Chris Saxman - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Christopher B. "Chris" Saxman (born October 18, 1965 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...

) is an American politician of the Republican Party

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

. He is a former member of the Virginia House of Delegates

Virginia House of Delegates

The Virginia House of Delegates is the lower house of the Virginia General Assembly. It has 100 members elected for terms of two years; unlike most states, these elections take place during odd-numbered years. The House is presided over by the Speaker of the House, who is elected from among the...

, representing the 20th District from 2002 to his retirement in 2010. The district includes the City of Staunton

Staunton, Virginia

Staunton is an independent city within the confines of Augusta County in the commonwealth of Virginia. The population was 23,746 as of 2010. It is the county seat of Augusta County....

, the western part of Augusta County

Augusta County, Virginia

As of the census of 2000, there were 65,615 people, 24,818 households, and 18,911 families residing in the county. The population density was 68 people per square mile . There were 26,738 housing units at an average density of 28 per square mile...

, the southern part of Rockingham County

Rockingham County, Virginia

As of the census of 2000, there were 67,725 people, 25,355 households, and 18,889 families residing in the county. The population density was 80 people per square mile . There were 27,328 housing units at an average density of 32 per square mile...

, and all of Highland County

Highland County, Virginia

As of the census of 2000, there were 2,536 people, 1,131 households, and 764 families residing in the county. The population density was 6 people per square mile . There were 1,822 housing units at an average density of 4 per square mile...

.

After graduating from Robert E. Lee High School

Robert E. Lee High School (Staunton, Virginia)

Robert E. Lee High School is a public high school in Staunton, Virginia, United States.- External links :*...

, he went on to earn a B.A. in History from Washington and Lee University

Washington and Lee University

Washington and Lee University is a private liberal arts college in Lexington, Virginia, United States.The classical school from which Washington and Lee descended was established in 1749 as Augusta Academy, about north of its present location. In 1776 it was renamed Liberty Hall in a burst of...

in 1987. He worked in New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

before returning to Staunton to teach U.S. History and Government for three years at Stuart Hall

Stuart Hall School

Stuart Hall School in Staunton, Virginia was founded by the Episcopal church as Virginia Female Institute in 1844. It was renamed in 1907 in honor of its most famous headmistress, Flora Cooke Stuart, the widow of Confederate cavalry leader Maj. Gen. J.E.B...

. He then became general manager of the family business, Shenandoah Valley Water Company, a bottled water and coffee distribution and delivery company.

In November 2001, he was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates. (In the 2001 redistricting

Redistricting

Redistricting is the process of drawing United States electoral district boundaries, often in response to population changes determined by the results of the decennial census. In 36 states, the state legislature has primary responsibility for creating a redistricting plan, in many cases subject to...

, the 20th District was moved to the Staunton area from Danville

Danville, Virginia

Danville is an independent city in Virginia, United States, bounded by Pittsylvania County, Virginia and Caswell County, North Carolina. It was the last capital of the Confederate States of America. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines the city of Danville with Pittsylvania county for...

, where the seat had been held for seven terms by Democrat

Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

Whitt Clement.) Since the Spring of 2003, Delegate Saxman has served as Chairman of the House Cost Cutting Caucus, a bipartisan group that works to find cost savings in government.

The Hotline
The Hotline
The Hotline is a daily political briefing published by the Atlantic Media Company from its headquarters at The Watergate complex in Washington, DC. It is edited by Reid Wilson with Josh Kraushaar...

listed Delegate Saxman as one of the top 20 "up-and-coming stars of Virginia politics", in November 2003. In their recent 2006 edition, The Hotline noted that "many consider him an up-and-coming star in the party."

In addition to his work in the General Assembly, Delegate Saxman serves on the State Water Commission, the Virginia Schools for the Deaf and Blind Advisory Commission, and the Board of Trustees for the Frontier Culture Museum. An active member in the community, Saxman is a member of the St. Francis of Assisi Church and the Shenandoah Valley Kiwanis. He also serves on the Board of the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank and is serving his first term as Chairman of the Board of the International Bottled Water Association.

Saxman and United States Senator John Warner

John Warner

John William Warner, KBE is an American Republican politician who served as Secretary of the Navy from 1972 to 1974 and as a five-term United States Senator from Virginia from January 2, 1979, to January 3, 2009...

were Virginia state co-chairs for John McCain

John McCain

John Sidney McCain III is the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for president in the 2008 United States election....

's 2008 presidential campaign.

Delegate Saxman currently resides in Staunton with his wife, Michele, an employee in the family business, and their four children, Mary Kathryn, William, Nora and John.

Saxman's father, Bill, and mother, Jan, are the founders of Shenandoah Valley Water Company.

Potential 2008 Senate Candidacy

On November 19, 2007, Saxman announced that he was mulling over a bid to run for the U.S. Senate to fill the seat of retiring Republican John Warner

John Warner

. Former Governor Jim Gilmore

Jim Gilmore

James Stuart "Jim" Gilmore III is an American politician from the Commonwealth of Virginia, former 68th Governor of Virginia, and a member of the Republican Party. A native Virginian, Gilmore studied at the University of Virginia, and then served in the U.S. Army as a counterintelligence agent...

(R) announced that he was running on November 19, 2007. Saxman's announcement comes on because of Gilmore's announcement. Former Governor Mark Warner

Mark Warner

Mark Robert Warner is an American politician and businessman, currently serving in the United States Senate as the junior senator from the Commonwealth of Virginia. He is a member of the Democratic Party. Warner was the 69th governor of Virginia from 2002 to 2006 and is the honorary chairman of...

(D) - no relation to John Warner - has announced his candidacy. Most recent polling from November 5, 2007, has Warner leading Gilmore by 20+ points.

On November 20, 2007 the Staunton News Leader theorized that a good portion of Chris Saxman's support for the U.S. Senate was coming from Democratic operatives supporting Mark Warner and internet provider addresses from outside the Commonwealth of Virginia.

On December 1, 2007, the Associated Press reported Chris Saxman would not seek the Republican Convention nomination to replace U.S. Senator John Warner and would be a candidate for reelection to his 20th District House seat in 2009.

House of Delegates Retirement

Delegate Saxman shocked the political community when he announced on July 17, 2009, that he was withdrawing from his reelection bid, only days after campaigning door-to-door. He cited his desire to fight for what he calls "projects of my passion." GOP leaders will meet to name a replacement for the November General Election. The Democratic nominee for the 20th District seat is Erik Curren, marketing director the American Shakespeare Center in Staunton. The local Republican Executive Committee announced the choice of Staunton City Councilman Dickie Bell to replace Saxman on the November General Election ballot.

External links

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