Donovan Richards, Jr. (born April 9, 1983) is an American politician serving as the Borough President of Queens. He is also a former

New York City Council The New York City Council is the lawmaking body of New York City. It has 51 members from 51 council districts throughout the five Borough (New York City), boroughs. The council serves as a check against the Mayor of New York City, mayor in a may ...

member, having represented the 31st district. He is a member of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

. His former district includes portions of

Arverne Arverne is a neighborhood in the New York City borough (New York City), borough of Queens, on the Rockaway, Queens, Rockaway Peninsula. It was initially developed by Remington Vernam (land developer), Remington Vernam, whose signature "R. Vernam" ...

Bayswater Bayswater is an area within the City of Westminster in West London. It is a built-up district with a population density of 17,500 per square kilometre, and is located between Kensington Gardens to the south, Paddington to the north-east, and ...

, Broad Channel, Cambria Heights, Edgemere, Far Rockaway,

Howard Beach Howard Beach is a neighborhood in the southwestern portion of the New York City borough of Queens. It is bordered to the north by the Belt Parkway and Conduit Avenue in Ozone Park, to the south by Jamaica Bay in Broad Channel, to the east by 1 ...

, Jamaica, John F. Kennedy International Airport, Laurelton,

Rockaway Beach Rockaway Beach may refer to: * "Rockaway Beach" (song), by the Ramones * Rockaway Beach, California * Rockaway Beach, Missouri * Rockaway Beach, Oregon * Rockaway Beach, Wisconsin * Rockaway Beach, Queens, New York City ** Rockaway Beach and Boa ...

, Rosedale, South Ozone Park and Springfield Gardens in Queens. Richards was the Democratic nominee for Queens Borough President in the November 3, 2020 general election. He defeated the Republican nominee

Joann Ariola Joann Ariola (born June 14, 1958) is a councilwoman of the New York City Council, representing District 32 which includes Woodhaven, Richmond Hill, Ozone Park, Howard Beach, Broad Channel, and the western half of the Rockaway Peninsula. She p ...

and independent candidate Dao Yin. Richards was sworn in as Queens Borough President on December 2, 2020.

Life and career

Richards was born and raised in southeast Queens. When he was young, he served with a mission in

Port-au-Prince Port-au-Prince ( , ; ht, Pòtoprens ) is the capital and most populous city of Haiti. The city's population was estimated at 987,311 in 2015 with the metropolitan area estimated at a population of 2,618,894. The metropolitan area is define ...

, Haiti on behalf of St. Albans Congregational Church. He attended Jamaica High School in Queens, and then Redemption Christian Academy in Troy, New York. He subsequently attended

Nyack College Alliance University (formerly Nyack College ()) is a private Christian college affiliated with the Christian and Missionary Alliance and located in New York, New York. Enrolling just over 1,000 students, the school is organized in three academic ...

, then Vaughn College of Aeronautics and Technology in Queens.

New York City Council

In June 2011, Richards became the chief of staff for New York City Councilman

James Sanders, Jr. James Sanders Jr. (born 1957) is a member of the New York State Senate, serving since January 2013. He represents the 10th district, which includes the Queens neighborhoods of Richmond Hill, South Ozone Park, Jamaica, Rochdale Village, Rosed ...

, and when Sanders was elected to the New York State Senate, Richards won a 2013 special election to succeed him. Richards was appointed chair of the Committee on Environmental Protection. Richards was appointed to be the chair of the Subcommittee on Zoning and Franchises.

Queens Borough President bid

In June 2020, Richards secured the Democratic nomination for Borough President of Queens. On November 3, 2020, Richards won the election for Borough President of Queens.

References

External links

Councilman Donovan Richards
, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Richards, Donovan 1983 births 20th-century African-American people 21st-century African-American politicians 21st-century American politicians African-American New York City Council members African-American people in New York (state) politics Living people New York (state) Democrats New York City Council members People from Queens, New York Place of birth missing (living people)