Rep. David Scott, a Georgia Democrat seeking his 13th term in Congress,
dies at age 80
[April 23, 2026]
By BILL BARROW, MATT BROWN and JEFF AMY
ATLANTA (AP) — U.S. Rep. David Scott, a Georgia Democrat and the first
Black chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, has died. He was 80.
Scott, who was seeking his 13th term in Congress despite challenges from
within his party, was once a leading voice for Democrats on issues
related to farm aid policy and food aid for consumers and a prominent
Black member of the party’s moderate Blue Dog caucus. But he faced
criticism and concerns in recent years because of declining health,
enduring a primary challenge in 2024 and facing another one at the time
of his death.
Democrats on Capitol Hill praised the longtime lawmaker.
“The news of Congressman Scott’s passing is deeply sad,” House Minority
Leader Hakeem Jeffries told reporters on Wednesday.
“David Scott was a trailblazer who served the district that he
represented admirably, rose up from humble beginnings to become the
first African American ever to chair the House Ag Committee,” Jeffries
said. “He cared about the people that he represented. He was fiercely
committed to getting things done for the people of the great state of
Georgia, and he’ll be deeply missed.”
News of Scott’s death came during the Congressional Black Caucus’ weekly
luncheon on Capitol Hill. The Black Caucus’ chair, Rep. Yvette Clarke,
told lawmakers at the outset of the meeting.
The White House lowered its flags to half-staff after Scott’s death.
Death creates another vacancy
Scott’s death slightly widens Republicans’ narrow House majority going
into the thick of this midterm election year The GOP began the current
Congress with a 220-215 advantage, but the margin has fluctuated. Scott
is the fourth House Democrat to die in office during this Congress.
Scott had been mostly absent from the campaign trail in 2024 and 2026
and had become a noted example of Democrats' aging leadership targeted
by younger generations of the left. He dodged questions from reporters
when he qualified for another term in March, but he earlier dismissed
pressure to retire.
“Thank God I’m in good health, moving and doing the people’s work,” the
congressman said in 2024.
His wife and campaign adviser Alfredia Scott was even more direct. “When
the congressman decides to leave, he won’t be pushed out,” she said in
2024. “He will bow out.”
State officials will have to schedule a special election to fill out the
rest of Scott’s term, which could overlap with elections to choose a
representative for the next two-year term. Early in-person voting starts
Monday for May 19 party primaries for the next full term.
Scott was a pioneering Black lawmaker
David Albert Scott was born in rural Aynor, South Carolina, on June 27,
1945, in the era of Jim Crow segregation. He spent part of his childhood
in Scranton, Pennsylvania, along with stints New York and Florida. Scott
graduated from Florida A&M University, one of the nation's largest
historically Black college campuses — and in office he was an outspoken
advocate for federal support of HBCUs. Scott also earned an MBA from the
University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School in 1969.
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Democratic U.S. Rep. David Scott speaks to reporters, March 4, 2024,
at the Georgia Capitol in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jeff Amy, File)
He settled in Atlanta, opened his own advertising business and got
his start in politics as a staffer on Andrew Young's 1972
congressional campaign. Young would go on to be Atlanta mayor and
United Nations ambassador under President Jimmy Carter, another
Georgian.
The support of Young and baseball legend Henry “Hank” Aaron, who was
the older brother of Scott's wife, helped launch Scott into Congress
in 2002, said Democratic state Sen. Emanuel Jones. He was opposing
Scott in the May 19 primary, although he called Scott "a good
friend."
Scott was one of a pioneering generation of Black state lawmakers in
Georgia, winning election to the state House in 1974 and the state
Senate in 1982 before being elected to Congress. Once identifying as
a moderate "Blue Dog" — Scott had sponsored a law mandating a moment
of silent school prayer in the state Senate — he evolved into a more
mainstream liberal.
An advocate for historically Black schools
Scott served decades in Congress while living outside his district
after maps were redrawn. He maintained support, focusing intently on
constituent service including hosting job and health fairs.
Among his notable achievements on Capitol Hill, Scott secured $80
million for historically Black land-grant schools as part of the
2018 Farm Bill. The money was steered to agriculture-related
scholarships at 19 campuses. He helped author various housing and
mortgage aid measures, and he pushed for better health care and
other benefits for veterans and their families. On foreign policy,
Scott was an outspoken advocate for NATO and post-World War II
American alliances.
Scott's fellow Democrats ousted him from his post as ranking
minority member on the Agriculture Committee in 2024 amid concerns
about his age and health.
Scott is survived by Alfredia Scott, the couple's two adult
daughters and grandchildren.
___
Brown reported from Washington.
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