David Wu

Who is David Wu?

David Wu is an American politician who served as the U.S. representative for Oregon's 1st congressional district from 1999 to 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party.

As a child of immigrants from Taiwan, Wu was the first Chinese American and Taiwanese-American to serve in the House of Representatives. In the wake of accusations that he made unwanted sexual advances on the teenage daughter of a campaign donor and friend, Wu announced that he would resign from office following resolution of the 2011 debt ceiling crisis; he submitted his resignation on August 3, 2011. A special election was held on January 31, 2012, to fill the vacancy in advance of the regular 2012 election. Democrat Suzanne Bonamici defeated Republican challenger Rob Cornilles to win this special election.

Since his resignation, unlike most other former members of Congress in that situation, he has not only remained in the Washington area but has kept up his public profile. He has been raising money for local Democratic parties, and organizing student exchange programs between the Chinese and American space programs.