, 2014 3 5:00 Torrington, Wyoming, United States [16][17]
Win 1–0 Nadia Nixon Submission (triangle choke) Shamrock FC – Conquest November 1, 2013 1 2:08 Kansas City, Missouri, United States [17]

Amateur

Res. Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Win 5–1 Heather Rafferty Decision (unanimous) Pride & Pain MMA October 20, 2012 3 3:00 Hot Springs, South Dakota, United States [17]
Win 4–1 Chandra Engel Submission (triangle choke) Ultimate Blue Corner Battles January 27, 2012 1 2:36 North Kansas City, Missouri, United States [17]
Win 3–1 Ronni Nanney TKO (knee & punch) Ultimate Blue Corner Battles April 1, 2011 3 3:00 North Kansas City, Missouri, United States [17]
Win 2–1 Stacia Hoss TKO (knee & punch) Ultimate Blue Corner Battles August 27, 2010 1 0:27 North Kansas City, Missouri, United States [17]
Loss 1–1 Erin Roper Submission (armbar) Shamrock FC: Midwest Fightfest May 11, 2007 1 1:53 Kansas City, Missouri, United States [17]
Win 1–0 Courtney Martel Technical Submission (triangle choke) ISFC Midwest Fightfest October 27, 2006 1 0:44 Kansas City, Missouri, United States [17]

Davids began her legal career at SNR Denton in 2010.[18] She later directed community and economic development for the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation and opened her own business, Hoka Coffee.

In 2016, she worked as a White House Fellow in the Department of Transportation during the transition between the Obama and Trump administrations.[11]

U.S. House of Representatives

2018
Main article: 2018 United States House of Representatives elections in Kansas § District 3

In the 2018 election, Davids ran for the United States House of Representatives in Kansas's 3rd congressional district. She defeated fellow Democrat Brent Welder, who had been endorsed by Bernie Sanders, by a margin of 37% to 34% in the August primary election and faced incumbent Republican Kevin Yoder in the November 6, 2018, general election.[19]

Kansas City NPR member station KCUR fact-checked the claims that Yoder and Davids made in separate interviews on their station, and gave Yoder an "F". Yoder said that immigrants were making false asylum claims, and would increase crime. Davids said that she supported single payer health care, but it could not be enacted with Republicans in the White House. Meanwhile she supports short-term goals like allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices and getting generics to market faster. KCUR said that Davids' claim that teachers aren't paid enough, and can no longer take tax deductions for buying their own school supplies, was "partly true and partly false," since the tax deduction was reinstated.[20]

Davids defeated Yoder in the general election.[21][22] Upon her swearing-in on January 3, 2019, she became the first Democrat to represent Kansas in the House since Dennis Moore left office in 2011.[3] She is also only the second Democrat to represent what is now the 3rd since 1963.

Davids and fellow Democrat Deb Haaland of New Mexico, a Laguna Pueblo, are the first Native American women to serve in Congress.

Tenure

On December 18, 2019, Davids voted to impeach President Donald Trump and was the only person representing Kansas to do so.[23] In March 2020, Davids quarantined herself for possible exposure to coronavirus. Prior to this, she had mostly switched her congressional office from physical to digital.[24]

Davids was named a vice-chair of the 2020 Democratic National Convention.[25]

Committee assignments

Caucus memberships

Recognition

Representative Cheri Bustos, the chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) took note of Davids "rating her toward the top of the freshman class in terms of doing things the right way." "She's not a showoff. She's an athlete and if you’ve known any high-level athletes, they're disciplined, they're methodical… nailing all the fundamentals." That high profile, within a day of Davids' taking office, also led a Republican PAC to quickly run an ad opposing her.[29]

In June 2019, to mark the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall riots, an event widely considered a watershed moment in the modern LGBTQ rights movement, Queerty named her one of the Pride50 "trailblazing individuals who actively ensure society remains moving towards equality, acceptance and dignity for all queer people".[30][31]

Electoral history
Kansas's 3rd Congressional District Democratic Primary (2018)[32]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Sharice Davids 23,066 37.3
Democratic Brent Welder 20,904 33.8
Democratic Tom Niermann 8,844 14.3
Democratic Mike McCamon 4,278 6.9
Democratic Sylvia Williams 2,906 4.7
Democratic Jay Sidie 1,762 2.9
Total votes 61,760 100
Kansas's 3rd Congressional District Election (2018)[33]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Sharice Davids 164,253 53.3
Republican Kevin Yoder (incumbent) 136,104 44.2
Libertarian Chris Clemmons 7,643 2.5
Total votes 343,113 100
Democratic gain from Republican
Kansas's 3rd Congressional District Election (2020)[34]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Sharice Davids 212,084 53.5
Republican Amanda Adkins 173,621 43.8
Libertarian Steven Hohe 11,077 2.8
Total votes 396,282 100
Democratic hold

See also

References
  1. Sharice, Davids. "When the coronavirus hit and our economy slowed, Kansas businesses took a hit. Yet Wall Street's booming. It shows the deck is stacked. That's why I'm working to get COVID aid to small businesses, keeping Kansans on the job". Twitter. Retrieved September 14, 2020.
  2. Missouri Bar 2010 Admittees
  3. Lowry, Brian (April 15, 2019). "'Not a showoff.' Sharice Davids' quiet approach endears her to Democratic leaders." The Kansas City Star. Retrieved July 13, 2019.
  4. Watkins, Eli (November 7, 2018). "First Native American women elected to Congress: Sharice Davids and Deb Haaland". CNN.
  5. Lowry, Bryan; Bergen, Katy (November 6, 2018). "Sharice Davids makes history: Kansas' 1st gay rep, 1st Native American woman in Congress". The Kansas City Star. Retrieved November 7, 2018.
  6. "CNN.com – Transcripts". Transcripts.cnn.com. August 23, 2018. Retrieved November 7, 2018.
  7. "DAVIDS, Sharice". U.S. House of Representatives. Retrieved June 25, 2019. Official listing on the History archives of the U.S. House of Representatives.
  8. "About". U.S. House of Representatives. December 3, 2012. Retrieved January 25, 2020.
  9. Fredrick J. Davids obituary, Amos Funeral Home, June 2014. Retrieved November 8, 2018.
  10. Sharice Davids makes history: Kansas’ 1st gay rep, 1st Native American woman in Congress, The Kansas City Star, Bryan Lowry & Katy Bergen, November 6, 2018. Retrieved November 7, 2018.
  11. Senter, Jay (February 15, 2018). "Shawnee resident, White House fellow Sharice Davids enters race for Yoder's seat". Shawnee Mission Post. Retrieved January 25, 2020.
  12. Karim Zidan (August 6, 2018). "How Sharice Davids traded in MMA for a shot at political history". The Guardian. Retrieved October 25, 2018.
  13. Bradley-Lopez, Gary (October 17, 2018). "UMKC alumnus Sharice Davids is not your average candidate". The University News. Retrieved January 25, 2020.
  14. "Sharice Davids '10 Wins Historic Election in Congressional Race in Kansas". Cornell Law School. November 8, 2018. Retrieved January 25, 2020.
  15. Raimondi, Marc (March 14, 2018). "Ex-MMA fighter Sharice Davids trying to go from the cage to Congress". MMA Fighting. Retrieved October 25, 2018.
  16. "Rosa Acevedo". ESPN.com. Retrieved December 9, 2018.
  17. Sherdog.com. "Sharice Davids MMA Stats". Sherdog. Retrieved December 9, 2018.
  18. Stanley-Becker, Isaac (August 14, 2018). "Sharice Davids, who sees past discrimination as her asset, could become the first gay Native American in Congress". The Washington Post. Retrieved October 25, 2018.
  19. Senter, Jay (August 8, 2018). "Sharice Davids edges Brent Welder for Democratic nomination, will face Kevin Yoder in fall". Shawnee Mission Post. Retrieved November 11, 2018.
  20. We Fact-Checked The Two Candidates In Kansas' 3rd District, And One Got An 'F', By Celisa Calacal, KCUR, October 29, 2018
  21. Kenny, Caroline (August 9, 2018). "Ex-MMA fighter Sharice Davids could become the first lesbian Native American congresswoman – CNNPolitics". Cnn.com. Retrieved October 25, 2018.
  22. "Sharice Davids edges Brent Welder for Democratic nomination, will face Kevin Yoder in fall". August 8, 2018. Retrieved October 25, 2018.
  23. Panetta, Grace (December 18, 2019). "Whip Count: Here's which members of the House voted for and against impeaching Trump". Business Insider. Retrieved January 22, 2020.
  24. Lucky Charms and blazer at the ready, Sharice Davids reflects on life in quarantine, Kansas City Star, Bryan Lowry, March 23, 2020. Retrieved 2020-09-18.
  25. "Democratic National Convention Announces 2020 Convention Officers, Schedule of Events". 2020 Democratic National Convention. July 30, 2020. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
  26. "Members". LGBT Equality Caucus. Retrieved February 16, 2019.
  27. "Native American Caucus Leadership Established for 116th Congress". Representative Debra Haaland. January 30, 2019. Retrieved February 16, 2019.
  28. "Members". New Democrat Coalition. Archived from the original on February 8, 2018. Retrieved February 5, 2018.
  29. John Gallagher (June 20, 2019). "Sharice Davids is making a name for herself in Congress fighting for equality". Queerty. Retrieved September 18, 2020.
  30. "Queerty Pride50 2019 Honorees". Queerty. Archived from the original on February 10, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2019.
  31. Gallagher, John (June 20, 2019). "Sharice Davids is making a name for herself in Congress fighting for equality". Queerty. Retrieved September 20, 2020.
  32. "Kansas Primary Election Results". The New York Times. New York. September 24, 2018. Retrieved December 9, 2018.
  33. "Kansas Election Results: Third House District". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved December 9, 2018.
  34. "General Election Results: Third House District". KSN. November 4, 2020. Retrieved November 5, 2020.
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by
Kevin Yoder		 Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Kansas's 3rd congressional district
2019–present		 Incumbent
U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial)
Preceded by
Jason Crow		 United States Representatives by seniority
311th		 Succeeded by
Madeleine Dean
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