Biography of Yvette Clarke
Yvette D. Clarke is a Brooklyn native whose roots are firmly planted in her Jamaican heritage. A product of the New York City Public School System, Rep. Clarke received a scholarship to Oberlin College and was a recipient of the prestigious APPAH/Sloan Fellowship in Public Policy and Policy Analysis.
Rep. Clarke served as the first Director of Business Development for the Bronx Empowerment Zone where she administered the $51 million budget that resulted in the revitalization and economic development of the south Bronx.
Rep. Clarke was elected to the New York City Council in November 2001 as the representative for the 40th District in Brooklyn. She was re-elected to office in November 2003 and November 2005. Clarke succeeded her pioneering mother, former City Councilmember, Dr. Una S.T. Clarke, making them the first mother-daughter succession in the history of the New York City Council.
During her Council tenure, Rep. Yvette D. Clarke served as the chair of the powerful Contracts Committee and co-chair of the New York City Council Women's Caucus. She also served on the Education; Fire & Criminal Justice Services; Health; Land Use; Planning, Dispositions & Concessions; and, Rules, Privileges & Elections committees.
Rep. Clarke's voting record as a member of the New York City Council serves as a reflection of her philosophy that government should serve to protect people, uplift local communities and build bridges that bring everyone together. Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke is committed to continuing the district's legacy of excellence as set forth by the late Honorable Shirley Chisholm, the first African American woman and Caribbean American elected to Congress.
In November 2006, Rep. Clarke was elected to represent New York's 11th Congressional District with 89% of the vote. She is currently a member of three House committees and two subcommittees within each committee. Her House committee assignments are as follows:
- Education & Labor Committee
- Healthy Families & Communities subcommittee
- Health, Employment, Labor & Pension subcommittee
- Homeland Security Committee
- Transportation & Infrastructure Protection subcommittee
- Management, Investigations, & Oversight subcommittee
- Small Business Committee
- Contracting & Technology subcommittee
- Rural & Urban Entrepreneurship subcommittee