Vince Callahan

Vincent Francis Callahan Jr. (October 30, 1931 – September 20, 2014) was an American politician who served for 40 years as a member of the Virginia House of Delegates. From January 1968 to January 2008, he represented the 34th district, which covers McLean, Great Falls, Tysons Corner, and parts of Herndon and Vienna. At the time of his retirement, he was the longest-serving Republican in the Virginia General Assembly.

Vince Callahan
Member of the Virginia House of Delegates from the 34th district
In office January 12, 1983 – January 9, 2008
Preceded by	John Watkins
Succeeded by	Margaret Vanderhye
Minority Leader of the Virginia House of Delegates
In office January 13, 1982 – December 3, 1985
Preceded by	Jerry H. Geisler
Succeeded by	Andy Guest
Member of the Virginia House of Delegates from the 49th district
In office January 13, 1982 – January 12, 1983 Serving with Robert Andrews & Gwen Cody
Preceded by	Bobby Scott
Succeeded by	Warren G. Stambaugh
Member of the Virginia House of Delegates from the 18th district
In office January 10, 1968 – January 13, 1982
Preceded by	Larry Short
Succeeded by	Andy Guest
Personal details
Born	Vincent Francis Callahan Jr. (1931-10-30)October 30, 1931 Washington, D.C., U.S.
Died	September 20, 2014(2014-09-20) (aged 82) Arlington, Virginia, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Dorothy Budge Yvonne Weight
Alma mater	Georgetown University (BS)
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	United States Marine Corps United States Coast Guard
Years of service	1950–1952 (USMC) 1959–1963 (USCG)
Battles/wars	Korean War

Early life

Callahan was born in 1931 in Washington, D.C..[1] He served as a Marine in Korea from 1950 to 1952.[1] 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, Callahan ran for Lieutenant Governor of Virginia in 1965, but lost to Fred G. Pollard. He ran for Delegate in 1967 and won. He was an unsuccessful candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives in 1976.[1]

House of Delegates

Callahan was first elected to the House of Delegates in 1967. In 1969, a Republican landslide year, Callahan, three other Republicans and Democrat Clive L. DuVal II, outpolled the second leading Democratic candidate Dorothy S. McDiarmid (who would be returned to the legislature in the next election and, like Callahan, be influential in the legislature for many years).[2] Callahan joined the Appropriations Committee in 1972; McDiarmid also served on that committee and served as its chair before her retirement in 1989.

Callahan was considered a moderate Republican and was relatively popular in his district. While he introduced legislation to restrict the death penalty to those 18 and older,[3] Callahan introduced a bill to ban all stem-cell research in the Commonwealth of Virginia. He also introduced legislation in 2007 that would have increased the minimum wage in Virginia. He was awarded the Equality Public Servant Award by Equality Virginia, a gay-rights group which rarely supports Republicans. Prior to 2007, he had last been challenged in 2001 by Dale Evans, a real estate agent, and won with 60.05% of the vote.

2007 election and retirement

As the only Republican state legislator within the Capital Beltway, Callahan was considered a target by Democrats keen to secure their hold on Northern Virginia. On March 6, 2007, Callahan announced that he would not run for re-election in November 2007.[4]

Callahan endorsed his former legislative aide for appropriations, Dave Hunt, to succeed him, but Hunt lost to Margaret Vanderhye, the Democratic candidate, in the November election.

Death

On September 20, 2014, Callahan died of West Nile virus at the age of 82.[5][6]

References

1. "Vince Callahan profile". Project Vote Smart. 2008. Retrieved September 17, 2013.
2. "Virginia Elections Database » 1969 House of Delegates General Election District 27". Retrieved 6 October 2016.
3. "Delegate Vincent F. Callahan, Jr.: Legislation as Chief Patron". Legislative Information System of the Virginia General Assembly. 2006. Retrieved November 29, 2006.
4. "Callahan to retire after 40 years". The Washington Times. March 5, 2007. Retrieved March 7, 2007.
5. "Longtime Va. legislator Vincent F. Callahan Jr. dies at 82". Retrieved 6 October 2016.
6. Notice of death of Vince Callahan, wusa9.com; accessed September 20, 2014.

External links

• Bio, courtesy of the Virginia General Assembly
• Profile at Vote Smart