Rep. Emily Kinkead's Biography

Representative Emily Kinkead is a native Northsider working passionately to empower Pennsylvanians and break down barriers for working families.

Since 2020, Representative Kinkead has represented the 20th Legislative District -- Ross Township, Bellevue Borough, Avalon Borough, West View Borough, and parts of the City of Pittsburgh. As a member of the General Assembly, she sits on the following committees: Appropriations, Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Human Services, Judiciary, and the Committee on Committees.

Before 2020, Representative Kinkead dedicated her life to being a strong voice for those who most need strong voices. After earning degrees in biology and political science at Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, she began her career working and advocating with people with disabilities in Washington, D.C. She then pivoted to return to the work she had started in college – advocating for good government reform. Kinkead joined Common Cause, where she helped to organize public education programs exposing the disenfranchising effects of gerrymandering and money in politics, while mobilizing youth to demand responsive climate change policy. She then moved to the Legislative Policy Office of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which works to educate members of Congress about the need for investment in medical research and reviews the impact of proposed legislation on NIH and its projects. Kinkead also worked, through the Washington Center for Internships and Academic Seminars, as the Logistics Coordinator for the U.S. Department of Transportation’s summer diverse internship program.

Looking to make an even bolder difference by expanding the type of help she could provide, Kinkead applied to law school and attended the University of Pittsburgh. While working toward her law degree, she protected the rights of HIV+ individuals and victims of gender or domestic violence through a legal aid clinic in Eldoret, Kenya. She applied those skills and refined them during her stateside internship at Pittsburgh’s Neighborhood Legal Services office, where she assisted low-income tenants in landlord-tenant disputes across the region, and at the Pitt Law Immigration Clinic, where she helped clients seeking asylum or otherwise needing assistance navigating the complex U.S. immigration system. She also served as an intern law clerk to U.S. Magistrate Judge Lisa Pupo Lenihan. Finally, after law school and prior to entering private practice, Kinkead served as a judicial law clerk for Commonwealth Court Judge Michael Wojcik, assisting in the drafting of more than 60 opinions.

She is an avid volunteer who currently serves on numerous boards, including Scenic Pittsburgh, ALCOSAN, and the State Council for Interstate Juvenile Supervision. And as a member of Pittsburgh’s 50 Finest 2019, she worked tirelessly to raise both money and awareness surrounding cystic fibrosis.

Kinkead ran for office because she fears Pennsylvanians have lost faith in both their democracy and in the promise that hard work will bring success and a better life for their children. By providing outspoken and tireless representation in Harrisburg, and comprehensive resources at home in Allegheny County, she believes that we can work together to bring equity, fairness, and progress to working families and underrepresented neighborhoods.

A staunch believer that government’s calling is to do the most good for the most people, Kinkead is pursuing legislative priorities that promote a living wage, responsible development and infrastructure, criminal justice reform, reproductive justice, LGBTQIA+ equality, safer (and more equitable) communities, and clean air and water for all Pennsylvanians, along with working to make the Pittsburgh area live up to the moniker of “Most Livable” for every person.