Atif Mustafa Qarni (born 1978) is an American teacher, former military non-commissioned officer, and Democratic politician who was appointed by Governor

Ralph Northam Ralph Shearer Northam (born September 13, 1959) is an American physician and former politician who served as the 73rd governor of Virginia from 2018 to 2022. A pediatric Neurology, neurologist by occupation, he was an officer in the Medical Co ...

Virginia Secretary of Education The secretary of education is a member of the Virginia Governor's Cabinet. The office is currently held by Aimee Guidera. List of secretaries of education References {{Virginia Cabinet leaders 1972 establishments in Virginia Government ...

Early life and education

Emigrating from

Karachi Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

, with his family at the age of ten, Qarni grew up in

Parkville, Maryland Parkville is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 30,734. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total are ...

, before moving to

Manassas, Virginia Manassas (), formerly Manassas Junction, is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. The population was 42,772 at the 2020 Census. It is the county seat of ...

, in 2005. He obtained a bachelor’s degree in sociology from

George Washington University The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally-chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Originally named Columbian College, it was chartered in 1821 by ...

, a master’s in history and a teaching license in secondary education from

George Mason University George Mason University (GMU) is a Public university, public research university in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. Located in Northern Virginia near Washington, D.C., the university is named in honor of George Mason, a Founding Father ...

, a master's in educational administration from

Strayer University Strayer University is a private for-profit university headquartered in Washington, D.C. It was founded in 1892 as Strayer's Business College and later became Strayer College, before being granted university status in 1998. Strayer University ...

, and is a doctoral candidate at

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private university, private research university in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and railroad magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provide ...

Career

He served in the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...

, was deployed to Iraq as part of

Operation Iraqi Freedom The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with the invasion by a United States-led coalition, which resulted in the overthrow of the Ba'athist governm ...

, and rose to the rank of Sergeant. He served as a paralegal at the international law firm

McDermott Will & Emery McDermott Will & Emery is an international law firm with a diversified business practice. The firm is one of the largest-grossing law firms in the United States and globally, and its lawyers represent a wide range of commercial, industrial, and f ...

before beginning a career in teaching. He then served as a civics, economics, U.S. history, and math teacher at Beville Middle School in

Dale City Dale City is a census-designated place (CDP) in Prince William County, Virginia, United States, located south west of Washington, D.C. It is an annex of Woodbridge, Virginia. As of 2020, the total population was 72,088. The community is roug ...

. Qarni ran for a seat in the

Virginia House of Delegates The Virginia House of Delegates is one of the two houses of the Virginia General Assembly, the other being the Senate of Virginia. It has 100 members elected for terms of two years; unlike most states, these elections take place during odd-numbe ...

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

, losing to incumbent Bob Marshall, and for the

Virginia Senate The Senate of Virginia is the upper house of the Virginia General Assembly. The Senate is composed of 40 senators representing an equal number of single-member constituent districts. The Senate is presided over by the lieutenant governor of Virg ...

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

, losing the Democratic nomination to Jeremy McPike. He was appointed as the

governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

in 2017. In 2021, he resigned from the cabinet position to become the managing director of external affairs at

Temple University Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related research university in Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist ministe ...

’s Hope Center. In 2024, he ran in the Democratic primary for

Virginia's 10th congressional district Virginia's 10th congressional district is a U.S. congressional district in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Situated in the suburbs and exurbs of Northern Virginia, the district includes the entireties of Loudoun, Fauquier, and Rappahannock c ...

, placing third.

Electoral history

References

1978 births 21st-century Virginia politicians American politicians of Pakistani descent Asian-American people in Virginia politics Candidates in the 2013 United States elections Candidates in the 2015 United States elections Candidates in the 2024 United States House of Representatives elections Educators from Virginia George Mason University alumni George Washington University alumni Living people Pakistani emigrants to the United States People from Manassas, Virginia State cabinet secretaries of Virginia Strayer University alumni Temple University faculty United States Marine Corps personnel of the Iraq War Vanderbilt University alumni Virginia Democrats {{Virginia-politician-stub