Jazz Lewis

Lewis was born in Silver Spring, Maryland. He graduated from Charles Herbert Flowers High School and later attended the University of Maryland, College Park, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science in 2011 and a Master of Public Policy degree in acquisition management and international development in 2014. ==Political career==

Lewis first entered politics as a campus organizer, organizing students in a protest against a proposed tuition increase. After graduating, he joined the Service Employees International Union as a community organizer. Lewis also worked for U.S. Representative Steny Hoyer, first as a field director before becoming an executive director in July 2015. During the 2016 presidential primaries, he worked as the Maryland political director for former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. On January 11, 2017, state delegate Michael L. Vaughn resigned from the Maryland House of Delegates, citing unspecified health issues. Lewis applied to fill the vacancy left by Vaughn's resignation, and was nominated by the Prince George's County Democratic Central Committee on January 24. Maryland House of Delegates Lewis was appointed to the Maryland House of Delegates by Governor Larry Hogan on February 10, 2017, and was sworn in on the same day. He was subsequently elected for a full term in 2018, and re-elected in 2022. Lewis was a member of the Judiciary Committee from 2017 to 2020, afterwards serving in the Appropriations Committee until his resignation in 2026. In January 2023, Jones named him as the House Majority Whip, succeeding then-delegate Talmadge Branch. From 2019 until October 2021, Lewis worked as a senior policy advisor to House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer. Lewis was an at-large delegate to the 2024 Democratic National Convention, pledged to Kamala Harris. 2022 congressional candidacy In October 2021, Lewis announced his candidacy for Maryland's 4th congressional district, seeking to succeed outgoing Representative Anthony Brown, who was a candidate for Attorney General. During the primary, he was endorsed by House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and U.S. Representative Ritchie Torres. He withdrew his candidacy on April 14, 2022, saying that he would seek another term in the House of Delegates in lieu of a congressional bid. ==Post-legislative career==

and Maryland first lady Dawn Moore, 2026 On December 16, 2025, Lewis announced that he would resign from the Maryland House of Delegates effective January 5, 2026, to become the director of state government for the University of Maryland, College Park. ==Political positions==

Lewis has described himself as "unabashedly a progressive" who is also a "consensus-maker". He reintroduced the bill during the 2019 and 2020 legislative sessions. In 2019, Lewis said he opposed a controversial bill that would allow Johns Hopkins University to employ its own private police force. After realizing the bill had the votes to pass, he introduced a series of amendments to hold the police force accountable. The bill passed with the amendments. In June 2020, Lewis pledged to stop taking campaign contributions from the Fraternal Order of Police. In July 2020, Lewis was appointed to represent the Maryland House of Delegates on the Law Enforcement Body Camera Task Force, a committee tasked with helping jurisdictions utilize police body cameras. During the 2023 legislative session, Lewis introduced a bill that would require the Maryland Department of General Services to negotiate affordable police body camera contracts for police departments with small budgets. During the 2021 legislative session, Lewis introduced the Juvenile Restoration Act, a bill that would end life without parole sentences for juvenile offenders. The bill passed the Maryland House of Delegates and the Maryland Senate, but was vetoed by Governor Larry Hogan; the veto was overridden by the Maryland General Assembly during the 2022 legislative session. During his 2022 House campaign, Lewis said he supported the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, calling it one of his priorities. Foreign policy Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Lewis traveled to Israel with the American Israel Education Foundation. He later encouraged progressive members of the U.S. House of Representatives who are critical of Israel to visit the country. During his 2022 congressional campaign, Lewis said he supported a single-payer health care system and expanding access to mental health services. Marijuana Lewis supported 2022 Maryland Question 4, a ballot referendum to legalize recreational marijuana in Maryland, voting to pass legislation creating the referendum during the 2022 legislative session and later encouraging his constituents to vote for legalization in October 2022. He had previously sponsored legislation to legalize cannabis during the 2021 legislative session, which failed to move out of committee. National politics In January 2021, Lewis condemned comments made by state delegate Dan Cox during the January 6 United States Capitol attack, replying to a post Cox made on Twitter with "Dan, you are better than this. Please don't cosign this lawlessness." During the 2025 legislative session and amid federal mass layoffs, Lewis introduced the Protect Our Federal Workers Act, which would provide financial assistance to federal workers who permanently lose their jobs because of administrative budget cuts and allow the attorney general of Maryland to sue the federal government on the behalf of laid off federal workers. The bill passed and was signed into law by Governor Wes Moore. Social issues In 2019, Lewis voted to advance a bill that would lift a ban on candidates running in Prince George's County county-level political races from accepting developer contributions. During the 2021 legislative session, Lewis introduced a bill that would remove all flavored tobacco products from the market. ==Personal life==

Lewis is married and lives in Glenarden, Maryland. Together, he and his wife have a son and a daughter. He is a fan of the Washington Commanders. ==Electoral history==