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Nathan Biah

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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

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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

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his candidacy for US Representative of Rhode Island's 1st congressional district in March 2023,[9] but has since withdrawn as a candidate and will not appear on the ballot for the special Democratic primary for U.S. representative of the 1st congressional district to be held on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

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  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