Terri Sewell

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American politician (born 1965)

title: "Terri Sewell" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1965-births", "20th-century-african-american-politicians", "20th-century-african-american-women-politicians", "20th-century-american-women-politicians", "21st-century-african-american-lawyers", "21st-century-african-american-politicians", "21st-century-african-american-women-politicians", "21st-century-alabama-politicians", "21st-century-american-women-politicians", "21st-century-united-states-representatives", "african-american-united-states-representatives", "african-american-people-in-alabama-politics", "alabama-democrats", "alabama-lawyers", "alpha-kappa-alpha-members", "alumni-of-st-hilda's-college,-oxford", "american-women-lawyers", "davis-polk-&-wardwell-lawyers", "democratic-party-united-states-representatives-from-alabama", "female-united-states-representatives", "harvard-law-school-alumni", "lawyers-from-birmingham,-alabama", "lawyers-from-huntsville,-alabama", "living-people", "marshall-scholars", "politicians-from-birmingham,-alabama", "politicians-from-huntsville,-alabama", "politicians-from-selma,-alabama", "princeton-university-alumni", "women-in-alabama-politics", "people-associated-with-maynard-nexsen"] description: "American politician (born 1965)" topic_path: "law" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terri_Sewell" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary American politician (born 1965) ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox officeholder"]

Field	Value
name	Terri Sewell
image	Terri Sewell official photo.jpg
caption	Official portrait, 2014
state	Alabama
district
term_start	January 3, 2011
predecessor	Artur Davis
birth_name	Terrycina Andrea Sewell
birth_date
birth_place	Huntsville, Alabama, U.S.
party	Democratic
spouse
relatives	Briana Sewell (cousin)
education	Princeton University (BA)
St Hilda's College, Oxford (BA)
Harvard University (JD)
signature	Signature of Terri Sewell.svg
website

| | module | | ::

| module = Terrycina Andrea "Terri" Sewell (; born January 1, 1965) is an American politician and lawyer serving as the U.S. representative for as member of the Democratic Party since 2011. The district includes most of the Black Belt, as well as most of the predominantly African American portions of Birmingham and Tuscaloosa.

A native of Huntsville, Sewell studied at Princeton University for a bachelor's, Harvard Law School for a Juris Doctor degree, and St Hilda's College, Oxford for a second bachelor's that was promoted by tradition to an MA. Before entering politics, she was a securities lawyer for Davis Polk & Wardwell and a public finance lawyer for Maynard, Cooper & Gale, where she was the first Black woman to make partner. She is the first African-American woman elected to Congress from Alabama and, along with Republican Martha Roby, was one of the first women elected to Congress from Alabama in a regular election.

Early life and education

Terri Sewell was born in Huntsville, Alabama, to Andrew A. Sewell, a former high school basketball coach, and Nancy Gardner Sewell, a retired high school librarian and former Selma city council member. Her mother was the first Black woman elected to Selma's city council.

As a child, Sewell wanted to be a star on Broadway. Because her mother had hoped for her to become a lawyer, Sewell joined the debate team in high school.

After graduating from high school, Sewell went to Princeton University. She was the first Selma High School graduate to attend an Ivy League school. She was recruited to attend Princeton by Julian L. McPhillips, who read about her in the local Selma newspaper. At Princeton, she befriended Michelle Obama, who served as what Sewell called her "big sister" on campus. During her time at Princeton, she interned with Richard Shelby (then a Democrat) and Howell Heflin.

After graduating from Princeton in 1986, Sewell attended St Hilda's College, Oxford where she was a Marshall Scholar. It was there that she befriended Susan Rice. Sewell graduated from Oxford with a degree in political science in 1988. She attended Harvard Law School for her Juris Doctor, which she completed in 1992. There she overlapped with and was friends with Barack Obama, who became a lifelong friend and influenced Sewell's decision to enter politics.

Early career

After graduation, Sewell served as a judicial law clerk in Birmingham, Alabama, to Chief Judge U. W. Clemon, In New York, she worked at Davis Polk & Wardwell, alongside Kirsten Gillibrand, starting in 1994.

Sewell returned to Alabama in 2004 due to her father's health problems. She worked for another law firm, Maynard, Cooper & Gale PC, where she was the first black woman partner. She was a public finance lawyer.

In 2007, Sewell was at Brown Chapel A.M.E. Church, where she is a member, when then Senator Barack Obama spoke during the 2008 United States presidential election. Sewell credits Obama's speech (in which he asked "[t]he questions that I have today is, what's called of us in this Joshua generation? What do we do in order to fulfill that legacy, to fulfill the obligations and the debt that we owe to those who allowed us to be here today?") as the catalyst for her serving in politics. Weeks after his speech, Gillibrand called Sewell, recruiting Sewell to run for office.

U.S. House of Representatives

Elections

2010

After four-term Democratic incumbent Artur Davis gave up the seat to run for governor, Sewell entered the Democratic primary, the real contest in this majority Democratic, majority-black district. She finished first in the four-way primary with 36.8% of the vote. In the runoff, she defeated Jefferson County Commissioner Sheila Smoot with 55% of the vote.

In the general election, Sewell defeated Republican opponent Don Chamberlain with 72.4% of the vote as expected.

2012

Sewell was the only candidate to file for the Democratic nomination in 2012 and defeated Chamberlain again in the general election. This was the last time Sewell had a Republican opponent until 2022.

2014

Sewell was challenged in the Democratic primary by Tamara Harris Johnson, a former Birmingham City Attorney. She defeated Johnson with 83.9% of the vote, effectively clinching a third term.

2016

Sewell won a fourth term against a write-in opponent.

2018

Sewell won a fifth term against a write-in opponent.

2020

Sewell won a sixth term against a write-in opponent.

2022

Sewell defeated Republican nominee Beatrice Nichols and Libertarian nominee Gavin Goodman in the general election, clinching her seventh term.

Tenure

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b8/Terri_Sewell_and_Joe_Biden.jpg" caption="Sewell and then former vice president [[Joe Biden]] in 2020"] ::

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a5/Doug_Jones_and_Terri_Sewell.jpg" caption="Doug Jones]] in January 2018"] ::

For the 114th United States Congress, Sewell was ranked as the 94th most bipartisan member of the House (and the most bipartisan member of the House from Alabama) in the Bipartisan Index created by The Lugar Center and the McCourt School of Public Policy, which ranks members of Congress by their degree of bipartisanship (by measuring how often each member's bills attract co-sponsors from the opposite party and each member co-sponsors bills by members of the opposite party). Sewell has established herself as a liberal with a focus on job creation, and arguably has the most left-wing voting record of any person to represent Alabama in Congress. She is a member of the Congressional Black Caucus.

In January 2020, Sewell endorsed Joe Biden for president.

As of October 2021, Sewell had voted in line with Biden's stated position 100% of the time.

Committee assignments

For the 118th Congress:

Caucus memberships

Congressional Black Caucus
Congressional Equality Caucus
New Democrat Coalition (vice chair)
Congressional Voting Rights Caucus
Congressional Cement Caucus
Black Maternal Health Caucus{{cite web|title=Caucus Members |author=|url=https://blackmaternalhealthcaucus-underwood.house.gov/about-caucus/caucus-members|format=|publisher=Black Maternal Health Caucus|date=June 15, 2023|access-date=23 June 2025}}
Afterschool Caucuses

Political positions

Sewell voted with President Joe Biden's stated position 100% of the time in the 117th Congress, according to a FiveThirtyEight analysis.

Abortion and women's issues

Sewell supports abortion rights. Sewell opposed the Human Life Protection Act, which went into effect in 2019. She described the bill as "both blatantly unconstitutional and a brazen, extremist attack on women's rights." She also opposed the June 2022 overturning of Roe v. Wade, calling it "devastating" and expressing concern that "state legislatures across the country will now begin racing to criminalize reproductive health care."

In 2013, Sewell voted to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act.

Economic issues

Sewell is a proponent of a $15 minimum wage.

In 2019, she voted for the Paycheck Fairness Act, an act to address the gender pay gap.

Sewell supports tariffs on countries involved in currency manipulation. She voted for the Currency Reform for Fair Trade Act 2010.

Sewell supported President Obama's plan to extend tax cuts for low- and middle-income Americans, but declined to discuss her stance on taxation for high-income Americans. In response to President Obama's Framework for Business Tax Reform, Sewell said: "I applaud the President for outlining a bold framework for reforming the U.S. business tax system."

In 2019, Sewell worked with Ivanka Trump to develop policies related to paid parental leave.

Sewell supports eliminating the Military Widow's Tax.

Sewell has voted against work requirements for welfare recipients.

During the 2023 United States debt-ceiling crisis, Sewell voted for the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023.

Voting rights

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9d/John_Lewis_-Terri_Sewell-_Frederick_D.Reese-_2016.jpg" caption="Terri Sewell with [[John Lewis]] and [[Frederick D. Reese]] in 2016"] ::

In 2019, Sewell sponsored the Voting Rights Advancement Act (which later became the John Lewis Voting Rights Act), which would update the Voting Rights Act of 1965 by providing increased oversight of voting changes, updating the pre-clearance formula to oversee contemporary discrimination patterns, and expanding the Attorney General's power to send federal observers to jurisdictions in areas at risk of voting discrimination. In 2019, Sewell co-sponsored the For the People Act of 2019.

Education

Sewell co-sponsored the Student Non-Discrimination Act in 2013, which, if enacted, would have protected LGBT students from anti-gay bullying and discrimination in public schools.

In 2019, she sponsored a bill, which passed, granting historically black colleges $70 million for capital improvements and to support their educational work.

In 2025, she congratulated Veronica Pitts, a high school teacher in Selma, Alabama, on the House floor for winning the National Civics Teacher of the Year award presented by the Bill of Rights Institute. She stated, "Each year, only one teacher in the nation is selected to receive this prestigious honor, and I am thrilled that this year, the teacher hails from Alabama's 7th Congressional District."

Energy policy

Sewell opposes offshore drilling. She also opposes allowing the Environmental Protection Agency to regulate greenhouse gas emissions.

Foreign policy

Sewell supported President Obama's decisions on Afghanistan, citing "trust" of his policies. She was part of a bipartisan delegation that accompanied Nancy Pelosi on a two-day trip to Afghanistan in May 2012. While there, they spent time "with American service-members and meeting local officials to discuss security and women's issues."

Sewell opposed removing armed forces from Afghanistan in 2011.

Government reform

Sewell co-sponsored the STOCK Act in 2011 and the DISCLOSE Act in 2012. The same year, she also co-sponsored the SIMPLE Voting Act, to require a minimum of 15 days of nationwide early voting.

Gun policy

In 2019, Sewell voted for the Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2019, which required background checks for anyone seeking to buy a firearm.

Health care

Sewell voted for the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare). She supports Medicaid expansion and the use of incentives to encourage states to expand it. She is currently sponsoring bills to lower prescription drug costs, expand funding for rural hospitals, and support more health studies on African American health disparities.

In March 2021, Sewell voted for the American Rescue Plan, which included $475 million in funding for Sewell's district, including support for vaccinations, city employee overtime pay, and hazard pay for COVID-19 response work.

Homeland security

Sewell supported extending the PATRIOT Act's wiretapping. She voted against funding to support Trump's wall.

Kay Ivey

When Alabama governor Kay Ivey shared that she had performed in a college skit in blackface, Sewell called Ivey's actions "reprehensible" and "deeply offensive", adding that "racism – in any of its forms – is never acceptable, not in the 1960s and not now."

Immigration

In January 2025, Sewell was one of 48 Democrats to have voted for the Laken Riley Act, which requires U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to detain illegal immigrants charged with theft. She was one of seven House Democrats who had previously voted against the proposal in March 2024. Sewell later became one of 46 House Democrats who joined all Republicans to vote for a Senate-amended version of the bill.

Impeachments of Donald Trump

In both the first and second impeachments of Donald Trump, Sewell voted in favor of articles of impeachment against Trump, the only representative from Alabama to do so.

Rural funding

On December 9, 2025, Sewell voted in favor of the Secure Rural Schools Reauthorization Act of 2025. The act passed overwhelmingly in the chamber, passing in a vote of 399–5. The act extends federal payments to rural counties to support schools, roads, and local services.

Electoral history

::data[format=table title="{{sronly|Electoral history of Terri Sewell}}"]

Year	Office	Party	Primary	General	Result	Swing	.	Total	%	.	Runoff	%	.	Total	%
2010	U.S. Representative	Democratic Party (United States)}};"		Democratic	31,531	36.80%	1st	32,366	55.00%	1st	136,696	72.48%	1st		Democratic Party (United States)}};"
2012	Democratic Party (United States)}};"		Democratic	colspan=6	232,520	75.85%	1st		Democratic Party (United States)}};"		Hold
2014	Democratic Party (United States)}};"		Democratic	74,953	83.91%	1st	colspan=3	133,687	98.37%	1st		Democratic Party (United States)}};"		Hold	Primary election:
2016	Democratic Party (United States)}};"		Democratic	colspan=6	229,330	98.41%	1st		Democratic Party (United States)}};"		Hold
2018	Democratic Party (United States)}};"		Democratic	colspan=6	185,010	97.80%	1st		Democratic Party (United States)}};"		Hold
2020	Democratic Party (United States)}};"		Democratic	colspan=6	225,742	97.16%	1st		Democratic Party (United States)}};"		Hold
2022	Democratic Party (United States)}};"		Democratic	colspan=6	123,233	63.54%	1st		Democratic Party (United States)}};"		Hold
2024	Democratic Party (United States)}};"		Democratic	59,143	92.6%	1st	colspan="3"	186,723	63.68	1st		Democratic Party (United States)}};"		Hold	Primary election:
::

Personal life

In 1998, Sewell married Theodore Dixie of Huntsville, Alabama. They are divorced.

Sewell is a lifetime member of Brown Chapel AME Church in Selma, Alabama.

She is the cousin of Briana Sewell, a delegate in the Virginia House of Delegates.

References

"Terrycina Andrea Sewell - $1,802,819 raised, '10 election cycle, Alabama (AL), Democratic Party, Congress". Campaignmoney.com.
(October 27, 2010). "New Members 2010 – Alabama – The Hill – covering Congress, Politics, Political Campaigns and Capitol Hill". TheHill.com.
(2010-11-03). "Black Lawmakers Break New Ground, Suffer Losses | Madame Noire | Black Women's Lifestyle Guide | Black Hair | Black Love". Atlantapost.com.
[[Elizabeth B. Andrews]] was elected to fill an unexpired term in the House, while Senators [[Dixie Bibb Graves]] and [[Maryon Pittman Allen]] were appointed and never elected.
"The Honorable Terri A. Sewell's Biography".
Thompson, Krissah. (March 1, 2015). "Rep. Terri Sewell, a daughter of Selma, rues her city's lost promise". Washington Post.
"Sewell '86 launches historic campaign for Congress". The Daily Princetonian.
(October 27, 2020). "Alumnae Applause".
"U. W. Clemon". Encyclopedia of Alabama.
"AL – District 07 – D Primary Race – Jun 01, 2010". Our Campaigns.
"AL District 07 – D Runoff Race – Jul 13, 2010". Our Campaigns.
Sonmez, Felicia. (July 13, 2010). "Robert Bentley clinches Republican nod for governor in Alabama". The Washington Post.
"AL – District 07 Race – Nov 02, 2010". Our Campaigns.
Dean, Charles J.. (January 13, 2012). "U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell uncontested in Democratic primary". [[The Birmingham News]].
"''Alabama Secretary of State'' "Official Election Results, 2012 General Election"".
(March 7, 2016). "The Lugar Center – McCourt School Bipartisan Index". [[Richard Lugar#The Lugar Center.
"Terri A. Sewell (D-Ala.)". The Washington Post.
"Membership". Congressional Black Caucus.
(23 January 2020). "Rep. Terri Sewell Endorses Joe Biden for President".
(2021-10-22). "Does Your Member Of Congress Vote With Or Against Biden?".
"Terri L. Sewell". Clerk of the United States House of Representatives.
(December 13, 2012). "Committees & Caucuses". U.S. Congress.
"About the CEC". CEC.
"Congressional Cement Caucus".
"Congressional Caucuses". Afterschool Alliance.
(2021-04-22). "Does Your Member Of Congress Vote With Or Against Biden?".
(24 June 2019). "Terri Sewell on Abortion".
"ACLU says it will sue Ala. again, others react to passage of abortion bill".
(24 June 2022). "Today marks a dark day for women's reproductive rights in the United States. With this devastating decision, SCOTUS has reversed nearly 50 years of legal precedent and stripped away a woman's right to make her own decisions about deeply personal health care matters.".
"Terri Sewell on Civil Rights".
"Terri Sewell on Free Trade".
"On The Issues". The Washington Post.
"Statement From Congresswoman Terri A. Sewell on President Obama's Framework for Business Tax Reform". House Press Release.
(20 September 2019). "Sewell hopeful Congress will eliminate widow's tax in this year's NDAA". Alabama Political Reporter.
"Terri Sewell on Welfare & Poverty".
(May 31, 2023). "Raising the Debt Limit: See Who Voted For and Against". The New York Times.
(25 February 2019). "'We should be outraged': Alabama congresswoman tackles voter suppression". The Guardian.
(30 December 2019). "Sewell on front lines for explosive year in Washington – The Selma Times‑Journal". The Selma Times‑Journal.
(19 June 2019). "Terri Sewell successful in securing critical HBCU funding". Alabama Today.
"Pitts honored on floor of House of Representatives".
"Terri Sewell on Energy & Oil".
Mali, Meghashyam. (13 May 2012). "Pelosi leads delegation on Afghanistan visit". The Hill's Global Affairs.
"Terri Sewell on War & Peace".
(23 June 2019). "Terri Sewell on Government Reform".
(6 June 2019). "Sewell addresses issues at town hall – The Demopolis Times". The Demopolis Times.
(1 March 2021). "Sewell votes in favor of American Rescue Plan coronavirus relief bill". Alabama Political Reporter.
"Terri Sewell on Homeland Security".
(3 July 2019). "Check out Representative Terri Sewell's Environmental Voting Record".
(30 August 2019). "Sewell reacts to Ivey's blackface revelation". Alabama Political Reporter.
(January 7, 2025). "The 48 Democrats Who Voted to Deport Nonviolent Undocumented Offenders".
Rashid, Hafiz. (January 22, 2025). "The 46 Democrats Who Voted for Republicans' Racist Immigration Bill". The New Republic.
Panetta, Grace. "WHIP COUNT: Here's which members of the House voted for and against impeaching Trump".
(2021-01-13). "Alabama lawmakers react to Trump's historic second impeachment".
GovTrack. (December 9, 2025). "S. 356 Secure Rural Schools Reauthorization Act of 2025".
(2025-12-09). "Congress passes Secure Rural Schools Reauthorization Act of 2025 in victory for counties {{!}} National Association of Counties".
"Congress approves Secure Rural Schools funding critical to rural Northwest counties".
(2012). "2012 United States House of Representatives general election results". [[Secretary of State of Alabama]].
(2016). "2016 United States House of Representatives general election results". [[Secretary of State of Alabama]].
(2018). "2018 United States House of Representatives general election results". [[Secretary of State of Alabama]].
(2020). "2020 United States House of Representatives general election results". [[Secretary of State of Alabama]].
(2022). "2022 United States House of Representatives general election results". [[Secretary of State of Alabama]].
(21 June 1998). "Theodore Dixie Jr., Terrycina Sewell". The New York Times.
(2015-06-20). "What's the right reaction when a white stranger walks into a black church?". The Washington Post.
(November 2, 2021). "Newcomer Briana Sewell comes out on top of 51st District House of Delegates' race".

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