Allen Boyd |
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F. Allen Boyd Jr. (born June 6, 1945) is an American politician, and has been a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives since 1997, representing Florida's 2nd congressional district (map). His district includes all of Bay, Gulf, Calhoun, Jackson, Liberty, Gadsden, Franklin, Wakulla, Taylor, Suwannee, Lafayette, and Dixie Counties. The district also includes most of Leon and Jefferson Counties. Allen Boyd, a Blue Dog Democrat, serves as the group's Co-Chair for Administration He is ranked as one of the most Conservative Democrats in the United States Congress, which is in line with other members of the Blue Dog caucus.
He was born in Valdosta, Georgia to Margaret Elizabeth Finlayson and Fred Allen Boyd. He was educated at Florida State University, graduating in 1969, and he served as an infantry officer in Vietnam with the United States Army. Boyd is a fifth generation farmer from Monticello, Florida and continues to own his family's traditional plot.
Boyd was a member of the Florida House of Representatives before entering the U.S. House. From 1989 to 1997 he served in this body and spent much of his time as chairman of the state Democratic Conservative Caucus. Boyd gained a reputation as a fiscal conservative, a social moderate, and a politician with a commitment to issues facing groups such as farmers, the elderly, and labor.