Kathleen Murphy (politician)

Kathleen J. Murphy is an American state representative from the Commonwealth of Virginia. She is a member of the Virginia House of Delegates for the 34th district, encompassing McLean, Great Falls, and parts of Vienna and Loudoun County. She is a member of the Democratic Party.

Kathleen Murphy
Member of the Virginia House of Delegates from the 34th district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 13, 2015
Preceded by	Barbara Comstock
Personal details
Born	(1948-02-20) February 20, 1948
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	John M. (Jack) Murphy, William E. Sudow
Children	6
Residence	McLean, Virginia
Alma mater	American University
Profession	consultant
Committees	Finance Privileges and Elections
Website	www.DelegateMurphy.com HOD official website Twitter @kmurphyva Facebook Delegate Kathleen Murphy
[1][2]

Murphy sits on the House Finance Committee and the Privileges and Elections Committee.

Murphy ran for the 34th district seat in the 2013 elections against incumbent Republican Barbara Comstock, but lost.[3] When Comstock won election to the United States House of Representatives in 2014, Murphy ran in the special election to succeed Comstock in the House of Delegates. Murphy defeated Republican Craig Parisot to win the seat.[4]

Background

Murphy is the former President of Johnson Murphy & Associates, a consulting firm based in McLean that provides strategic counseling and builds legislative strategies for companies and non-profit organizations. Previously she worked as a Senior Advisor for International Trade issues at the Department of Commerce (2000-20001) and handled Congressional Affairs at USAID (1996-2000) during the Clinton administration. She worked for Congressman Charlie Wilson (D-TX)(1993-1996) where she held a Top Secret security clearance and handled Defense and Foreign Operations appropriations. She was a writer and producer at Nickelodeon and deputy director of women's outreach at the Democratic National Committee.[2] Murphy helped found Salute Our Services, which helped connect service members deployed overseas with their families and Kids Serve Too, an organization to honor and support children in military families. Kathleen has played a critical role in Women’s Campaign International, an organization dedicated to teaching women in developing countries how to become political leaders, and now serves on their advisory board. She was a founding member of the Congressional Wives Task Force, an advocacy group that focused on nutrition labeling and violence in children’s television.

Murphy is currently a member of the Human Services Council for Fairfax County, the McLean Community Foundation, the Fairfax County Health Care Task Force and serves on a fundraising board for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. She is an active member of the Fairfax County Democratic Party and has worked as a Precinct leader for over 15 years. She graduated from American University, magna cum laude. Murphy is the mother of 4 children and 2 step children. She and her husband, attorney Bill Sudow, are long time McLean residents.[5]

Electoral history

2013 campaign

In 2013, Murphy ran for the House of Delegates 34th district seat against incumbent Republican Barbara Comstock. She ran a competitive race and lost by less than 1% of the vote, despite being outspent by her Republican opponent more than two to one.[6]

Results

Virginia House of Delegates election: 34th District, 2013[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Kathleen Murphy	14,540	49.21%
	Republican	Barbara Comstock	14,962	50.64%
	Write-ins		42	0.14%

2015 special election

When Comstock was elected to the United States House of Representatives in 2014, Murphy ran in the special election to succeed Comstock in the Virginia House of Delegates. Murphy defeated Republican Craig Parisot to win the seat.[8]

Results

Virginia House of Delegates election: 34th District, 2015[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Kathleen Murphy	6,419	51.23%
	Republican	Craig A. Parisot	6,093	48.63%
	Write-ins		16	0.12%

2017 general election

Murphy won re-election in 2017, a banner year for Democrats in the House of Delegates. She outspent her Republican opponent more than six to one.[10][11] Vinton Cerf contributed $10,000.[12]

Results

Virginia House of Delegates election: 34th District, 2017[10][13]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Kathleen Murphy	20,522	60.92%
	Republican	Cheryl Buford	13,146	39.02%
	Write-ins		20	0.06%

References

1. "Virginia House of Delegates Member Listings". Retrieved February 25, 2018.
2. "Kathleen Murphy's Biography - The Voter's Self Defense System - Vote Smart". Retrieved February 25, 2018.
3. Antonio Olivo (November 6, 2013). "GOP poised to keep advantage in Va. House". Washington Post.
4. Antonio Olivo (January 6, 2015). "Democrat Murphy beats Parisot in House of Delegates race in Northern Virginia". Washington Post.
5. http://kathleenmurphy.ngpvanhost.com/about-kathleen
6. "Elections: House of Delegates District 34". vpap.org.
7. "Official Results - General Election - November 5, 2013". Virginia State Board of Elections. Archived from the original on April 6, 2015. Retrieved April 27, 2015.
8. "Elections: House of Delegates District 34". vpap.org.
9. "Official Results - General Election - January 6, 2015". Virginia State Board of Elections. Archived from the original on June 2, 2015. Retrieved April 27, 2015.
10. "Buford, Cheryl: Overview - VPAP". VPAP. Retrieved February 25, 2018.
11. BLOCH, MATTHEW; LEE, JASMINE (December 20, 2017). "Election Results: Virginia – Election Results 2017". The New York Times. Retrieved February 25, 2018.
12. "The Virginia Public Access Project". Retrieved February 25, 2018.
13. "2017 November General". Virginia State Board of Elections. Retrieved February 25, 2018.