Richard Cyril "Rip" Sullivan, Jr. (born March 14, 1959) is an American activist serving as a member of the

Virginia House of Delegates The Virginia House of Delegates is one of the two parts 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-number ...

from the 48th district, which encompasses parts of Arlington and Fairfax counties. Sullivan is a member of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

Background

Sullivan and his future wife Beth graduated from Langley High School in 1977. After graduating magna cum laude from Amherst College in 1981, he earned a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Virginia School of Law in 1987. Sullivan has practiced law in Northern Virginia for nearly 30 years, most notably with law firm

Reed Smith LLP Reed Smith LLP is a global law firm headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with more than 1,500 lawyers in 30 offices throughout the United States, Europe, the Middle East and Asia. History Reed Smith was founded in Pittsburgh in 1877 by ...

. Following his election, Sullivan left Reed Smith and joined the Arlington-based firm of Bean Kinney & Korman. Prior to becoming a lawyer, Sullivan helped create the

United States Institute of Peace The United States Institute of Peace (USIP) is an American federal institution tasked with promoting conflict resolution and prevention worldwide. It provides research, analysis, and training to individuals in diplomacy, mediation, and other pea ...

. Sullivan currently serves on the Chairman's Advisory Board of the Institute. He has served on numerous local, regional, and statewide boards and commissions. Sullivan is the former president of Northern Virginia Legal Services, an organization that provides free counsel to low-income residents. In 2020, Sullivan introduced and helped pass the Virginia Clean Economy Act, which was signed into law on April 11, 2020.

Political career

2007 campaign

The 34th district race was one of the most expensive local campaigns in Virginia in 2007 because of Vince Callahan's political influence in Richmond. The race was targeted as a prime pickup opportunity by the

Virginia Democratic Party The Democratic Party of Virginia (DPVA/VA Dems) is the Virginia affiliate of the Democratic Party based in Richmond, Virginia. Historically, the Democratic Party has dominated Virginia politics. Since the 1851 Virginia gubernatorial election, the ...

. Democrat Margaret Vanderhye, a community activist from

McLean, Virginia McLean ( ) is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Fairfax County in Northern Virginia. McLean is home to many diplomats, military, members of Congress, and high-ranking government officials partially due to its proxi ...

, announced her candidacy along with Sullivan in the Democratic primary. In the primary election on June 12, 2007, Vanderhye defeated Sullivan by 149 votes, according to the State Board of Elections. Vanderhye went on to win the general election, but was defeated in 2009 by

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

Barbara Comstock.

2014 campaign

On June 29, 2014, Rip announced his candidacy for a special election for Virginia's 48th House of Delegates district to fill the seat of longtime Delegate

Robert Brink Robert Greenleaf Brink (Boston, 30 March 1924 - Boston, 24 October 2014) was an American violinist, conductor, and educator. He was a professor of music at the New England Conservatory in Boston, Massachusetts. He performed with the harpsicho ...

, who resigned to take a job in the McAuliffe administration. On July 6, Sullivan won a firehouse primary over six other candidates to become the Democratic nominee for the seat. On August 19, Sullivan won in a landslide victory over opponent Dave Foster, winning by more than 24 points and winning every single precinct in the 48th District.

Electoral history

References

External links

Official Campaign Website2007 Campaign Finance Data''Raising Kaine'' Interview
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sullivan, Richard People from McLean, Virginia Amherst College alumni University of Virginia School of Law alumni Virginia lawyers Living people 1959 births 21st-century American politicians Democratic Party members of the Virginia House of Delegates