Susan Davis | |
|---|---|
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| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromCalifornia | |
| In office January 3, 2001 – January 3, 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Brian Bilbray |
| Succeeded by | Sara Jacobs |
| Constituency | 49th district (2001–2003) 53rd district (2003–2021) |
| Member of theCalifornia State Assembly from the76th district | |
| In office December 5, 1994 – November 30, 2000 | |
| Preceded by | Mike Gotch |
| Succeeded by | Christine Kehoe |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Susan Carol Alpert (1944-04-13)April 13, 1944 (age 81) Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | |
| Education | University of California, Berkeley (BA) University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill (MSW) |
Susan Carol Davis (néeAlpert; born April 13, 1944) is a former American politician who served as theU.S. representative forCalifornia's 49th congressional district for one term andCalifornia's 53rd congressional district for nine terms from 2001 to 2021. She is a member of theDemocratic Party.
Her district included central and eastern portions of the city ofSan Diego, as well as eastern suburbs such asEl Cajon,La Mesa,Spring Valley, andLemon Grove.[1]
Davis was born inCambridge, Massachusetts.[2] She has spent most of her life in California. She graduated with aBachelor of Arts degree from theUniversity of California, Berkeley, where she was a member ofDelta Phi Epsilon sorority.[3] She earned amaster's degree insocial work from theUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Her husband Steve Davis was a doctor in theU.S. Air Force during theVietnam War. After returning to California, she became a social worker inSan Diego.[4]
Davis became active in politics through her membership in the local branch of theLeague of Women Voters, of which she became president in 1977. She was elected to the board ofSan Diego Unified School District in 1983. She served there until 1992, including two years as president of the body.[5][6]
In 1994, she was elected to theCalifornia State Assembly, and was reelected in 1996 and 1998. In the Assembly, Davis chaired the Committee on Consumer Protection, Government Efficiency and Economic Development. She authored a state law giving women direct access to theirOB/Gyn doctors without requiring a referral from their primary care physicians. Other legislation she authored established the right of a patient to obtain a second medical opinion and allowed frail senior citizens to remain in their homes while receiving state-funded nursing care. She introduced laws to reward high-achieving teachers and to establish after-school programs at public schools.[6]
In 2000, Davis challenged three-termRepublican incumbentBrian Bilbray in what was then the 49th district, winning with 50 percent of the vote. Her district was renumbered the 53rd district after the2000 census redistricting and made somewhat more Democratic than its predecessor. Following the redistricting, she was reelected eight times without much difficulty. She is the firstDemocrat to represent what is now the 53rd district for more than one term in over half a century. The only other Democrat to represent this district since theHarry Truman administration,Lynn Schenk, was toppled by Bilbray in the1994 Republican wave.
Davis introduced a federal version of the California OB/Gyn law she authored at the start of every Congress from 2001 to 2009. Provisions of her OB/Gyn bill were included in thehealth care reform bill enacted into law.
In 2011, Davis voted for theNational Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 as part of a controversial provision that allows the government and the military to indefinitely detain American citizens and others without trial.[7]
Davis was a member of theNew Democrat Coalition[8] and she portrayed herself as someone who was willing to work across party lines. She served on the House Armed Services Committee. She also served on the Education and Workforce Committee, where she was the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee onHigher Education and Workforce Development.
In 2012, Davis filed a lawsuit to recover over $150,000 in campaign funds from her former campaign treasurer, Kinde Durkee.[9] Durkee was later sentenced to eight years in prison for fraud after pleading guilty to stealing seven million dollars from more than fifty people.[10]
On September 4, 2019, Davis announced that she would not seek re-election in 2020.[11]
Davis was inducted into theSan Diego Women's Hall of Fame in 2020.[2] On November 29, 2022, the House passed a bill to name a post office inRolando, San Diego after Davis.[18] PresidentJoe Biden signed the bill into law on December 27, 2022.[19] On July 7, 2023, a ceremony was held to rename the formerAndrew Jackson Post Office in Rolando after Davis.[20]
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromCalifornia's 49th congressional district 2001–2003 | Succeeded by |
| New constituency | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromCalifornia's 53rd congressional district 2003–2021 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial) | ||
| Preceded byas Former U.S. Representative | Order of precedence of the United States as Former U.S. Representative | Succeeded byas Former U.S. Representative |
| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
