Scott Taylor (politician)

American politician and former Navy SEAL (born 1979)

Scott William Taylor (born June 27, 1979) is an American politician and former Navy SEAL. He served as the U.S. representative from Virginia's 2nd congressional district from 2017 to 2019. Taylor was also a state delegate for the 85th house district.

Scott Taylor
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Virginia's 2nd district
In office
January 3, 2017 – January 3, 2019
Preceded byScott Rigell
Succeeded byElaine Luria
Member of the Virginia House of Delegates
from the 85th district
In office
January 8, 2014 – January 3, 2017
Preceded byBob Tata
Succeeded byRocky Holcomb
Personal details
Born
Scott William Taylor

(1979-06-27) June 27, 1979 (age 45)
Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
EducationOld Dominion University (GrCert)
Harvard University (BLA, MLA)
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch/service United States Navy
Years of service1997–2005
UnitNavy SEALs
Battles/warsIraq War

On November 6, 2018, Taylor was defeated for reelection by Democrat and U.S. Navy veteran Elaine Luria.[1] In December 2019, he stated he was going to run again for his old seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.[2] In the November general election, he was defeated by Luria a second time.

Early life

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Scott William Taylor[3] was born in Baltimore.

After high school, he served in the United States Navy and became a Navy SEAL, first taking part in drug enforcement.

Early career

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In 2008, Taylor ran for Mayor of Virginia Beach, Virginia.[4] He was a candidate in the 2010 primary election for Virginia's 2nd congressional district, but lost to Scott Rigell. Taylor became a state delegate for the 85th house district in November 2013.

Elections

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2016

In 2016, after the then current representative, Scott Rigell, announced he would not seek re-election, Taylor won the Republican Party nomination for Virginia's 2nd congressional district in the United States House of Representatives, defeating Randy Forbes in the primary,[5][6] then defeated Democrat Shaun Brown, 61.3% to 38.5%, to win the general election on November 8, 2016.[7]

2018

In January 2018, former Navy commander Elaine Luria announced her plan to run for Taylor's seat. In the June 10 Democratic primary, Luria received 62% of the vote, defeating Karen Mallard, who received 38%.[8] In the Republican primary, Taylor defeated Mary Jones, 76% to 24%.[9]

On November 6, 2018, Taylor lost to Luria, taking 48.9 percent of the vote to Luria's 51.1 percent.[1]

2020

On July 8, 2019, Taylor announced that he was running for the United States Senate against two-term incumbent Mark Warner in the 2020 election.[10] Taylor decided to not run for the Senate race, instead choosing to run to take back his old House seat. On June 23, 2020, he won the Republican primary, setting up a rematch with Luria.

Luria defeated him and was re-elected with a six-point margin taking 52 percent to Taylor's 46 percent.

References

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  1. 1.0 1.1 Finley, Ben (November 6, 2018). "Luria Defeats Taylor in Virginia's 2nd House District". U.S. News & World Report. Associated Press. Retrieved November 6, 2018.
  2. Wilson, Reed (December 9, 2019). "Ex-Rep. Scott Taylor to seek old Virginia seat". The Hill. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
  3. Payne, Kimball (June 6, 2010). "BIO: Scott Taylor". Daily Press. Archived from the original on July 25, 2018. Retrieved January 4, 2017.
  4. "Scott Taylor to Run for Virginia's 2nd Congressional District Seat" (PDF). Scott Taylor for Congress. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 1, 2010. Retrieved August 22, 2012.
  5. Dilanian, Ken (August 16, 2012). "Group attacking Obama for security leaks includes past talkers". Los Angeles Times.
  6. Bartel, Bill; Parker, Stacy (June 14, 2016). "Scott Taylor defeats veteran Randy Forbes in 2nd Congressional primary thanks to feisty grassroots campaign". The Virginian-Pilot. Archived from the original on June 16, 2016. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
  7. "Shaun Brown". Ballotpedia. Retrieved August 30, 2018.
  8. "In US House Race, Former Navy Commander Targets Former SEAL". WBOC-TV. May 24, 2018.
  9. "Elaine Luria". Ballotpedia. Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  10. Suderman, Alan (July 8, 2019). "Former Rep. Scott Taylor Announces US Senate Bid in Virginia". U.S. News & World Report. Associated Press. Retrieved July 8, 2019.