David Alan Brat (born July 27, 1964) is an American politician and academic who served as the U.S. representative for Virginia's 7th congressional district from 2014 to 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he was first elected in 2014 after successfully primarying House Majority Leader Eric Cantor. Brat narrowly lost re-election in 2018 to Democrat Abigail Spanberger. Brat came to national prominence when he defeated the U.S. House Majority Leader, Eric Cantor, in the 2014 Republican primary in Virginia's 7th congressional district. His primary victory, which he achieved with the support of the Tea Party movement, made Brat the first primary challenger to oust a sitting House Majority Leader since the position's creation in 1899. Brat went on to win the 2014 general election and was re-elected to Congress in 2016. During his congressional tenure, Brat was known as a conservative Republican and a member of the Freedom Caucus. He was defeated by Democrat Abigail Spanberger in the 2018 election. In January 2019, Brat was named dean of the Liberty University School of Business.
