Nathan Biah

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Nathan Biah
Member of the
Rhode Island House of Representatives
from the 3rd district
Assumed office
January 5, 2021
Preceded byMoira Walsh
Personal details
Born (1971-12-14) December 14, 1971 (age 52)
Monrovia, Liberia
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseThumbelina Biah[1]
Alma materRhode Island College

Nathan W. Biah Sr. (born December 14, 1971)[2] is an American politician and educator who serves in the Rhode Island House of Representatives for the 3rd district.[3]

Early life[edit]

Born and raised in Monrovia, the capital of Liberia, Biah was his parents' only child.[4] Biah was sent to a preparatory school considered one of the "most prestigious" in Liberia, but his education was interrupted by the First Liberian Civil War, which caused Biah to emigrate to the United States.[4] In 1999, he earned a bachelor's degree in criminal justice from Rhode Island College, and in 2007, Biah received a master's degree in education from University of Rhode Island.[5]

Political career[edit]

Biah announced a primary challenge to incumbent representative Moira Walsh in 2020. Walsh, a staunch progressive, had been an opponent of Speaker of the Rhode Island House Nicholas Mattiello, who thus supported Biah.[6] Biah was also endorsed by Rhode Island Right to Life, an anti-abortion organization.[7] In contrast to most other successful primaries in the 2020 Rhode Island House elections, where progressives had ousted allies of Mattiello,[6] Biah defeated Walsh 64–35, and was unopposed in the general election.[8] He currently serves on the Innovation, Internet, and Technology Committee, the Finance Committee, which produces the state budget and the Education Committee.[9]

He had originally declared his candidacy for US Representative of Rhode Island's 1st congressional district in March 2023,[9] but has since withdrawn as a candidate and will not appear on the ballot for the special Democratic primary for U.S. representative of the 1st congressional district to be held on September 5, 2023.[5]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Admin (November 6, 2020). "They Escaped Civil War; Now they have Captured Public Office". Liberian Daily Observer. Retrieved January 12, 2021.
  2. ^ "Press release". rilegislature.gov.
  3. ^ Gregg, Katherine (January 3, 2021). "Political Scene: What do a taxi driver, theater teacher, children's book author have in common?". The Providence Journal. Retrieved January 12, 2021.
  4. ^ a b List, Madeleine (October 24, 2020). "For RI House candidate Nathan Biah, hardship inspired zeal to serve others". The Providence Journal. Retrieved January 12, 2021.
  5. ^ a b https://ballotpedia.org/Nathan_Biah Ballotpedia, retrieved July 25, 2023
  6. ^ a b Ahlquist, Steve (September 9, 2020). "Progressives hopeful as big General Assembly wins seem to be happening". Uprise RI. Retrieved January 12, 2021.
  7. ^ Anderson, Patrick (September 13, 2020). "Political Scene: Progressive wins will be felt at General Assembly". The Providence Journal. Retrieved January 12, 2021.
  8. ^ "Nathan Biah". Ballotpedia. Retrieved January 12, 2021.
  9. ^ a b https://www.bostonglobe.com/2023/03/27/metro/ri-representative-nathan-biah-running-congress/ Boston Globe, by Edward Fitzpatrick, March 27, 2023, retrieved July 25, 2023


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