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- Allen Morris Thomas (born July 5, 1969) is an American politician. He was appointed on December 6, 2021 by President Biden and the White House as Regional Administrator for the Southeast Region of the United States Small Business Administration. The SBA Southeast Region guaranteed over $8 billion in small business loans in fiscal year 2021, counseled over 400,000 entrepreneurs, and awarded nearly $18 billion in federal contracts to small business to help drive their success. As Region IV Administrator, Allen oversees SBA programs, offices, and operations in the SBA’s Southeast region, serving Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. Allen is a former three-term mayor, businessman, entrepreneur, and leader in public and private enterprise. As mayor of Greenville, one of North Carolina’s largest cities, Allen led the post-recession recovery, rapid expansion, and robust economic growth, better connecting the city and region. He was recognized by the White House during the Obama-Biden Administration for community engagement in law enforcement and public safety. A serial entrepreneur, Allen co-founded healthcare technology startup IQMax, which grew to service 160 medical facilities in 36 states, processing 18 million patient records per day. He was appointed Executive Director of the North Carolina Global TransPark by North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper to revitalize the state’s global multimodal transportation and logistics hub, thus spearheading growth in advanced manufacturing jobs, innovation, and investment. Allen served as the mayor of Greenville, North Carolina, from December 2011 to July 2017, having first been elected in 2011 and reelected in 2013 and 2015. Thomas stepped down in July 2017 to take the position of executive director of the Global Transpark in Kinston, North Carolina. He was appointed by North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper. He is a member of the Democratic Party. In 2019, Thomas ran for a seat in the U.S. House in North Carolina's 3rd congressional district's special election. Thomas won the Democratic nomination, but lost the general election. (en)
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