Matt Dowling is the representative for the 51st District of the

Pennsylvania House of Representatives The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two-year terms from single member districts. It ...

. He is a member of the

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

Early life

According to his official biography, Dowling graduated from

Uniontown Area High School Uniontown Area High School is a comprehensive public high school serving around 975 students in grades 9-12 who reside in the Uniontown Area School District in Fayette County, Pennsylvania. History Uniontown opened in 1911 and was renovated and a ...

in 2003. He studied Theology and Philosophy at Franciscan University of Steubenville and obtained a B.A. in Business Administration and Management from Waynesburg University.

Political career

Dowling began his political career in 2016, when he defeated

Tim Mahoney Timothy Edward Mahoney (born August 16, 1956) is an American politician and businessman who served as the U.S. representative for from 2007 to 2009. A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected in November 2006 after his opponent, six-te ...

, a five-term Democratic incumbent, in the general election for the 51st District seat in the

. The 51st Legislative District consisted of portions of Fayette and

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

counties. In the state House, Dowling was assigned to the Judiciary, Liquor Control, State Government, and Urban Affairs committees.

2020 presidential election

In 2020, incumbent President

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...

lost Pennsylvania and was defeated in his bid for reelection. Trump and his allies refused to accept his defeat, falsely claimed that the election was fraudulent or marred by irregularities, and carried out a months-long effort to overturn the election result. Dowling was one of many Republican members of the

Pennsylvania Legislature The Pennsylvania General Assembly is the legislature of the U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The legislature convenes in the State Capitol building in Harrisburg. In colonial times (1682–1776), the legislature was known as the Pennsylvani ...

who signed a January 4, 2021 letter to Pennsylvania's

congressional A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

delegation asking them to seek a halt to the

2021 United States Electoral College vote count The count of the Electoral College ballots during a joint session of the 117th United States Congress, pursuant to the Electoral Count Act, on January 6–7, 2021, was the final step to confirm President-elect Joe Biden's victory in the 20 ...

(and thus the formalization of the victory of Joe Biden). The letter was sent on the eve of the

January 6 United States Capitol attack On January 6, 2021, following the defeat of then-U.S. President Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential election, a mob of his supporters attacked the United States Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. The mob was seeking to keep Trump in pow ...

, in which a pro-Trump mob stormed the Capitol in a bid to halt the counting of the votes and keep Trump in power.

Second Amendment Caucus Chairmanship

Matthew Dowling was named chairman of the House Second Amendment Caucus for the 2021-22 Legislative Session. Upon Dowling's retirement Rep. Abby Major (R-Armstrong/Indiana/Butler) was named chair.

Drunk driving arrest and retirement

In June 2022, Dowling was charged with

driving under the influence of alcohol Drunk driving (or drink-driving in British English) is the act of driving under the influence of alcohol. A small increase in the blood alcohol content increases the relative risk of a motor vehicle crash. In the United States, alcohol is invo ...

, careless driving, driving an unregistered vehicle, and following too closely. The charges followed his arrest in South Union Township after he rear-ended another vehicle twice at a red light at a busy intersection. Dowling's blood alcohol content was .272, over three times the legal limit in Pennsylvania.State lawmaker quits re-election race following DUI charge
Associated Press (July 5, 2022). The crash took place the day after Dowling's driver's license had been reinstated; his license had previously been medically suspended after an October 2021 automobile crash, which was due to a diabetic emergency. Dowling said he would enter treatment to "address any possible alcohol issues" and attributed the crash to "disappointing behavior that I have faced in the past with respect to alcohol." On July 1, 2022, three weeks after the crash, Dowling ended his bid for reelection in 2022, removing his name from the ballot. On September 19, 2022, the Editorial Board of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette printed a favorable editorial about Dowling's proposed bill to allow self-exclusion from alcohol purchases. The editorial was titled: "Fayette County legislator Matt Dowling is making good things out of a bad decision." In the editorial the board says "The plan is not a panacea. Few people actually have their licenses scanned when buying a drink. But it’s an interesting idea that merits further study. And if something like it ever becomes law, and one person is saved from hurting himself or others, Matt Dowling will have turned his mistake into a triumph."

Commonalities Radio

The show which bills itself as discussing “Politics, Religion, and Finances – all the topics your grandmother told you not to discuss with friends” is hosted by retired State Representative Matthew Dowling. “I am ecstatic about the new podcast. Commonalities provides a venue where we can discuss both sides of the big issues” Dowling said. “Using my network of political figures and community leaders from across the commonwealth I hope to provide local listeners with conversations with statewide newsmakers.” Dowling’s first Episode featured

Jeff Coleman Jeff Coleman (born July 4, 1975) is a former Republican member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Background Coleman was born to a Filipino American family at Whidbey Island Naval Base in Washington in 1975. In the 1980s his family ...

, a retired legislator, political consultant, and recent Republican candidate for Lieutenant Governor alongside Charles Pascal a progressive attorney and member of the Democrat State Committee. The trio will discuss what the ideal political system should look like, what is wrong with our current system, and how we fix what is broken.Staff
Dowling to host radio show
''Herald-Standard'' (Uniontown, Pa.), November 12, 2022.

Electoral history

2016

2018

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dowling, Matt 1984 births Living people Republican Party members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives 21st-century American politicians