Political party Democratic Spouse Delores Brooks Profession Insurance Party Democratic Party | Religion Episcopalian Succeeded by Bill Montford Name Alfred Jr. | |
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Born September 21, 1948 (age 76)
Tallahassee, Florida ( 1948-09-21 ) Alma mater Florida A&M University,
Florida State University Residence Tallahassee, Florida, United States Education Florida State University, Florida A&M University | ||
Alfred James Lawson Jr. (born September 23, 1948), is an American politician who is the U.S. Representative for Florida's 5th congressional district, serving since 2017. The district covers all or parts of eight north Florida counties spanning from Gadsden in the west to Duval in the east.
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A Democrat, Lawson served in the Florida Legislature for 28 years, rising to the rank of "Dean of the Senate" prior to his election to the U.S. House of Representatives. From 2000 to 2010, Lawson served Florida Senate, representing the 6th District, where he was elected to serve as the Democratic Leader. From 1982 to 2000, was a member of the Florida House of Representatives.
Early life and education
Lawson was born in Midway, Florida, and attended Havana Northside High School where he was a standout athlete in basketball and track. He went on to become a basketball star at Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (FAMU), where he earned a bachelor's degree in political science. After a brief stint as professional basketball player with the Indiana Pacers and Atlanta Hawks, Lawson returned to Tallahassee where he landed a job at Florida State University as an assistant basketball coach where he help take the Seminoles to the elite eight. Lawson also earned his Master of Public Administration from Florida State University.
2010
Lawson ran for the Democratic nomination in Florida's 2nd congressional district in 2010, challenging seven-term incumbent Allen Boyd. Lawson narrowly lost to Boyd in the Democratic primary, and Boyd lost to Republican newcomer Steve Southerland in the general election by more than 12 percentage points.
2012
Lawson ran again for the seat in 2012, and won the Democratic nomination against Blue Dog-endorsed state Rep. Leonard Bembry. He lost to incumbent Republican nominee Steve Southerland in the general election by less than 6 points.
2016
A lawsuit challenging the Florida congressional district map radically changed the 5th district. For the past quarter century, the district and its predecessors had covered most of the majority-black precincts from Jacksonville to Orlando. The new map, however, changed the district to an east-west configuration stretching from Tallahassee to downtown Jacksonville. Lawson announced he would run on December 15, 2015, setting up a battle against Corrine Brown, the only congresswoman the district had known since its creation in 1993.
On paper, the district's demographics appeared to be against Lawson. While the district now included most of Tallahassee, the capital and its suburbs only accounted for 32 percent of the district's population, while the Jacksonville area accounted for 61 percent. However, his bid received a significant boost in July 2016, when Brown was indicted on federal corruption charges. He defeated Brown in the Democratic primary—the real contest in this heavily Democratic district—on August 30, 2016. He then defeated Republican Glo Smith in the general election on November 8 with 64% of the vote.
Tenure
Rep. Lawson was sworn in on January 3, 2017.