Hakeem Jeffries

Hakeem Jeffries

Hakeem Sekou Jeffries is an American politician and attorney. He has served as the U.S. Representative for New York’s 8th congressional district since 2013. Jeffries served in the New York State Assembly from 2007 to 2012, representing the 57th Assembly district. He was considered a potential successor to James Davis, who was killed in a domestic violence scandal in 2003.

About Hakeem Jeffries in brief

Summary Hakeem JeffriesHakeem Sekou Jeffries is an American politician and attorney. He has served as the U.S. Representative for New York’s 8th congressional district since 2013. Jeffries served in the New York State Assembly from 2007 to 2012, representing the 57th Assembly district. He was considered a potential successor to James Davis, who was killed in a domestic violence scandal in 2003. He is a member of the Democratic Party and has chaired the House Democratic Caucus since 2019. His district covers parts of the Brooklyn and Queens boroughs of New York City and includes parts of Queens and Staten Island. He lives in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, with his wife and two children. He attended Binghamton University, Georgetown University and New York University School of Law. He served as a clerk for Judge Harold Baer, Jr. of the United States District Court for the Southern District of NewYork. He worked in the litigation department of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison before becoming assistant litigator for Viacom and CBS, where he worked on litigation stemming from the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversy. In 2000, Jeffries challenged incumbent Assemblyman Roger Green in the Democratic primary, criticizing Green for becoming inattentive to the needs of the constituency and preoccupied with the pursuit of higher office. He lost the primary 59 percent to 41 percent, but remained on the Independence Party line in the general election, receiving 7 percent while Green received 90 percent and was re-elected to an 11th term.

During post-census redistricting, Jeffry’s home was drawn one block outside of Green’s Assembly district, but he was still legally permitted to run in the district for the 2002 cycle. After the Democratic nomination went to Jeffries’s brother, Geoffrey Davis, he was considered for the Working Families Party nomination, but was mired in domestic violence allegations. In July 2003, Geoffrey Jeffries was murdered by his brother’s surviving brother, James Davis. He had been named as a potential replacement for James Davis on the New City Council, but the council decided he should be elected to higher office instead. In November 2013, Jeffrie was elected to the House of Representatives as the Democratic candidate for the 8th district. His term is set to expire at the end of the 2018 election cycle. He previously served as chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, a position he has held since 2007. He also served as president of the National Association of Minority Contractors and as the president of Black Attorneys for Progress, a group that represents black lawyers. He currently lives in Brooklyn, New York and works as a corporate lawyer in New York. He married his wife, Tania Sekou, a former New York state assemblywoman, in July 2013. His son, Hakeem Jeffries, was born in Brooklyn in 1987 and is the son of a former state assemblyman and former state Assemblyman, Roger Green, and his wife is also a former State Assemblywoman.