RNC speakers: What to know about Lee Zeldin

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Rep. Lee Zeldin, R-N.Y., is one of several conservative lawmakers who secured a speaking slot at the Republican National Convention.

Democrats wrapped up their mostly virtual nominating convention last week. Republicans had the opening night of their convention on Monday. Zeldin will speak on Wednesday night.

The Republican convention was supposed to take place in Charlotte, N.C., but coronavirus concerns forced the event to go mostly remote as well. President Trump is set to give his acceptance speech from the White House on Thursday, the final day of the 2020 convention.

Rep. Lee Zeldin sparred with an NBC News reporter on Tuesday during a tense exchange over impeachment. (Photo By Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

Here are four things to know about Zeldin:

1. He's represented New York's 1st Congressional District since 2015

Zeldin took office in 2015 and will face Democrat Nancy Goroff in the general election this year. Zeldin was elected to represent New York's 1st District after serving in the New York State Senate for four years.

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His district encompasses eastern Long Island.

2. He serves in the Army Reserves as a Lieutenant Colonel

Zeldin was active duty in the U.S. Army from 2003 to 2007 and deployed to Tikrit, Iraq, in 2006 as part of the 82nd Airborne Division. Now he serves in the Army Reserves as a Lieutenant Colonel.

Zeldin now serves on the House Foreign Affairs Committee and frequently focuses on issues of foreign policy.

3. He's one of two Jewish Republicans in Congress

Zeldin and Rep. David Kustoff, R-Tenn., are the only two Jewish Republicans in Congress. Zeldin frequently speaks out on issues of anti-Semitism, including attacks on Jewish people in New York City in 2019.

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He has frequently found himself at odds with progressive Democrats in Congress on the topic of Israel and spearheaded a resolution to oppose the Boycott, Divest, and Sanctions (BDS) movement.

Zeldin at the American Zionist Movement / AZM Washington Forum: Renewing the Bipartisan Commitment Standing with Israel and Zionism in the Capitol Visitor Center in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Michael Brochstein/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

"Despite the claims of Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., and other supporters of BDS, the hate-fueled movement is not all about affirming the rights of Palestinians," Zeldin wrote in a 2019 Fox News op-ed. "It is about delegitimizing Israel by turning it into a pariah state cut off from all trade, tourism, military, diplomatic and cultural ties with the rest of the world."

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4. He has a background as a lawyer

Like many of his fellow members of Congress, Zeldin was trained as a lawyer. He's a bit of an attorney wiz kid — he graduated from Albany Law School and became the youngest attorney in New York at the time at the age of 23.

This post has been updated to reflect that Zeldin serves in the Army Reserves.