Kevin McCarthy (California politician)

For other people with similar names, see Kevin McCarthy (disambiguation).

Kevin McCarthy
House Majority Whip
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2011
Leader	Eric Cantor
Speaker	John Boehner
Preceded by	Jim Clyburn
Republican Chief Deputy Whip of the United States House of Representatives
In office January 3, 2009 – January 3, 2011
Whip	Eric Cantor
Preceded by	Eric Cantor
Succeeded by	Peter Roskam
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California's 22nd district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2007
Preceded by	Bill Thomas
Minority Leader of the California State Assembly
In office January 5, 2004 – April 17, 2006
Preceded by	Dave Cox
Succeeded by	George Plescia
Member of the California State Assembly from the 32nd district
In office December 2, 2002 – November 30, 2006
Preceded by	Roy Ashburn
Succeeded by	Jean Fuller
Personal details
Born	January 26, 1965 (1965-01-26) Bakersfield, California
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Judy McCarthy
Children	Connor Meghan
Residence	Bakersfield, California
Alma mater	California State University, Bakersfield
Religion	Baptist
Website	Congressman Kevin McCarthy Majority Whip website

Congressman McCarthy at an oversight hearing of the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water and Power.

Kevin McCarthy (born January 26, 1965) is the Majority Whip of the United States House of Representatives, having served in that position since 2011. A member of the Republican Party, he is the U.S. Congressman for California's 22nd congressional district (since 2007). The district includes most of Bakersfield, as well as most of the Antelope Valley. He previously served two terms in the California State Assembly, including two years as the Republican Floor Leader.

Early life, education and career

Born in Bakersfield, McCarthy is a fourth-generation resident of Kern County. McCarthy opened his first business, Kevin O's Deli (which McCarthy describes as "Subway before there was Subway"), at the age of 19 to raise money to go to California State University, Bakersfield, where he earned his Bachelor of Science in marketing in 1989 and Master of Business Administration in 1994. McCarthy ran several other small businesses prior to his entry into the political field.

From 1999 to 2001 McCarthy served as Chairman of the Young Republican National Federation.

From the late 1990s until 2002, McCarthy served as the District Director for U.S. Congressman Bill Thomas, the Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee.

U.S. House of Representatives

Committee assignments

• Committee on Financial Services
  • Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance, and Government-Sponsored Enterprises
  • Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit

Party leadership

• Majority Whip (2011–present)
• Chief Deputy Republican Whip (2009–2011)
• House Republican Steering Committee

As a freshman, McCarthy was appointed to the Republican Steering Committee. In 2008, Republican Leader John Boehner asked him to serve as Chairman of the Republican Platform Committee during the committee's meetings in Minneapolis in August 2008, which produced the Republican Party Platform for 2008. McCarthy is also one of the three founding members of the GOP Young Guns Program.

After the 2008 elections, McCarthy was chosen as Chief Deputy Minority Whip, the highest-ranking appointed position in the House Republican Caucus. His predecessor, Eric Cantor, was named Minority Whip. On November 17, 2010, he was selected by the House Republican Caucus to be the House Majority Whip in the 112th Congress. In this post, he is the third-ranking House Republican, behind Speaker John Boehner and Majority Leader Cantor.

House campaigns

2006

See also: United States House of Representatives elections in California, 2006#District 22

McCarthy entered the Republican primary for the 22nd—the real contest in this heavily Republican district—after his former boss, Thomas, announced his retirement. He easily won the general election with 70.7% of the vote against Democratic nominee Sharon Beery, despite a national Democratic wave in that year's elections.

2008

See also: United States House of Representatives elections in California, 2008#District 22

McCarthy won unopposed.

2010

See also: United States House of Representatives elections in California, 2010#District 22

McCarthy won virtually unopposed, winning 98.8% of the vote, with opposition coming only from a write-in candidate.

McCarthy authored H.R. 1581 Wilderness and Roadless Area Release Act of 2011 (Introduced in House - IH) Releases wilderness study areas administered and forest service road-less areas currently managed by the Bureau of Land Management from protection. These areas will be released for other purposes.

Personal life

McCarthy and his wife Judy have two children. They are lifelong residents of Bakersfield.

In 2000, McCarthy was elected as a Trustee on the Kern Community College District Board. McCarthy also served on the Board of Directors for Community Action Partnership of Kern.

External links

• Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy official leadership site
• Congressman Kevin McCarthy official House site
• Kevin McCarthy for Congress official campaign site
• Biography at WhoRunsGov.com at The Washington Post
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
• Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
• Congressional profile at GovTrack
• Congressional profile at OpenCongress
• Issue positions and quotes at On The Issues
• Current Bills Sponsored at StateSurge.com
• Financial information at OpenSecrets.org
• Staff salaries, trips and personal finance at LegiStorm.com
• Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
• Campaign contributions at the National Institute for Money in State Politics
• Appearances on C-SPAN programs

California Assembly
Preceded by Roy Ashburn	California State Assemblyman 32nd District December 2, 2002–November 30, 2006	Succeeded by Jean Fuller
United States House of Representatives
Preceded by Bill Thomas	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California's 22nd congressional district January 4, 2007–present	Incumbent
United States order of precedence
Preceded by Dave Loebsack D-Iowa	United States Representatives by seniority 278th	Succeeded by Jerry McNerney D-California
Party political offices
Preceded by Dave Cox	California State Assembly Republican Leader January 5, 2004–April 17, 2006	Succeeded by George Plescia
Preceded by Eric Cantor Virginia	Chief Deputy Republican Whip January 3, 2009–January 3, 2011	Succeeded by Peter Roskam Illinois
Preceded by Jim Clyburn South Carolina	House Majority Whip January 3, 2011–present	Incumbent