The congressman from the 1st District is Rob Wittman, a Republican who won a special election in December 2007 to replace Republican Jo Ann Davis, who died of breast cancer two months earlier. His main interests are national security and environmental protection, a combination not often found among conservative Republicans. Read More

The congressman from the 1st District is Rob Wittman, a Republican who won a special election in December 2007 to replace Republican Jo Ann Davis, who died of breast cancer two months earlier. His main interests are national security and environmental protection, a combination not often found among conservative Republicans.

Wittman was born in Washington, D.C., and became a marine scientist. He also has a Ph.D. in public policy and administration from Virginia Commonwealth University. Wittman served for many years as an environmental health specialist in the Northern Neck and Peninsula regions, including as field director for the state’s shellfish sanitation division. His first public office was a seat on the Montross Town Council, where he served for 10 years, including four as mayor. In 1995, he began a decade on the Westmoreland County Board of Supervisors. In 2005, he was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates.

Five weeks after Davis’ death, Republicans held a convention to choose their nominee. Wittman’s chief opponent was Paul Jost, a businessman and anti-tax activist who lost to Davis 35%-30% in 2000. The low-key Wittman cited his experience in public office and “the basics of good government.” With help from several busloads of supporters, Jost led in the earlier balloting, which began with 11 candidates. The key moment came after five ballots, when Davis’ widower, Chuck Davis, threw his support to Wittman, who became the compromise candidate.

Democrats nominated Philip Forgit, a school teacher and Navy reservist who won a Bronze Star in Iraq. He described himself as a centrist and called for improved training to bring strategic change in Iraq. Wittman emphasized his conservative credentials, including his support for gun rights and his opposition to abortion. He also touted the fact that House Minority Leader John Boehner had pledged to give him a seat on the Armed Services Committee. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee paid little attention to the contest in this heavily Republican district. Wittman won the low-turnout contest 61%-37%, carrying all 18 counties.

In the House, Wittman got a seat on Armed Services as promised, and also a seat on the Natural Resources Committee, another good fit for his district. He generally sticks with Republicans on major issues but is not an automatic vote. He bucked his party as one of 33 House Republicans to support the creation of an office of congressional ethics, which for the first time would give an outside panel the power to investigate the misdeeds of lawmakers. He also voted in 2009 to allow the Food and Drug Administration to regulate tobacco, a sign of that crop’s diminished importance to the region’s economy. With so many commuters in his district, he has been active on legislation to encourage tele-working, and reintroduced a bill in 2011 to give tax breaks of up to $1,000 to cover tele-workers’ expenses. The House, in September 2009, passed his bill to improve the management of efforts to clean the Chesapeake Bay. He took over the chairmanship of Armed Services’ Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee in 2011 and delved into the management scandal at Arlington National Cemetery, where an Army report found mismarked graves and numerous other problems.

Wittman was elected to a full term in 2008 with a smaller share of 57%-42%, but with five times as many votes as in the special election. He coasted to re-election two years later, and some Virginia Republicans touted him as a possible Senate candidate in 2012. Republican-led redistricting is expected to add some of the Northern Virginia suburbs to his district to take the heat off more vulnerable GOP lawmakers while keeping it solidly Republican.