Drake, Thelma (Thelma Day), 1949-

<p>A longtime delegate in the Virginia general assembly and a real estate agent with two decades of experience, Thelma D. Drake won election to the United States House of Representatives in 2004 from a Tidewater district. From her seat on the influential Armed Services Committee, Drake served as an advocate for her district’s large constituency of active-duty and retired military personnel.</p>

<p>Thelma Drake was born Thelma Day on November 20, 1949, in Elyria, Ohio, to a postal worker father and a Canadian mother. She attended the local public schools and graduated from Elyria High School in 1967. She left Ohio at age 17 and relocated to Norfolk, Virginia, with her first husband, a Navy serviceman. They had two children, Lynn and J. Mark, but later divorced, leaving her to raise the children alone. “I always felt I was the only person responsible for myself,” Drake once remarked. “You don’t turn to other people to help you.” In 1974 she married Joe Sawyer, but this marriage also ended in divorce. She married Thomas E. (Ted) Drake in 1990.</p>

<p>Drake became involved in politics in 1964, as a high school student, when she volunteered for Barry Morris Goldwater’s Republican presidential campaign. When she settled in Norfolk, she became active in local civic organizations—including the Granby High School PTA. She also was active in the local Republican Party. Drake eventually settled into a career in real estate. As a successful agent for more than 20 years, Drake developed a base of connections throughout the Norfolk area. In 1995 she won election to the house of delegates, where she served five consecutive terms—eventually chairing the Virginia housing commission and serving on the influential finance committee.</p>

<p>Thelma Day Drake (born November 20, 1949) is an American politician and former member of Congress for Virginia's 2nd Congressional District. A Republican, she represented Virginia's 2nd congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2005 to 2009. Prior to serving in Congress, Thelma Drake served nine years in the Virginia House of Delegates.</p>

<p>After leaving Congress, Drake was appointed to be Director of the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation by Governor Robert McDonnell, and later became Assistant Director of Public Works Transportation Division for the City of Norfolk. She also worked as a real estate agent in the Hampton Roads region. On February 15, 2018, Drake was nominated by President Donald Trump as the Administrator of the Federal Transit Administration. On January 3, 2019, the nomination expired. On January 16, 2019, she was renominated to the same office. The nomination expired on January 3, 2020 and she was not renominated.</p>