Representative Emily Kinkead is a Democrat representing Pennsylvania's 20th House District, which includes Ross Township, Avalon, Bellevue, West View Boroughs, and parts of Pittsburgh in Allegheny County. Born on Pittsburgh's Northside to a paramedic father, she returned to Pittsburgh after living in places like North Dakota and Washington, DC. She lives in Brighton Heights with her cats and dog. Elected in 2020 after defeating incumbent Adam Ravenstahl in the Democratic primary, she was unopposed in the general election and took office on December 1, 2020. She won re-election in 2024 with 59% of the vote against Republican Matt Kruth. Notable achievements include chairing the Legislative Hunger Caucus, serving on the leadership team of the Pennsylvania Progressive Caucus, and advocating for criminal justice reform, affordable housing, livable wages, worker protections, healthcare, addressing systemic racism, LGBTQIA+ equality, reproductive justice, education funding, and local issues like blight and landslides.

Education and Political Experience

Prior to elected office, Kinkead worked on disability rights, campaign finance reform, gerrymandering reform, climate change, HIV+ advocacy, immigration, and criminal justice reform. She served in the legislative policy office at the National Institutes of Health and provided legal aid to individuals facing eviction. She co-chairs a program through the Allegheny County Bar Association's Women in the Law Division to end bias in the legal profession and serves on the board of Scenic Pittsburgh, an environmental conservation nonprofit. As a member of Pittsburgh’s 50 Finest in 2019, she raised awareness and funds for cystic fibrosis research. In the House, she serves on the Appropriations, Judiciary, Labor & Industry, Human Services, and Agriculture & Rural Affairs committees; acts as Secretary of Human Services and Agriculture Committees; chairs the Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime & Corrections and the Appropriations Subcommittee on Fiscal Policy; and holds the House Chair position for the Legislative Hunger Caucus.