Chris Van Hollen

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Chris Van Hollen, Jr.
United States Representative from Maryland's 8th district
In office 2003-present
Preceded by	Connie Morella
Succeeded by	Incumbent
Born	January 10, 1959 Karachi, Pakistan
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Katherine Van Hollen
Religion	Episcopalian

Christopher "Chris" Van Hollen, Jr. (born January 10, 1959) is a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Maryland's 8th congressional district since 2003. The district includes most of Montgomery County, an affluent suburban county adjacent to Washington, D.C.. He briefly considered running for the U.S. Senate in 2006, but decided to opt out of the race to work with the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee to regain a Democratic Majority in the House and spend time with his family.^[1]

[edit] Early life, career, and family

The son of a U.S. State Department Foreign Service officer, Van Hollen was born a United States Citizen in Karachi, Pakistan. Van Hollen has also lived in Turkey, Sri Lanka, and India.

Van Hollen received an undergraduate degree from Swarthmore College, a Master's Degree in Public Policy and national security studies from Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government, and a law degree from the Georgetown University Law Center. In the 1980s Van Hollen worked on the U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations and as the Legislative Assistant to Republican Senator Charles Mathias.

Van Hollen served in the Maryland General Assembly from 1991 to 2003 – four years in the House of Delegates and eight years in the State Senate where he served on the Budget and Taxation Committee and the Health and Human Services Subcommittee. In 2002, The Washington Post called Van Hollen "one of the most accomplished members of the General Assembly."^[2]

Van Hollen and his wife Katherine live in Kensington, Maryland with their three children: Anna, Nicholas, and Alexander.

[edit] Congressional career

Congressman Van Hollen joins Prince George's County Executive Jack B. Johnson (at the podium and to the left of Van Hollen) for the announcement of the County’s Legislative Agenda for 2005.

The Maryland 8th Congressional District hugs the northern border of Washington, D.C. and is one of the most educated and wealthy congressional districts in the nation. The federal government is the largest single employer in the district, and many private companies are funded by the government. 8th District voters are interested and well-informed about politics because of work ties and close proximity to Washington.^[3]

Republican incumbent Connie Morella had won eight elections in the district, though registered Democrats far out numbered Republicans. Morella's victories could be credited to her independent voting record and attention to constituent services. However, the Eighth District consistently voted Democratic in presidential elections, giving Clinton 53% of the vote in 1992 and 57% in 1996, and Gore 60% in 2000. In 2000, Morella won 52% of the vote, less than in other elections.^[4]

Redistricting reinforced the growing Democratic strength in the district. The Democratic-controlled state legislature redistricted in 2000, carving out Republican precincts in the northern and more rural portions of Montgomery County and returning Democratic precincts in southeastern Montgomery County that had been moved to the Fourth District in 1990. They also added precincts from Prince George's County.^[5]

In 2002, Van Hollen entered a competitive Democratic Party against state Delegate Mark Kennedy Shriver, of the Kennedy family, and former Clinton Administration aide Ira Shapiro. Though Shriver had the most money, Van Hollen managed to stay competitive and launched a grassroots effort. He was endorsed by the Washington Post, the Baltimore Sun, and other local papers. Van Hollen defeated Shriver 43.5% to 40.6%.

During the campaign, Van Hollen emphasized that even when Morella voted with the district, her partisan affiliation kept the unpopular Republican leadership in power. He also touted his leadership in the Maryland State Senate on issues such as education funding, HMO reform, trigger locks for handguns, and protecting the Chesapeake Bay from oil drilling. Ultimately, after a tight race, Van Hollen defeated Morella 52% to 48%.^[6]

Van Hollen was reelected in 2004 with almost 75% of the vote against Republican Chuck Floyd. The 8th is so heavily Democratic that it is highly unlikely Van Hollen will face serious opposition in the future.

In 2003, Van Hollen was named Outstanding New Member of the Year by the Committee for Education Funding, the nation's largest and oldest non-partisan education coalition.^[7] The first bill Congressman Van Hollen introduces every session is the Keep Our Promise to America's Children and Teachers (PACT) Act, which would fully fund No Child Left Behind and IDEA. He also introduced an amendment, which passed, that repealed a 9.5% loophole in student loans that had allowed lenders to pocket billions of dollars of taxpayer dollars. Now, that money is available for additional student loans.^[8]

Because many federal employees live in his district, Congressman Van Hollen has worked on a number of issues relating to them. He supported pay parity in pay raises for military and civilian employees and introduced an amendment, which passed, to block the Bush Administration's attempts to privatize many federal jobs.^[9]

Congressman Van Hollen has secured federal funding for a number of local projects, including transportation initiatives, community policing, regional homeland security efforts, education programs and community development projects.

Van Hollen often joins his colleague, Adam Schiff (CA-29), to discuss issues of National Security on the floor of the House, with particular commentary on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.^[10]

In May 2006, Van Hollen formed a Congressional Caucus on the Netherlands with Dutch-born Republican representative Pete Hoekstra. The goal of the caucus is to promote the U.S. relationship with the Netherlands and remember the Dutch role in establishing New York and the United States.

In July 2006, Van Hollen urged the Bush administration to support a ceasefire supported by a robust peacekeeping force that would end the Israeli-Lebanon war. He came under attack from right-wing elements in the community. According to the Washington Jewish Week, Congressman Van Hollen clarified but did not retract his position.^[11]

On March 18, 2005, Van Hollen announced that he would be forming an exploratory committee to decide whether or not to run for the seat of retiring senator Paul Sarbanes. On July 12 he opted out of the race, saying he would rather spend time with his family and help elect more Democrats to Congress.^[12]

In 2006, Van Hollen is challenged for re-election by newcomers Gerald Giblin (G), and Jeffrey Stein (R).

[edit] Committee assignments

As of June 2006, Van Hollen serves on the following House committees:

• Committee on Education and the Workforce
• Committee on Government Reform
• Committee on the Judiciary

He is also the Vice Chair of the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Caucus, a Co-Chair of the Congressional Chesapeake Bay Watershed Task Force, and a Vice-Chair of the Democratic Task Force on Tax Policy and the Budget.

He is also the Co-Chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's "Red to Blue" Program, which supports Democratic Candidates for Congress all over the country.^[13]

[edit] Election history

[edit] References, sources and external links

1. ^ http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/07/11/AR2005071101496.html
2. ^ http://www.newsdesk.umd.edu/archive/release.cfm?year=2004&ArticleID=1002
3. ^ Amerinca Political Science Association election review
4. ^ Amerinca Political Science Association election review
5. ^ Amerinca Political Science Association election review
6. ^ Amerinca Political Science Association election review
7. ^ CEF Honors members of Congress for education funding
8. ^ The Hill: House races loom large in student-loan debate
9. ^ GCN: House votes against revised A-76 rules
10. ^ Transcript of Congress speech on national security
11. ^ Washington Jewish Week: Critics emerge of Maryland Congressman Also, see Ha'aretz article on AIPAC calling Van Hollen to recant: haaretz.com: Get ready for the Democrats haaretz.com
12. ^ Washington Post: Van Hollen says he won't run for Senate
13. ^ http://www.dccc.org/red2blue/

• Official website for Representative Van Hollen.
  • Biography at Van Hollen's website
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
• Congressional Quarterly Voting and Elections Collection.