Matthew Francis "Matt" McHugh (born December 6, 1938) is an American lawyer and former Democratic member of the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

from

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, serving from 1975 to 1993.

Biography

Early life and education

McHugh was born in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, but spent most of his adult life in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. He attended

Brooklyn Technical High School Brooklyn Technical High School, commonly called Brooklyn Tech and administratively designated High School 430, is a public specialized high school in New York City that specializes in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. It is on ...

and

Mount St. Mary's University Mount St. Mary's University is a private Catholic university in Emmitsburg, Maryland, United States. It has the largest Catholic seminary in the United States. Undergraduate programs are divided between the College of Liberal Arts, the Richar ...

, from which he earned a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

degree in 1960. He then attended the

Villanova University School of Law The Charles Widger School of Law (known as Villanova Law) is the law school of Villanova University, a private Roman Catholic research university in Villanova, Pennsylvania. It was opened in 1953 and is approved by the American Bar Association (A ...

, earning his

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

in 1963.

Political career

After several years of private practice in

Ithaca, New York Ithaca () is a city in and the county seat of Tompkins County, New York, United States. Situated on the southern shore of Cayuga Lake in the Finger Lakes region of New York (state), New York, Ithaca is the largest community in the Ithaca metrop ...

, he became the district attorney of

Tompkins County Tompkins County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 105,740. The county seat is Ithaca. The name is in honor of Daniel D. Tompkins, who served as Governor of New York and Vice Preside ...

from 1969 until 1973. For the next two years, he was a member of the state Democratic Committee. McHugh was elected to the U.S. House in 1974, defeating his opponent, then-

Binghamton Binghamton ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of New York, and serves as the county seat of Broome County. Surrounded by rolling hills, it lies in the state's Southern Tier region near the Pennsylvania border, in a bowl-shaped valley at the con ...

Mayor Al Libous, a Republican, in the

general election A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from By-election, by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. Gener ...

. McHugh won the 1974 election with 83,562 votes, while Libous placed second with 68,273 votes. He became the first Democrat to represent this district since 1915. McHugh served in the House from January 3, 1975, until January 3, 1993. Although he was an avid civil rights supporter and member of the liberal wing of the Democratic Party, McHugh was known for his bipartisanship. McHugh was a member of the House Select Committee on Children, Youth, and FamiliesChildren, youth, and families: Beginning the assessment. Hearing before the Select Committee on Children, Youth, and Families; House of Representatives, Ninety-Eighth Congress, First Session
''United States House of Representatives'', Washington, DC, 28 April 1984, Original document retrieved 19 January 2014 from ERIC at Ed.gov: Institution of Education Sciences. during his final ten years in Congress. He had previously served on the Veterans' Affairs, Agricultural, and Interior Committees. In 1992, McHugh chose not to run for reelection. McHugh is currently a resident of

Ashburn, Virginia Ashburn is a unincorporated settlement and census-designated place (CDP) in Loudoun County, Virginia, United States. At the 2020 United States census, its population was 46,349, up from 3,393 in 1990. It is northwest of Washington, D.C., and par ...

. After retiring from the House, he originally worked as the vice president of

Cornell University Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...

. He is employed by the

World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and Grant (money), grants to the governments of Least developed countries, low- and Developing country, middle-income countries for the purposes of economic development ...

. He also served on the board of directors of free-enterprise advisory services firm,

FTI Consulting FTI Consulting (earlier Forensics Technologies International) is a business consultancy firm founded in 1982 and headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States. The company specializes in corporate finance and restructuring, economic consultin ...

References

External links

* , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:McHugh, Matthew F. 1938 births Living people Brooklyn Technical High School alumni Cornell University people Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) Mount St. Mary's University alumni New York (state) lawyers Politicians from Ithaca, New York Politicians from Philadelphia Villanova University School of Law alumni People from Ashburn, Virginia 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives