Justin Simmons is an American politician and former member of the Republican Party who served five terms in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, representing the 131st District.
Justin J. Simmons | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from the 131st district | |
| In office January 4, 2011 – January 5, 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Karen Beyer |
| Succeeded by | Milou Mackenzie |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Pennsylvania |
| Political party | Republican |
| Residence(s) | Coopersburg, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Saint Joseph’s University |
| Occupation | Legislator |
Early life and education
editSimmons was born in 1986 in Pennsylvania, raised in the Lehigh Valley, and graduated from Southern Lehigh High School and Saint Joseph’s University.
He served as an intern for then-Congressman Pat Toomey and later served as a legislative aide for State Senators Rob Wonderling and Bob Mensch, where he conducted research for state legislation. He ran the Northampton County district office and attended events in the district.
He also served as a Republican committeeman in Lehigh County and as president of the Lehigh Valley Young Republicans.
Political career
editSimmons was first elected to the Pennsylvania State House in November 2010, defeating incumbent Republican Karen Beyer in the May 2010 primary.
As State Representative, he stated that he favors selling the state liquor stores and reducing the size of the state legislature. He also said he supports term limits, part-time status for members of the General Assembly and operating on a two-year budget cycle. Simmons promised to refuse per diems, a state-owned vehicle, and a pension.[1]
In 2017, Simmons briefly ran for the U.S. House of Representatives in the 2018 election, for the seat held by Rep. Charlie Dent.[2] He withdrew from the race after two months, after The Morning Call reported that he had missed a large number of votes as a state representative.[3]
In 2019, he announced that he would not seek re-election to his State House seat in 2020.[4]
References
edit- ^ "PA State Rep. Justin Simmons". repsimmons.com. Archived from the original on 2011-02-17.
- ^ Bresswein, Kurt (2017-09-06). "Simmons says he'll challenge 'turncoat' Dent for Congress". LehighValleyLive.com. Retrieved 2024-03-27.
- ^ Bresswein, Kurt (2017-11-17). "Justin Simmons drops out of field of congressional hopefuls". The Express-Times. Retrieved 2018-03-18.
- ^ Turner, Ford (2019-12-19). "Rep. Justin Simmons says he will not seek re-election to PA House seat in 131st district". The Morning Call. Retrieved 2024-03-27.
External links
edit- Justin Simmons (R) official Pennsylvania State House website
- Profile at Vote Smart
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