Artur Davis is a former member of the United States House of Representatives in Alabama's Seventh District.http://www.whorunsgov.com/Profiles/Artur_Davis The three-term Democrat was a classmate of Barack Obama at Harvard and openly supported his bid for presidency in 2008.http://www.whorunsgov.com/Profiles/Artur_Davis In February of 2009, Davis announced his candidacy for governor of Alabama but lost in the Democratic primary to State Agriculture Commissioner Ron Sparks.http://content.usatoday.com/communities/onpolitics/post/2010/06/black-governor-alabama-/1 He was succeeded in Congress by fellow Democrat Terri Sewell.http://nationaljournal.com/politics/terri-sewell-d--20101025

In 2010, Davis lost in a bid to become Alabama's first black governor.http://content.usatoday.com/communities/onpolitics/post/2010/06/black-governor-alabama-/1 He adopted a more conservative platform for the race, rejecting endorsements from civil rights groups such as the Alabama New South Coalition and the Alabama Democratic Conference.http://content.usatoday.com/communities/onpolitics/post/2010/06/black-governor-alabama-/1 Davis also broke from President Barack Obama's agenda by voting against the health care bill.http://www.whorunsgov.com/Profiles/Artur_Davis

Born in Montgomery, Alabama, Davis graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University in 1990 and received his law degree from Harvard in 1993.http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=d000602 He clerked for a year under Judge Myron F. Thompson and then worked as an assistant U.S. attorney from 1994 to 1998.http://www.whorunsgov.com/Profiles/Artur_Davis Before being elected to Congress in 2002, Davis practiced law privately as a civil rights attorney.http://www.whorunsgov.com/Profiles/Artur_Davis He represented Alabama's Seventh District in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2003 to 2011.http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=d000602

During his freshman year in Congress, Davis fought to reverse funding cuts for minority land grant colleges.http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1834724_1834723_1834713,00.html In his second term, he supported refunding the HOPE VI program for renovating public housing.http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4729716 After committing to his gubernatorial bid in 2009, Davis's voting record became more centrist and conservative.http://hotlineoncall.nationaljournal.com/archives/2010/12/artur-davis-tak.php He twice voted against the Democratic health care plan and was one of 20 Democrats to vote against the party's tax proposal.http://hotlineoncall.nationaljournal.com/archives/2010/12/artur-davis-tak.php Davis was a member of the House Administration Committee and the Committee on Ways and Means.http://www.whorunsgov.com/Profiles/Artur_Davis