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Donna Edwards
| Donna Edwards | ||
 | ||
| U.S. House, Maryland, District 4 | ||
| Incumbent | ||
| In office | ||
| June 17, 2008-Present | ||
| Term ends | ||
| January 3, 2015 | ||
| Years in position | 5 | |
| Party | Democratic | |
| Predecessor | Al Wynn (D) | |
| Compensation | ||
| Base salary | $174,000/year | |
| Elections and appointments | ||
| Last election | November 6, 2012 | |
| First elected | June 17, 2008 | |
| Next election | November 4, 2014 | |
| Campaign $ | $2,913,062 | |
| Term limits | N/A | |
| Prior offices | ||
| District of Columbia Superior Court Judge | ||
| Education | ||
| Bachelor's | Wake Forest University | |
| J.D. | Franklin Pierce Law Center | |
| Personal | ||
| Birthday | June 28, 1958 | |
| Profession | Attorney | |
| Net worth | $36,481 | |
| Religion | Baptist | |
| Websites | ||
| Office website | ||
| Campaign website | ||
 | ||
Contents |
Based on an analysis of bill sponsorship by GovTrack, Edwards is a "rank-and-file Democrat".[2]
Edwards won re-election on November 6, 2012.[3]
Biography
Edwards was born in 1958. She earned her B.A. from Wake Forest University and her J.D. from the Franklin Pierce Law Center. Prior to her congressional career, Edwards worked as an attorney, clerk, District of Columbia Superior Court judge, and executive director of the National Network to End Domestic violence.[4]
Career
Below is an abbreviated outline of Edwards' professional and political career[4]:
- District of Columbia Superior Court Judge
- Executive Director, National Network to End Domestic Violence
- Executive Director, Foundation for a New Democracy
- Executive Director, the Arca Foundation
- U.S. House of Representatives, Maryland's 4th congressional district, 2008-Present
Committee assignments
U.S. House
2013-2014
Edwards serves on the following committees:[5]
- Committee on Science, Space, and Technology
- Subcommittee on Environment
- Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics - Ranking Minority Member
- Transportation and Infrastructure Committee
- Subcommittee on Highways and Transit
- Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment
- Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings and Emergency Management
2011-2012
Edwards served on the following House committees:[6]
- Transportation and Infrastructure Committee
- Subcommittee on Highways and Transit
- Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment
- Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management
- Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation Ranking Member
- Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics
Issues
Specific votes
Fiscal Cliff
Edwards voted for the fiscal cliff compromise bill, which made permanent most of the Bush tax cuts originally passed in 2001 and 2003 while also raising tax rates on the highest income levels. She was one of 172 Democrats that voted in favor of the bill. The bill was passed in the House by a 257/167 vote on January 1, 2013.[7]
Campaign themes
2012
The following are four campaign issues which were highlighted on Edwards' campaign website.[8]
- Economy
Excerpt: Edwards co-sponsored the American Jobs Act, "This legislation includes investing $625 million in Maryland infrastructure projects that would create at least 8,100 jobs.[9]
- Healthcare
Excerpt: "I was an original cosponsor of the Affordable Care Act and because of my leadership throughout the process, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) honored me with being one of only a few members to serve as Speaker Pro Tempore on the day of the final vote."[10]
- Education
Excerpt: "I voted and was a strong advocate for the final version of the health care reform law that included the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act (SAFRA) — the single largest investment in college aid in history."[11]
- War in Afghanistan
Excerpt: "I believe it is past time for the American people and the United States Congress to have a full and open debate about our military presence in Afghanistan."[12]
Elections
2012
Edwards ran in the 2012 election for the U.S. House, representing Maryland's 4th District. On April 3, 2012, she defeated challengers Ian Garner and George McDermott in the Democratic primary. She defeated Faith Loudon in the November general elections.
Edwards was endorsed by the organization Progressive Maryland in her race for re-election in Maryland's 4th district. [13][14][15]
General election
|
|
| U.S. House, Maryland, District 4 General Election, 2012 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic |  Donna Edwards Incumbent |
77.2% | 240,385 | |
| Republican | Faith Loudon | 20.7% | 64,560 | |
| Libertarian | Scott Soffen | 2% | 6,204 | |
| N/A | Other Write-ins | 0.1% | 363 | |
| Total Votes | 311,512 | |||
| Source: Maryland State Board of Elections "Representative in Congress" | ||||
Democratic primary
| U.S. House of Representatives-Maryland District 4 Democratic Primary, 2012 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|
Donna Edwards Incumbent |
91.8% | 42,815 |
| Ian Garner | 3.1% | 1,464 |
| George McDermott | 5.1% | 2,359 |
| Total Votes | 46,638 | |
Full history
To view the full congressional electoral history for Donna Edwards, click [show] to expand the section. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Campaign donors
Comprehensive donor information for Edwards is available dating back to 2008. Based on available campaign finance records, Edwards raised a total of $2,913,062 during that time period. This information was last updated on May 16, 2013.[18]
| Donna Edwards's Campaign Contribution History | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Office | Result | Contributions | |
| 2012 | U.S. House (Maryland, District 4) |  |
$783,055 | |
| 2010 | U.S. House (Maryland, District 4) | |
$672,650 | |
| 2008 | U.S. House (Maryland, District 4) | |
$1,457,357 | |
| Grand Total Raised | $2,913,062 | |||
2012
Edwards won re-election to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2012. During that election cycle, Edwards' campaign committee raised a total of $783,056 and spent $774,459.[19]
| U.S. House of Representatives, 2012 - Donna Edwards Campaign Contributions | |
|---|---|
| Total Raised | $783,056 |
| Total Spent | $774,459 |
| Total Raised by Election Runner-up | $76,307 |
| Total Spent by Election Runner-up | $76,307 |
| Top contributors to Donna Edwards's campaign committee | |
| Communications Workers of America | $10,199 |
| Carpenters & Joiners Union | $10,100 |
| American Assn for Justice | $10,000 |
| American Postal Workers Union | $10,000 |
| Bricklayers Union | $10,000 |
| Top 5 industries that contributed to campaign committee | |
| Public Sector Unions | $51,250 |
| Building Trade Unions | $47,900 |
| Industrial Unions | $43,699 |
| Transportation Unions | $41,000 |
| Misc Unions | $35,500 |
2010
Edwards won re-election to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2010. During that election cycle, Edwards' campaign committee raised a total of $672,650 and spent $675,840.[20]
| U.S. House of Representatives, Maryland's 4th Congressional District, 2010 - Donna Edwards Campaign Contributions | |
|---|---|
| Total Raised | $672,650 |
| Total Spent | $675,840 |
| Total Raised by General Election Opponent | $8,861 |
| Total Spent by General Election Opponent | $5,724 |
| Top contributors to Donna Edwards's campaign committee | |
| United Auto Workers | $10,500 |
| American Assn for Justice | $10,000 |
| American Federation of Teachers | $10,000 |
| Democracy for America | $10,000 |
| Intl Brotherhood of Electrical Workers | $10,000 |
| Top 5 industries that contributed to campaign committee | |
| Public Sector Unions | $41,250 |
| Industrial Unions | $35,500 |
| Transportation Unions | $35,500 |
| Misc Unions | $33,500 |
| Lawyers/Law Firms | $32,412 |
Analysis
Lifetime voting record
According to the website GovTrack, Edwards missed 37 of 3,614 roll call votes from Jun 2008 to Mar 2013, which is 1.0% of votes during that period. This is better than the median of 2.2% among the lifetime records of representatives currently serving.[21]
Congressional staff salaries
The website Legistorm compiles staff salary information for members of Congress. Edwards paid her congressional staff a total of $764,951 in 2011. She ranked 4th on the list of the lowest paid Democratic Representative Staff Salaries and she ranked 36th overall of the lowest paid Representative Staff Salaries in 2011. Overall, Maryland ranked 11th in average salary for representative staff. The average U.S. House of Representatives congressional staff was paid $954,912.20 in fiscal year 2011.[22]
Staff bonuses
According to an analysis by CNN, Edwards is one of nearly 25% of House members who gave their staff bonuses in 2012. Edwards's staff was given an apparent $25,000.00 in bonus money.[23]
Net worth
2011
Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org - The Center for Responsive Politics, Edwards' net worth as of 2011 was estimated between $15,483 and $57,480. This averages to $36,481, which is a 17.98% increase since 2010. This is lower than the $5,107,874 average net worth for Democratic representatives in 2011.[24]
2010
Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org - The Center for Responsive Politics, Edwards' net worth as of 2010 was estimated between $16,423 and $45,420. That averages to $30,921.50, which is lower than the average net worth of Democratic Representatives in 2010 of $4,465,875.[25]
National Journal vote ratings
- See also: National Journal vote ratings
Each year, National Journal publishes an analysis of how liberally or conservatively each member of Congress voted, as compared to other members, in the previous year. More information about the analysis process can be found on the vote ratings page.
2012
According to the data released in 2013, Donna Edwards was ranked the one of the most liberal representatives during 2012. There were 13 other representatives in the U.S. with this rank and none of them represented Maryland, making Edwards the most liberally ranked representative of Maryland for 2012.[26]
2011
According to the data released in 2012, Donna Edwards was ranked one of the most liberal representatives during 2011, a ranking shared with eighteen others.[27]
Percentage voting with party
November 2011
The website Open Congress tracks how often members of Congress vote with the majority of the chamber caucus. According to the website, Donna Edwards voted with the Democratic Party 93.3% of the time, which ranked 73 among the 192 House Democratic members in November 2011.[28]
Recent news
This section displays the most recent stories in a Google news search for the term Donna + Edwards + Maryland + House
- All stories may not be relevant to this page due to the nature of the search engine.
Donna Edwards News Feed
- Political appointee's hands-off excuse is rejected at IRS hearing - Washington Times
- NASA Asteroid-Capture Plans Draw Faint Praise In US House - Aviation Week
- 'Old woman' Colbert tells Maryland Dem.: Stop Obama from taking my Social ... - Raw Story
- Webster Field part of university's test site bid - Bay Net
- Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown Enters Governor's Race - Washington Informer
- Anthony Brown Highlights Economy, Gun Control in Gubernatorial Campaign ... - Patch.com
- Md. Politicians Land Softly at High-Powered Law Firms - Southern Maryland Online
- Bipartisan Maryland House Delegation Meets with VA Secretary - Bay Net
- Gabrielle Giffords honored by JFK Library - Boston Globe
- Taking Another Run At The Glass Ceiling - BethesdaMagazine.com (blog)
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Personal
Edwards lives in Fort Washington, Maryland. She has a son who recently graduated from college.[29]
External links
- Social media:
- Biographies:
- Political profiles:
- Financial:
- Interest group ratings:
- Issue positions:
- Public statements:
- Voting record:
- Media appearances:
References
- ↑ Maryland State Board of Elections "Primary Election Results 2012" Accessed April 3, 2012
- ↑ Gov Track "Edwards" Accessed May 15, 2012
- ↑ Politico "2012 Election Map, Maryland"
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Biographical Guide to Members of Congress "Donna F. Edwards" Accessed November 30, 2011
- ↑ CQ.com, "House Committee Rosters for the 113th Congress"
- ↑ U.S. Congress House Clerk "House of Representatives Committee Assignments" Accessed November 30, 2011
- ↑ U.S. House "Roll Call Vote on the Fiscal Cliff" Accessed January 4, 2013.
- ↑ Donna Edwards Official Campaign Website
- ↑ Donna Edwards Official Campaign Website
- ↑ Donna Edwards Official Campaign Website
- ↑ Donna Edwards Official Campaign Website
- ↑ Donna Edwards Official Campaign Website
- ↑ Hometown Annapolis "Maryland gets C on Transparency" Accessed March 26, 2012
- ↑ Progressive Maryland "2012 Candidates" Accessed March 26, 2012
- ↑ Maryland State Board of Elections "2012 Primary Results"
- ↑ U.S. Congress House Clerk "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 2, 2010"
- ↑ U.S. Congress House Clerk "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 2, 2010"
- ↑ [www.opensecrets.org/politicians/elections.php?cycle=2012&cid=N00028249&type=I Open Secrets "Donna Edwards" Accessed May 16, 2013]
- ↑ Open Secrets "2012 Re-Election Cycle," Accessed February 16, 2013
- ↑ Open Secrets "Donna Edwards 2010 Re-Election Cycle," Accessed November 29, 2011
- ↑ GovTrack, "Donna Edwards," Accessed April 2013
- ↑ LegiStorm "Donna Edwards"
- ↑ CNN Politics, "Congressional bonuses in a time of cuts," March 8, 2013
- ↑ OpenSecrets.org, "Edwards, (D-Maryland), 2011"
- ↑ OpenSecrets.org, "Edwards, (D-Maryland), 2010"
- ↑ National Journal, "TABLE: House Liberal Scores by Issue Area," February 26, 2013
- ↑ National Journal, "Searchable Vote Ratings Tables: House," February 23, 2012
- ↑ Open Congress "Voting With Party"
- ↑ Official House Site "Biography," Accessed November 30, 2011
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Al Wynn |
U.S. House of Representatives - Maryland, District 4 2008–present |
Succeeded by ' |
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