Britt grew up in
Asheville, North Carolina and graduated from
Enka High School in 1959. He received a
B.A. from the
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1963 and a
Juris Doctor from the same institution as well as an LL.M. degree from
New York University in 1976.
Early political career Britt was a delegate to the North Carolina State Democratic convention in 1980.
Congress In 1982, he was elected to Congress from a Greensboro-based district, defeating one-term
Republican Eugene Johnston. He was narrowly defeated for reelection in 1984 by
State Representative Howard Coble, largely due to
Ronald Reagan's victory that year. Reagan carried the district by a nearly 2-to-1 margin. Britt sought a rematch against Coble in 1986 and lost by only 79 votes.
Later career Britt served as president and director of Project Uplift in Greensboro, N.C. and as secretary of the
North Carolina State Department of Human Resources 1993 to 1997. Britt attempted a comeback in 2002 in the newly-drawn 13th district, which contained parts of Greensboro. However, Britt was defeated in the Democratic primary by
Brad Miller of Raleigh. ==References==