David William Marsden (born April 5, 1948) is an

American politician In the United States, politics functions within a framework of a constitutional federal democratic republic with a presidential system. The three distinct branches share powers: Congress, which forms the legislative branch, a bicameral legis ...

of the Democratic Party. In 2010 he was elected to represent the 37th district, a portion of

Fairfax County Fairfax County, officially the County of Fairfax, is a county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. With a population of 1,150,309 as of the 2020 census, it is the most populous county in Virginia, the most populous jurisdiction in the Washington ...

, in the

Senate of Virginia 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 Vir ...

, and later re-elected to the senate.

Early life and education

Marsden graduated from

Wilbert Tucker Woodson High School Carter G. Woodson High School, commonly known as C. G. Woodson High School or simply Woodson, (formerly Wilbert Tucker Woodson High School) is a public high school located in Fairfax County, Virginia, just outside the east end of the city of Fai ...

in 1966 and

Randolph–Macon College Randolph–Macon College is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Ashland, Virginia. Founded in 1830, the college has an enrollment of more than 1,500 students. It is the second-oldest M ...

in 1970.

Political career

Prior to his career in politics, Marsden spent 17 years as head of the Fairfax County Juvenile Detention Center until 1999. In 2000, Governor

Jim Gilmore James Stuart Gilmore III (born October 6, 1949) is an American politician, diplomat and former attorney who served as the 68th governor of Virginia from 1998 to 2002. A member of the Republican Party, Gilmore also chaired the Republican Nation ...

appointed him Chief Deputy and then Acting Director of the 2,700-person Virginia Department of Juvenile Justice. He then served for 6 months in the administration of Governor

Mark Warner Mark Robert Warner (born December 15, 1954) is an American businessman and politician serving as the senior United States senator from Virginia, a seat he has held since 2009. A member of the Democratic Party, Warner served as the 69th gove ...

. Between 2006 and 2010, he served 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 ...

representing the 41st district. On January 12, 2010, Marsden defeated Steve Hunt in a special Senate election to replace Republican

Ken Cuccinelli Kenneth Thomas "Cooch” Cuccinelli II ( ; born July 30, 1968) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the acting Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security from 2019 to 2021. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Pa ...

who was elected Attorney General the previous fall. On January 13, 2010, Marsden was sworn in. An additional special election was held March 2, 2010, to replace Marsden in the

. It was won by Democrat

Eileen Filler-Corn Eileen Robin Filler-Corn (born June 5, 1964) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the Minority Leader of the Virginia House of Delegates from January to April 2022, a position she previously held from 2019 to 2020. She previously s ...

Senate committee assignments

*Transportation (Chair) *Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources *Commerce and Labor *Finance and Appropriations *Rules

References

Sources

* *
Dave Marsden for Delegate
(Constituent/campaign website)
Dave Marsden for State Senate
(Constituent/campaign website)

External links

* *
Project Vote Smart - Representative Dave W. 'Dave' Marsden (VA)
profile *''Follow the Money'' - Dave W. Marsden
2005
campaign contributions
Washington Post - Dave W. Marsden
local election 2008 profile {{DEFAULTSORT:Marsden, David W. 1948 births 21st-century members of the Virginia General Assembly Democratic Party members of the Virginia House of Delegates Democratic Party Virginia state senators Living people People from Burke, Virginia Politicians from Alexandria, Virginia Randolph–Macon College alumni