State Representative, Michigan House of Representatives, 11th House District
State Rep. Donavan McKinney is currently serving his second term in the Michigan House of Representatives, representing the 11th House District which includes southern portions of Warren and parts of northeast Detroit. He currently serves on the House Appropriations Committee, where he is the Minority Vice-Chair of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on the DFIS/LARA budget and is a ranking member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on the Agriculture/DNR budget. Representative McKinney is the co-chair of the Michigan Legislative Aerospace and Defense Caucus and was the Secretary of the Detroit Legislative Caucus.
Rep. McKinney began his career in public service as a legislative director in the Michigan House of Representatives. He later worked for the nonprofit Community Development Advocates of Detroit and Wayne County Community College District. Soon after, Rep. McKinney did political and coalition work for the largest health care union in the state, Service Employees International Union Healthcare Michigan.
Rep. McKinney is a lifelong Detroiter. He was raised by his mother and grandmother who taught him the importance of community, leadership and service. He is a proud product of Detroit Public Schools and a graduate of the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy at the University of Michigan. He worships and serves as a trustee at Mayflower Congregational United Church of Christ in Detroit. He married the love of his life Shaunté in 2019 and they have two wonderful children, Donavan II and Robert.
His legislative priorities include increasing access to affordable and quality health care, ensuring every child in Michigan receives an excellent education, improving the criminal justice system, economic development in Detroit and Warren and securing the rights of unions and workers.