Jamaal Bowman
Jamaal Bowman | |
|---|---|
Official portrait, 2020 | |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New York's 16th district | |
| In office January 3, 2021 – January 3, 2025 | |
| Preceded by | Eliot Engel |
| Succeeded by | George Latimer |
| Personal details | |
| Born | April 1, 1976 New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Melissa Oppenheimer |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | Potomac State College University of New Haven (BA) Mercy College (MA) Manhattanville College (EdD) |
| Website | |
Jamaal Anthony Bowman (born April 1, 1976) is an American former politician and former educator who served from 2021 to 2025 as the United States representative for New York's 16th congressional district.
Bowman is the founder and former principal of the Cornerstone Academy for Social Action, a public middle school in Eastchester, Bronx. He defeated 16-term incumbent Eliot Engel in the 2020 Democratic primary and was first elected to Congress in November that year. He was a member of the Squad, an informal group of leftist members of the House Democratic Caucus.
On October 26, 2023, Bowman pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor for willfully setting off a false fire alarm in the Cannon House Office Building. In exchange for his guilty plea, the charge was dropped. On December 7, the House of Representatives voted 214–191 to censure him for the fire alarm incident. In 2024, Bowman ran for reelection but lost to Westchester County executive George Latimer in the district's Democratic primary. Bowman was the first of two Democratic congressional incumbents of the 2024 election cycle to lose a primary, along with Cori Bush. He also was the first member of the Squad to lose a primary, the second also being Bush.