Joyce Beatty

Joyce Beatty (born March 12, 1951) is an American politician who has been the United States Representative for Ohio's 3rd congressional district since 2013. Previously, she was the Senior Vice-President for Outreach and Engagement at Ohio State University. A Democrat, Beatty was a member of the Ohio House of Representatives from 1999 to 2008, representing the 27th House District; in the Ohio House of Representatives, she served for a time as Minority Leader. Her husband is Otto Beatty, Jr., who is also a former Ohio State Representative.

In 2012, she ran for the newly redrawn Ohio's 3rd congressional district, based in the City of Columbus, and won the Democratic primary by defeating former U.S. Congresswoman Mary Jo Kilroy. Beatty went on to win the general election against Chris Long.

Early life, education, and early political career

Beatty has a B.A. in speech from Central State University, an M.S. in counseling psychology from Wright State University, and has studied at the doctoral level at the University of Cincinnati. Beatty served as the Montgomery County Health and Human Services Director responsible for administering the county's health levy and area public nursing homes, including Stillwater Nursing Home. In 2003, she received an honorary doctorate from the Ohio Dominican University. Beatty served as a delegate for John Kerry on the Ohio delegation to the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston.