Cori Bush
Cori Anika Bush (born July 21, 1976) is an American politician, nurse, pastor, and Black Lives Matter activist serving as the U.S. representative for Missouri's 1st congressional district, since 2021. The district includes all of the city of St. Louis and most of northern St. Louis County.
Cori Bush | |
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Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Missouri's 1st district | |
Assumed office January 3, 2021 | |
Preceded by | Lacy Clay |
Personal details | |
Born | St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. | July 21, 1976
Political party | Democratic |
Other political affiliations | Democratic Socialists of America |
Spouse | Cortney Merritts (m. 2023) |
Children | 2 |
Education | Lutheran School of Nursing |
Website | House website |
A member of the Democratic Party, on August 4, 2020, Bush defeated 10-term incumbent Lacy Clay in a 2020 U.S. House of Representatives primary election largely viewed as a historic upset, advancing to the November general election in a solidly Democratic congressional district. Bush is the first African-American woman to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives from Missouri. She previously ran in the Democratic primary for the district in 2018 and the 2016 U.S. Senate election in Missouri. She was featured in the 2019 Netflix documentary Knock Down the House, which covered her first primary challenge to Clay. Bush is a member of The Squad in the House of Representatives.