Deborah Ross
Official portrait, 2020
Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromNorth Carolina's2nd district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2021
Preceded by	George Holding
Member of theNorth Carolina House of Representatives
In office January 29, 2003 – June 1, 2013
Preceded by	Bob Hensley (38th) Grier Martin (34th)
Succeeded by	Grier Martin
Constituency	38th district (2003–2013) 34th district (2013)
Personal details
Born	Deborah Koff (1963-06-20)June 20, 1963 (age 62) Philadelphia,Pennsylvania, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Stephen Wrinn ​ (m. 1994)​
Education	Brown University (BA) University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill (JD)
Website	House website Campaign website
Ross's voice Ross on theCHIPS and Science Act. Recorded July 28, 2022

Deborah Ross (néeKoff; born June 20, 1963) is an American lawyer and politician who has served as theU.S. representative forNorth Carolina's 2nd congressional district since 2021. Her district is based inRaleigh. A member of theDemocratic Party, Ross served as a member of theNorth Carolina House of Representatives from 2003 to 2013, representing the state's 38th and then 34th House district, including much of northern Raleigh and surrounding suburbs inWake County.

Ross was the Democratic nominee in the2016 U.S. Senate election in North Carolina, unsuccessfully challengingRepublican incumbentRichard Burr in the general election.

Ross was born inPhiladelphia,Pennsylvania, on June 20, 1963, and grew up inConnecticut.^[1] She is the daughter of Barbara (née Klein) and Marvin Koff.^[2] Her father was anAir Force physician and her mother was a teacher.^[3]

Ross earned her Bachelor of Arts degree fromBrown University in 1985 and herJuris Doctor from theUniversity of North Carolina School of Law in 1990.^[4]

After graduating from law school, Ross worked for Raleigh-basedHunton & Williams as a tax litigator and municipal bond lawyer.^[5] She taught atDuke Law School as a senior lecturing fellow.^[6]

Ross was hired as state director for theAmerican Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of North Carolina in 1994. She worked onFirst Amendment and juvenile justice issues. Alongside GovernorJim Hunt and then State SenatorRoy Cooper, she overhauled North Carolina's system for dealing with youth offenders. In response toracial profiling reports, she also successfully encouraged state police agencies to collect race-based statistics for traffic stops. Ross stepped down from her position at the ACLU in 2002 when she launched her state House campaign.^[1][5]

On May 1, 2013, Ross announced she would resign from the legislature in June to serve as legal counsel forGoTriangle, thetriangle area's regional transit agency.^[7] On June 1, 2013,Grier Martin was appointed to succeed her in the House.^[8]

In March 2017, Ross joined the regional law firm of Smith Moore Leatherwood LLP in Raleigh. Her practice focused on the economic development, energy, utilities, and infrastructure needs of businesses and government.^[9] Smith Moore Leatherwood combined with national law firmFox Rothschild, LLP, on November 1, 2018.^[10]

Ross was first elected to theNorth Carolina General Assembly in2002 and defeatedWake County Commissioner Phil Jeffreys in2004 to win a second term. She faced no opposition in the2006 general election, and in 2007, Ross was first elected as one of the House DemocraticWhips.

Ross supported the Equal Pay Act, an unsuccessful bill that would have banned North Carolina employers from paying workers differently based on gender.^[11]

In 2012, Ross compared state coastal protection policies that ignore scientists'sea level rise forecasts to burying one's "head in the sand". She said she was concerned that increased risk of flooding would lead insurance companies to charge higher premiums for coastal property owners.^[12]

In 2015, Ross resigned as legal counsel atGoTriangle to run for the U.S. Senate in2016.^[13] She won the March 2016 Democratic primary with 62.4% of the vote from a field of four candidates.^[14] Ross was endorsed byEMILY's List,Planned Parenthood, the North Carolina Association of Educators, the North CarolinaAFL–CIO,American Association for Justice,End Citizens United, theDemocratic Senatorial Campaign Committee,Democracy for America, and theLeague of Conservation Voters.^[15]

In the general election, Ross ran against the incumbent, RepublicanRichard Burr. Ross raised more money than Burr for three consecutive quarters, but nevertheless had less cash on hand as Burr began the year with $5.3 million in campaign funds. As of October 21, Ross was down 2.8% in theReal Clear Politics average of polls. The race received national attention asThe Cook Political Report rated the race a toss-up and Democrats viewed the seat as one they could win.^[16] in the November election, Burr defeated Ross 51% to 45%.^[17]

On December 2, 2019, Ross announced her candidacy for the U.S. House of Representatives in North Carolina's newly redrawn2nd congressional district in 2020.^[18] She jumped into the race shortly after a court-ordered redistricting cut the 2nd back to southern Wake County, including almost all of Raleigh. The old 2nd covered roughly half of Wake County, along with several exurbs south and east of the capital.^[19]

Had the district existed in 2016,Hillary Clinton would have carried it with 60% of the vote^[20] and defeatedDonald Trump by over 24 points.^[21] By comparison, Trump carried the old 2nd with 53% of the vote,^[22] defeating Clinton by 12 points. On paper, the new map turned the 2nd from a Republican-leaning district into a safely Democratic district.^[21]

With pundits suggesting that the 2nd was a likely Democratic pickup, Republican incumbentGeorge Holding, who had represented much of the area for two terms in the13th district before it was essentially merged with the 2nd in 2016, opted to retire. Holding said that the significantly bluer hue of the new 2nd figured significantly in his decision.^[21]

Ross won the Democratic primary on March 3.^[23] She won the general election on November 3, defeating Republican nominee Alan Swain and Libertarian Jeff Matemu.^[24]

On July 1, 2021, Ross andMariannette Miller-Meeks introduced the America's CHILDREN Act.^[25] If enacted, the bill would grant a pathway to permanent residency for children who grew up in the United States legally but were blocked from obtaining permanent residency due to green card backlogs and other legal barriers.

For the119th Congress:^[26]

• Committee on Ethics
• Committee on the Judiciary
  • Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, Artificial Intelligence, and the Internet
  • Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement
• Committee on Science, Space, and Technology
  • Subcommittee on Energy (Ranking Member)
  • Subcommittee on Environment

• Black Maternal Health Caucus^[27]
• Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus^[28]
• Congressional Equality Caucus^[29]
• Congressional Ukraine Caucus^[30]
• New Democrat Coalition^[31]
• Democratic Women’s Caucus^[32]
• Rare Disease Caucus^[33]

Ross has supported legislation that expands tax credits for families.^[34] She voted for theAmerican Rescue Plan Act of 2021, which increased theChild Tax Credit from $2,000 to $3,000 per child aged 6 to 17 and to $3,600 for children under 6, with payments distributed monthly instead of as a lump sum.^[35]

She supported legislation that expandedpremium subsidies under theAffordable Care Act (ACA) and offered financial incentives to states that had not yet expandedMedicaid under the ACA.^[35]

She voted for theInfrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which provided $8 billion of funding for highways and public transportation in North Carolina. The legislation also directed funds toward expanding broadband access in rural communities and replacing lead water pipes nationwide.^[36]

Ross supported theCHIPS and Science Act of 2022, a $280 billion bill aimed at increasing U.S.semiconductor manufacturing. Following its passage, semiconductor manufacturerWolfspeed announced plans to build a $5 billion production facility inChatham County.^[37]

Ross and her husband, Steve Wrinn, live in a home that they restored inBoylan Heights, a historic neighborhood inRaleigh.^[38]

Ross is one of threeUnitarian Universalists in Congress.^[39][40]

• Women in the United States House of Representatives

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• Profile atVote Smart

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