Napoleon Nelson
American politician
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Napoleon J. Nelson, Sr. is an American politician. He is a Democrat representing District 154 in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
Napoleon J. Nelson, Sr. | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from the 154th district | |
| Assumed office January 5, 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Steve McCarter |
| Finance Officer, Cheltenham Township, Pennsylvania[1] | |
| Assumed office 2018 | |
| Board Director, Cheltenham School District[1] | |
| In office 2011–2017 | |
| Personal details | |
| Party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Shareese[2] |
| Children | 2[2] |
| Alma mater | Massachusetts Institute of Technology (BS) Wharton School (MBA)[1] |
| Occupation | Financier[3] |
Early life
Nelson attended Central High School and graduated in 1998. He graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2002 with a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science, and earned an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in 2007.[1][2]
Political career
Nelson served as board director for the Cheltenham school district from 2011 to 2017, and became the finance officer for Cheltenham Township, Pennsylvania in 2018.[1]
In 2019, former state representative Steve McCarter announced that he would not seek re-election in 2020,[4] and Nelson ran for the open seat. He won a six-way Democratic primary with 39.2% of the vote, and went on to win the general election with 77.5% of the vote. He assumed office on December 1, 2020, becoming the first black state representative for Pennsylvania's 154th District.[5] Nelson currently sits on the Aging & Older Adult Services, Children & Youth, Education, and Finance committees.[6] Nelson was re-elected in 2021 with 80.7% of the vote.[7]
Electoral record
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Napoleon Nelson | 7,101 | 39.2 | |
| Democratic | Gretchen Wisehart | 3,639 | 20.1 | |
| Democratic | Adrienne Redd | 2,435 | 13.4 | |
| Democratic | Ray Sosa | 1,994 | 11.0 | |
| Democratic | Jay Conners | 1,664 | 9.2 | |
| Democratic | Jennifer Lugar | 1,275 | 7.0 | |
| Total votes | 18,108 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Napoleon Nelson | 29,508 | 77.5 | |
| Republican | Kathleen Bowers | 8,560 | 22.5 | |
| Total votes | 38,068 | 100.0 | ||
| Democratic hold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Napoleon Nelson | 26,418 | 80.7 | |
| Republican | Angelina Banks[8] | 6,312 | 19.3 | |
| Total votes | 32,730 | 100.0 | ||
| Democratic hold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Napoleon Nelson | 31,179 | 80.1 | |
| Republican | Thomas Estilow | 7,648 | 19.7 | |
| Other/write-in | 91 | 0.2 | ||
| Total votes | 38,918 | 100.0 | ||
| Democratic hold | ||||