Senator James A. Seveney

Deputy Senate Majority Leader

Vice Chairman, Senate Committee on Rules, Government Ethics & Oversight

Member, Senate Committee on Finance

Member, Senate Committee on Special Legislation & Veterans' Affairs

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Senator James A. Seveney (D-Dist. 11, Bristol, Portsmouth, Tiverton) was born on July 15, 1954. He is married to Valerie and has two children: Sarah and Matthew.

A 1972 graduate of Portsmouth High School, Seveney went on to earn a bachelor’s degree from Rhode Island College in 1976. In 1990 he earned a master’s degree in computer science from Naval Postgraduate School in California. In 1991 he earned a DoD Program Management Certificate from Defense Acquisition University in Virginia, and in 2005, earned an MBA from Salve Regina University. 

Seveney spent his career as a naval officer, retiring after over 21 years in naval aviation, aerospace engineering, and defense systems acquisition.

He is a member of the Military Officers Association of America; American Legion; Portsmouth Free Public Library; Friends of Glen Manor House; Portsmouth Police Association; National Contract Management Association; and the Portsmouth Democratic Town Committee.

Seveney served on the Portsmouth School Committee from 2000-2004 and the Portsmouth Town Council from 2004-2016. He was elected to the Rhode Island Senate on November 8, 2016.​