Vince Callahan

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Vincent F. "Vince" Callahan Jr. (born 30 October 1931 in Washington, DC)[1] is the representative for the 34th district in the Virginia House of Delegates, which covers McLean and some surrounding areas. He is the longest-serving Republican in the Virginia legislature, having first been elected in 1967.

[edit] Early Life

Vince Callahan served as a Marine in Korea from 1950 to 1952. He attended Georgetown University and earned a B.S. in Foreign Service in 1957. After serving four years as a lieutenant in the Coast Guard, Vince Callahan ran for Lieutenant Governor of Virginia in 1965, but lost to Fred G. Pollard.

[edit] Career as Delegate

Callahan is considered by some to be a moderate Republican, and is relatively popular in his district. While he has introduced legislation to restrict the death penalty to those 18 and older, Callahan also introduced a bill to ban all stem-cell research in the Commonwealth of Virginia, vaguening his position on the political spectrum.[2] He was last challenged in 2001 by D. A. Evans, and won with 60.05% of the vote.[3]

[edit] 2007 Election and Retirement

In 2007, Vince Callahan once again faced a challenger to his seat. Callahan had initially stated that he would not announce whether or not he is seeking re-election until March, 2007 and expected a strong challenge if he did because he is the only elected Republican within the Capital Beltway and transportation has made the Republican-controlled General Assembly unpopular in Northern Virginia. On 6 March 2007, Vince Callahan announced his retirement[4], having served 40 years in the House of Delegates. Democrats Margaret Vanderhye and Rip Sullivan have filed papers of intent to seek office with the Virginia State Board of Elections and will face off in a primary on June 12, 2007.

On March 13, Vince Callahan formally endorsed his former legislative aide Dave Hunt who will be the Republican candidate in the 34th District Delegate race. Delegate Callahan will also be hosting Dave Hunt's campaign kickoff at his home on a date to be determined [5].