Neguse, Joseph D., 1984-

<p>Joseph D. Neguse (born May 13, 1984) is an American politician serving as the U.S. Representative for Colorado's 2nd congressional district since 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he was a Regent of the University of Colorado from 2008 to 2015. Neguse is the first Eritrean-American elected to the United States Congress and Colorado's first black member of Congress.</p>

<p>Neguse's parents immigrated to the United States from Eritrea. They met while living in Bakersfield, California, where they married and had Joe and his younger sister.[5] The family moved to Colorado when he was six years old. After living in Aurora, Littleton, and Highlands Ranch, the family settled in Boulder. Neguse graduated from ThunderRidge High School, the University of Colorado Boulder with a bachelor's degree in political science and economics in 2005, and the University of Colorado Law School with his Juris Doctor in 2009.</p>

<p>While he was a student, Neguse founded New Era Colorado, an organization to get young people involved in politics. He worked at the Colorado State Capitol as an assistant to Andrew Romanoff when Romanoff was a member of the Colorado House of Representatives. In 2008 Neguse was elected to the Regents of the University of Colorado, representing Colorado's 2nd congressional district.</p>

NEGUSE, Joseph, a Representative from Colorado; born in Bakersfield, Kern County, Calif., May 13, 1984; graduated from Thunder Ridge High School, Highlands Ranch, Colo., 2002; B.A., University of Colorado, Boulder, Colo., 2005; J.D., University of Colorado, Boulder, Colo., 2009; nonprofit executive; member of the board of regents of the University of Colorado, Boulder, Colo., 2008-2015; executive director, Colorado department of regulatory agencies, 2015-2017; lawyer; elected as a Democrat to the One Hundred Sixteenth and to the succeeding Congress (January 3, 2019-present); one of the managers appointed by the House of Representatives in 2021 to conduct the impeachment proceedings of Donald J. Trump, President of the United States.

<p>Congressman Joe Neguse represents Colorado’s 2nd District in the U.S. House of Representatives. He was elected to his first term in November 2018, becoming the first African-American member of Congress in Colorado history. He serves as a member of the House Judiciary Committee, House Natural Resources Committee and the House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis.</p>

<p>Rep. Neguse was elected by his colleagues to serve as a member of House Democratic Leadership in the 117th Congress, as Co-Chair of the Democratic Policy and Communications Committee (DPCC). In his first term, Rep. Neguse served as Co-Freshman Representative to Leadership in the 116th Congress, representing first term members at the leadership table. He also serves as one of the Congressional Progressive Caucus Vice Chairs and Liaison to New Members. In 2020, he was recognized as the most bipartisan member of Colorado’s congressional delegation by the McCourt School of Public Policy at Georgetown University, and received the “Spirit of Service” award from the Town Hall Project for his successful Service Town Hall initiative. During his first term in Congress, he introduced more legislation than any freshman lawmaker in the country, and has had more legislation signed into law by the President than any member of Colorado’s congressional delegation.</p>

<p>Before his election, he served in the Governor of Colorado's Cabinet as the Executive Director of Colorado's consumer protection agency. As one of the youngest people to serve as a state-Cabinet secretary at age 31, he achieved key victories, including the recovery of millions of dollars for consumers, investigations culminating in significant financial-fraud cases, the championing of legislation to combat financial fraud against seniors, and the launch of the state’s first online filing system for civil rights discrimination complaints.</p>