Bart McKay Davis (born March 7, 1955) is an American attorney and politician who has been nominated to serve as the

United States attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal ...

for the District of Idaho. He previously served as the U.S. attorney from 2017 to 2021. He previously served as a Republican member of the

Idaho Senate The Idaho State Senate is the upper chamber of the Idaho Legislature. It consists of 35 senators elected to two-year terms, each representing a district of the state. The Senate meets at the Idaho State Capitol in Boise, Idaho. Composition of th ...

, representing District 33 from 2002 to 2017. He represented

District 29 A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...

from 1998 to 2002. During his time in the Idaho Senate, he served as state senate majority leader.

Early life and education

Born in

Rapid City, South Dakota Rapid City is the county seat of Pennington County, South Dakota, United States. It is located on the eastern slope of the Black Hills in western South Dakota and was named after Rapid Creek (South Dakota), Rapid Creek, where the settlement deve ...

, Davis was raised in

Idaho Falls, Idaho Idaho Falls is the fourth most populous city in Idaho and the county seat of Bonneville County. It is the state's most populous city outside the Boise metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the population of Idaho Falls was 64,818.2020 Cen ...

. Davis received a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

in English from

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU) is a Private education, private research university in Provo, Utah, United States. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is the flagship university of the Church Educational System sponsore ...

in 1978 and a

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

in 1980 from the

University of Idaho College of Law The University of Idaho College of Law is the law school of the University of Idaho. Its main location is in Moscow, and a second campus is in the state capital of Boise. As of the entering class of 2017–18, students may take all three years of ...

Career

Following his graduation from law school, Davis began his legal practice in Idaho Falls. He is admitted to practice before the

Idaho Supreme Court The Idaho Supreme Court is the state supreme court of Idaho and is composed of the chief justice and four associate judge, justices. The decisions of the Idaho Supreme Court are binding on all other Idaho State court (United States), state court ...

, the

United States District Court for the District of Idaho The United States District Court for the District of Idaho (in case citations, D. Idaho) is the Federal district court whose jurisdiction comprises the state of Idaho (except for the part of the state within Yellowstone National Park, which is un ...

, the

United States District Court for the District of Arizona The United States District Court for the District of Arizona (in case citations, D. Ariz.) is the U.S. district court that covers the state of Arizona. It is under the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. The District was esta ...

, the

United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (in case citations, 9th Cir.) is the U.S. federal court of appeals that has appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts for the following federal judicial districts: * Distric ...

, and the

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...

. In 1990, he was co-counsel with former

solicitor general A solicitor general is a government official who serves as the chief representative of the government in courtroom proceedings. In systems based on the English common law that have an attorney general or equivalent position, the solicitor general ...

Rex Lee in '' Davis v. United States'' before the United States Supreme Court. Davis' parents were the petitioners in the case. Since 2001, Davis has represented Idaho as a commissioner on the

Uniform Law Commission The Uniform Law Commission (ULC), also called the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws, is a non-profit, American unincorporated association. Established in 1892, the ULC aims to provide U.S. states (plus the District of Co ...

. He is a past chairman of the

Council of State Governments The Council of State Governments (CSG) is a nonpartisan, non-profit organization in the United States that serves all three branches of state government. Founded in 1933 by Colorado state senator Henry W. Toll, CSG is a region-based forum t ...

Idaho Senate

In 1998, six-term incumbent Senator John Hansen did not seek reelection to the Idaho Senate. Davis ran for the open seat and was elected. He served as Majority Caucus Chair from 2000 to 2002, and from 2002 to 2017 has served as Senate Majority Leader.

U.S. attorney

First term

In June 2017, President

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

appointed him to become the next

United States Attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal ...

in the

. The

Senate Judiciary Committee The United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, informally known as the Senate Judiciary Committee, is a Standing committee (United States Congress), standing committee of 22 U.S. senators whose role is to oversee the United States Departm ...

on September 7, 2017, approved his recommendation by a unanimous voice vote. He was confirmed by

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

voice vote In parliamentary procedure, a voice vote (from the Latin ''viva voce'', meaning "by live voice") or acclamation is a voting method in deliberative assemblies (such as legislatures) in which a group vote is taken on a topic or motion by respondin ...

on September 14, 2017. On February 8, 2021, he and 55 other Trump-era attorneys were asked to resign. On February 11, 2021, Davis submitted his resignation, effective February 28.

Second term

On April 1, 2025, his nomination was sent to the

. His nomination is pending before the

Redistricting

Senator Pro-Tem Chuck Winder appointed Davis to Idaho's Independent Redistricting Commission. Davis served as co-chair of the commission.

Personal life

He married Marion Woffinden Davis in 1976 and together they have six children.

Writing

* Bart Davis, Kate Kelly, and Kristin Ford, ''Use of Legislative History: Willow Witching for Legislative Intent'', 43 Idaho College of Law Review 585 (2007). * Bart Davis, ''Idaho's Messy History with Term Limits: A Modest Response'', 52 Idaho College of Law Review 463 (2016).

Electoral history

References

External links

Biography at U.S. Department of Justice

Idaho Legislature - Senator Bart Davis
- official government site , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Bart 1955 births Living people 21st-century members of the Idaho Legislature Brigham Young University alumni Idaho lawyers Republican Party Idaho state senators Latter Day Saints from Idaho People from Idaho Falls, Idaho Politicians from Rapid City, South Dakota United States attorneys for the District of Idaho University of Idaho alumni University of Idaho College of Law alumni