Austin Scott | |
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Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Georgia's 8th district |
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Assumed office January 3, 2011 |
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Preceded by | Jim Marshall |
Member of the Georgia House of Representatives from the 153rd district |
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In office 2005–2011 |
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Preceded by | Burke Day |
Succeeded by | Tony McBrayer |
Member of the Georgia House of Representatives from the 138th district |
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In office 2003–2005 |
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Preceded by | Johnny Floyd |
Succeeded by | Nikki T. Randall |
Member of the Georgia House of Representatives from the 165th district |
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In office 1996–2003 |
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Preceded by | Henry Bostick |
Succeeded by | Al Williams |
Personal details | |
Born |
Augusta, Georgia |
December 10, 1969
Political party | Republican |
Spouse(s) | Vivien Scott |
Residence | Tifton, Georgia |
Alma mater | University of Georgia |
Profession | Business, Insurance |
Religion | Southern Baptist |
James Austin Scott (born December 10, 1969) is an American politician who has been the U.S. Representative for Georgia's 8th congressional district since 2011. He is a member of the Republican Party.
Scott's father, Dr. Jim Scott, is an orthopedic surgeon and his mother, Becky, is a teacher in the public school system. Scott graduated from the University of Georgia with a B.B.A. in Risk Management and Insurance. He also passed the Series 7 Exam.
Scott is president of The Southern Group, LLC and a partner in Lockett Station Group, LLC.
Representative Scott was first elected to the Georgia House of Representatives at the age of 26. He was the chairman of the Governmental Affairs Committee. He also served on the Appropriations, Rules, and Ways and Means Committee, where he was the chairman of the Public Policy Subcommittee. The District consists of Tift and Turner counties.
Scott challenged Democratic incumbent Jim Marshall for Georgia's eighth congressional district. He defeated Marshall in the general election on November 2, 2010, 53% to Marshall's 47%.
Scott originally planned to campaign for Governor of Georgia, announcing his campaign in January 2009. He made headlines for walking more than 1,000 miles around the state in his "Walk of Georgia", introducing a bill to abolish tolls on Georgia 400, and leading the charge in pressuring Georgia State Attorney General Thurbert Baker to file a lawsuit against the Federal government over the controversial health care reform bill passed in March 2010. In April 2010, Scott withdrew from the race for Governor to instead run for U.S. Congress.
In 2010 Scott signed a pledge sponsored by Americans for Prosperity promising to vote against any Global Warming legislation that would raise taxes.