Glenn Nye

Glenn Nye
File:Glenn Nye Official Photo.jpg
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Virginia's 2nd district
In office January 3, 2009 – January 3, 2011
Preceded by	Thelma Drake
Succeeded by	Scott Rigell
Personal details
Born	Glenn Carlyle Nye III (1974-09-09) September 9, 1974 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Political party	Democratic
Residence	Norfolk, Virginia
Alma mater	Georgetown University
Profession	former Foreign Service officer
Religion	Presbyterian
Website	www.glennnye.com

Glenn Carlyle Nye III (born September 9, 1974) is an American politician who was the U.S. Representative for Virginia's 2nd congressional district from 2009 to 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party. He was defeated in his attempt to attain re-election on November 2, 2010.

The district includes all of Virginia Beach and the Eastern Shore, as well as parts of Norfolk and Hampton.

Early life, education and career

Nye was born in Philadelphia, but his family has lived in the Hampton Roads area for five generations. He grew up in Norfolk and graduated from high school at Norfolk Academy. A graduate of the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., he volunteered on medical education missions to the Middle East while in college. He began his foreign service career focusing on economic development in war-torn Eastern Europe while working for the U.S. Director at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

Government career

Nye joined the U.S. State Department in 2001, where he served in Kosovo and Macedonia as a member of the Foreign Service. During the Macedonian Conflict in 2001, he helped organize the evacuation of Albanian insurgents fighters, along with 26 U.S. military contractors who were trapped in the village of Arachinovo. The American citizens were reported to be working for MPRI, and provided training and consulting to the Albanian insurgents. For this, Nye received the State Department’s Superior Honor Award, although the incident is considered to be highly controversial within Macedonia.

Nye was then posted to the U.S. Embassy in Singapore, where he helped protect U.S. intellectual property rights during the negotiation of the U.S.-Singapore Free Trade Agreement. From there he volunteered to go to Afghanistan, spending almost a year as part of a U.S. government sponsored team managing the historic Afghan Constitution Commission and supporting the country's first Presidential election.

He also managed a U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) community development program in the West Bank and Gaza. He served as Operations Director in the Middle East by registering eligible voters in major U.S. cities for Iraq's Transitional National Assembly election. In Iraq, Nye led operations to create jobs for Iraqis as part of the counter-insurgency effort. After returning to Virginia, he advised a USAID program working closely with military colleagues to stabilize Iraqi neighborhoods by creating employment for over 70,000 Iraqis. In an interview with CQ Politics, Nye explained why he decided to run for Congress: "There is only so much one can do on the executing end of foreign policy in terms of advancing American interests, and there’s only so much you can do to influence the policy from the outside. I was frustrated with the course of the country, and I was prepared to offer my service to try to bring some expertise into the Congress that I think the Congress is lacking." Nye and Drake had clashed over energy policy. Drake supported new drilling in Alaska and along the continental shelf off the East Coast. Nye stated that oil companies can and should expand existing oil fields which are now economically feasible to exploit.

U.S. House of Representatives

Committee assignments

• Committee on Armed Services
  • Subcommittee on Readiness
  • Subcommittee on Seapower and Expeditionary Forces
  • Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations
• Committee on Small Business
  • Subcommittee on Finance and Tax
  • Subcommittee on Contracting and Technology (Chairman)
• Committee on Veterans' Affairs
  • Subcommittee on Health

Political positions

Soon after being sworn in, Nye joined the Blue Dog Coalition, a caucus of conservative Democrats.

Nye voted with the Democratic majority for the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009. Nye joined with 43 other Democrats to vote against the American Clean Energy and Security Act in June 2009, and in November 2009, Nye voted along with 38 other Democrats against the Affordable Health Care for America Act., saying that the bill did not do enough to reduce health care costs, and that it cut too much money from children's hospitals. Nye also voted against the Stupak Amendment.

Nye was endorsed by the Chamber of Commerce and the National Federation of Independent Business.

Political campaigns

2008

See also: United States House of Representatives elections in Virginia, 2008 § District 2

Nye won the Democratic nomination for the 2nd District and faced Drake in the November election. Nye's donations from national Democrats, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer of Maryland and Representative Charles Rangel of New York, reflected the interest of the party in his race. Although they endorsed his opponent in 2006, Nye was endorsed by The Virginian-Pilot in 2008.

In the November election, Nye defeated Drake with 52 percent of the vote. The 2nd District saw a Democratic Party sweep in 2008, with both Barack Obama and Mark Warner winning the district in the Presidential and Senate races, respectively.

2010

See also: United States House of Representatives elections in Virginia, 2010 § District 2

Nye was defeated by Republican nominee Scott Rigell, a businessman and automobile dealer. Independent Kenny Golden, a retired Navy Commodore was also on the ballot.

Electoral history

Virginia's 2nd congressional district

Year		Democrat	Votes	Pct		Republican	Votes	Pct		Independent	Votes	Pct
2008		Glenn Nye	141,857	52.40%		Thelma D. Drake	128,486	47.46%		*
2010		Glenn Nye	70,306	42.46%		Scott Rigell	88,007	53.15%		Kenny E. Golden	7,158	4.32%

Write-in and minor candidate notes: In 2008, write-ins received 368 votes. In 2010, write-ins received 100 votes.

Current

In March 2011 Glenn Nye accepted a position at the German Marshall Fund where he continues to secure communications between the United States and Europe.

In September 2011 Glenn Nye joined the Hanover Investment Group as the Senior Political Advisor.

External links

• Glenn Nye for U.S. Congress official campaign site
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Profile at Project Vote Smart
• Financial information (federal office) at the Federal Election Commission

United States House of Representatives
Preceded by Thelma Drake	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Virginia's 2nd congressional district 2009–2011	Succeeded by Scott Rigell