Don Scott (Virginia politician) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Don Scott
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Scott in 2023
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| Speaker-elect of the Virginia House of Delegates | |
| Assuming office January 10, 2024 |
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| Succeeding | Todd Gilbert |
| Minority Leader of the Virginia House of Delegates | |
| Assumed office June 1, 2022 |
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| Preceded by | Eileen Filler-Corn |
| Member of the Virginia House of Delegates from the 80th district |
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| Assumed office January 8, 2020 |
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| Preceded by | Matthew James |
| Personal details | |
| Born | March 5, 1965 |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Mellanda Colson |
| Children | 1 |
| Education | Texas A&M University (BA) Louisiana State University (JD) |
Don Scott (born March 5, 1965) is an American politician. A Democrat, he is a member of the Virginia House of Delegates, representing the 80th district. He was elected Minority Leader of the Virginia House of Delegates on June 1, 2022. After Democrats won the majority in the 2023 Virginia House of Delegates election, Scott was nominated unanimously by his caucus to become Speaker of the Virginia House of Delegates, the first Black Speaker in Virginia's history.
Biography
Scott was raised in Houston, Texas by a single mother of six children. Scott attended a magnet high school for aerodynamics before attending and graduating from Texas A&M University with a degree in agriculture. Following his undergraduate education, Scott served as a Naval Officer until 1991 when he received an honorable discharge. Following his time in the navy, Scott obtained a JD from Louisiana State University Law School in 1994.
..... Later, he acknowledged his mistakes, and said that the experience motivated him and showed him injustices of the legal system. In 2002, after his release, Scott took an entry-level position at KRA Corporation, a workforce development company. During his time at KRA, Scott relocated to Portsmouth, Virginia and eventually became Senior Vice President at the firm.
In 2015, Scott was admitted to the bar and opened his own firm, where he practiced criminal defense, family law, and civil cases. In 2022, Scott joined Breit Biniazan Trial Lawyers as a partner.
In 2021, Scott donated a kidney to his next-door neighbor, Virginia Circuit Court Judge Johnny E. Morrison.
Political career
2019
Scott filed to run to represent the 80th district in the 2019 Virginia House of Delegates election after the resignation of Matthew James, who was appointed by Governor Ralph Northam to an executive position. Scott was unopposed in the primaries, and in the general election defeated Republican James W. Evans and Independent Ryan Benton with 66.01% of the vote.
2020
In March 2020, Scott endorsed former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden in the 2020 Democratic Primary.
2021
Scott was unopposed in the primaries, and in the general election defeated Republican Deanna Stanton with 66.01% of the vote.
2022
After his party lost 7 seats and control of the House, Scott led a party rebellion to oust former Speaker and party leader Eileen Filler-Corn. Along with fellow Delegates Dan Helmer and Sally Hudson, all of whom were first elected in 2019, Scott led a vote of no confidence. However, the Democratic Delegates could not agree on who to install as the new leader so the position went vacant for over a month, while Caucus Chair Charniele Herring, who sustained her own vote of no confidence, went as acting leader, until Scott defeated her on June 1.
