Kevin Kelly is an American politician from Maryland

Maryland

Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...

 and a member of the Democratic Party

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...

. He is currently serving in his fifth term in the Maryland House of Delegates

Maryland House of Delegates

The Maryland House of Delegates is the lower house of the General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Maryland, and is composed of 141 Delegates elected from 47 districts. The House chamber is located in the state capitol building on State Circle in Annapolis...

, representing district 1B in Allegany County

Allegany County, Maryland

Allegany County is a county located in the northwestern part of the US state of Maryland. It is part of the Cumberland, MD-WV Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010, the population was 75,087. Its county seat is Cumberland...

. Kelly is a member of the Judiciary Committee and its Civil Law and Procedure Subcommittee.

Background

Kelly was born in Cumberland, Maryland

Cumberland, Maryland

Cumberland is a city in the far western, Appalachian portion of Maryland, United States. It is the county seat of Allegany County, and the primary city of the Cumberland, MD-WV Metropolitan Statistical Area. At the 2010 census, the city had a population of 20,859, and the metropolitan area had a...

 on August 18, 1953. He graduated from Bishop Walsh School

Bishop Walsh School

Bishop Walsh School is a K-12 Catholic school located in Cumberland, Maryland, and under the jurisdiction of the Archdiocese of Baltimore. Approximately 600 students attend. The school also hosts a pre-K program and operates the St...

 in 1971. After high school he attended Frostburg State University

Frostburg State University

Frostburg State University is a four-year university located on a campus in Frostburg, Maryland, in Western Maryland, and is part of the University System of Maryland. FSU is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education.-History:...

 where he got his B.S. in Political Science. After Frostburg he attended the University of Baltimore School of Law

University of Baltimore School of Law

University of Baltimore School of Law, or UB Law, is one of the three colleges that make up the University of Baltimore, which is part of the University System of Maryland. UB Law is one of only two law schools in the state of Maryland, the other law school being the University of Maryland School...

 where he attained his J.D. in 1978. Kelly was admitted to the Maryland bar

American Bar Association

The American Bar Association , founded August 21, 1878, is a voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students, which is not specific to any jurisdiction in the United States. The ABA's most important stated activities are the setting of academic standards for law schools, and the formulation...

 in 1980.

In the legislature

Kelly was first elected to the General Assembly in 1986, serving through 1994, and was re-elected in 1998. He is considered a political moderate.
In 2011 Delegate Kevin Kelly voted for a controversal congressional redistricting bill that made the Maryland's 6th congressional district

Maryland's 6th congressional district

Maryland's 6th congressional district elects a representative to the United States House of Representatives from the northwest part of the state. Today the district comprises all of Garrett, Allegany, Washington, Frederick and Carroll Counties, as well as portions of Montgomery, Baltimore, and...

 the most controversal race for 2012 elections.

2010 general election

Voters to choose one:

Name	Votes	Percent	Outcome
Kevin Kelly, Dem.	6,226	51.26%	Won
Mary Beth Pirolozzi, Rep	5,908	48.64%	Lost

2006 general election

Voters to choose one:

Name	Votes	Percent	Outcome
Kevin Kelly, Dem.	6,489	55.7%	Won
Mark A. Fisher, Rep.	5,151	44.2%	Lost

2002 general election

Voters to choose one:

Name	Votes	Percent	Outcome
Kevin Kelly, Dem.	6,654	55.7%	Won
Tricia Wolfe, Rep.	5,286	44.3%	Lost
Other	4	0.0%	Lost

1998 general election

Voters to choose one:

Name	Votes	Percent	Outcome
Kevin Kelly, Dem.	5,232	51%	Won
Tricia Wolfe, Rep.	4,991	49%	Lost

1990 general election

Voters to choose two:

Name	Votes	Percent	Outcome
Kevin Kelly, Dem.	11,579	41%	Won
Betty Workman, Dem.	11,413	40%	Won
Dolores Chase Morgan, Rep.	5,321	19%	Lost

1986 general election

Voters to choose two:

Name	Votes	Percent	Outcome
Betty Workman, Dem.	8,195	29%	Won
Kevin Kelly, Dem.	7,858	28%	Won
Robert M. Hutcheson, Rep.	6,151	22%	Lost
William R. Davis, Rep.	5,984	21%	Lost