Former Montco Judge Now State Representative In The Norristown Area

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, PA — Greg Scott isn't new to government, but he is new to the legislative branch of government.

Scott, a Democrat, was elected this month to represent the 54th House District, a new legislative district in Montgomery County that was created out of a recent redistricting plan.

The district will serve residents of Norristown, Plymouth Township and Conshohocken Borough.

While he will now be wearing a state capitol pin on his lapel, Scott previously wore black robes, as he served as a local magisterial district judge in Montgomery County.

Related: Former Judge Runs For Newly Created 54th PA House District

MDJs are also elected in Pennsylvania, so this was not Scott's first experience running for elective office.

And his being the first to represent the new 54th Legislative District in the Norristown area is also not a 'first' for Scott — the Norristown native back in 2015 became the first ever Black magisterial district judge in all of Montgomery County, and also the youngest person ever to hold local judgeship in the entire Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Scott, who is in his mid-30s, will now be able to make law, and he previously stated that he intends to focus his time in the legislature on issues such as criminal justice reform, public education and tax reform.

In an email to supporters on Nov. 10, two days after he won his race, Scott said he was "humbled, honored and proud to serve as your next State Representative in the 54th Legislative District."

"It won't always be easy but I will stay true to our values every single day in Harrisburg when representing this community," Scott wrote.

The 54th Legislative District was previously located in Allegheny and Westmoreland Counties in western Pennsylvania, but it was moved to this part of Montgomery County after redistricting.

The Norristown area was previously under the 70th Legislative District, which is represented by State Rep. Matt Bradford, a fellow Democrat.

On his campaign website, Scott noted that his interest in politics began from a young age, posting pictures of his sixth-grade self shaking hands with former President Bill Clinton when Clinton made a visit to Pennsylvania.

"He challenged the President to put his money where his mouth is and shortly thereafter, President Clinton visited Greg's school district to announce an education initiative at Norristown High School," reads a section of the website. "Through this experience, Greg saw how the government could work for the people."

When he was 16 years old, Scott became Norristown first junior borough councilman, and he joined up with the Norristown Fire Department at the age of 16.

He also volunteered as an EMT with Plymouth Community Ambulance Association.

When he was on the bench as a magisterial district judge, Scott focused on helping Montgomery County to reform its bail practices through a pretrial services program; advocated for housing reform for those who were house or rent insecure; and created an alternative adjudication program for young people caught up in the criminal justice system, according to a bio.

When he was first elected to the bench seven years ago, Scott, at 28 years old, was the youngest ever sitting MDJ in Pennsylvania.