Joyce Beatty

Joyce Marie Beatty (/ˈbeɪti/; née Birdsong, March 12, 1950) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for Ohio's 3rd congressional district since 2013, and as chair of the Congressional Black Caucus since 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, Beatty represented the 27th district in the Ohio House of Representatives from 1999 to 2008, serving for a time as minority leader. She was also previously the senior vice-president for outreach and engagement at Ohio State University. In 2012, Beatty ran in the newly redrawn Ohio's 3rd congressional district, based in Columbus, and won the Democratic primary, defeating former U.S. Representative Mary Jo Kilroy.[1] She went on to defeat Republican Chris Long in the general election.[2] Beatty was married to Otto Beatty Jr., who was also a former Ohio state representative.