Katherine Hanley

Katherine Hanley
Secretary of the Commonwealth of Virginia
In office
March 15, 2006 – January 24, 2010
GovernorTim Kaine
Preceded byAnita Rimler
Succeeded byJanet Vestal Kelly
Chair of the Fairfax County
Board of Supervisors
In office
February 8, 1995 – December 15, 2003
Preceded byTom Davis
Succeeded byGerry Connolly
Member of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors from the Providence district
In office
July 1986 – February 8, 1995
Preceded byJim Scott
Succeeded byGerry Connolly
Personal details
BornKatherine Anne Keith
(1943-03-05) March 5, 1943 (age 83)
Columbia, Missouri, U.S.
PartyDemocratic
SpouseEdward John Hanley
EducationUniversity of Missouri
Harvard University

Katherine Keith "Kate" Hanley (born March 5, 1943) is an American Democratic politician in Virginia currently serving as Chairman of the Fairfax County Electoral Board. She previously served as Secretary of the Commonwealth of Virginia from 2006 to 2010, Chairman of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors from 1995 to 2003, as a County Supervisor for the Providence District from 1986 to 1995, and on the Fairfax County School Board from 1984 to 1986.

Early life and education

The daughter of Everett E. and Anna Catherine (Blanchard) Keith, both of whom were teachers, Katherine Anne Keith grew up in Columbia, Missouri and graduated from David H. Hickman High School in 1961. She then attended the University of Missouri where she was a member of Phi Beta Kappa and graduated in 1965 with a B.A. in French Civilization and a B.S. in Secondary Education. Keith next attended Harvard University, where she received a M.A.T. in Social Science in 1966.

On August 6, 1966, she married Edward John Hanley of Endicott, New York. The couple moved to Northern Virginia that same year, and would go on to have two children; son Patrick Keith and daughter Cecelia Anne.

Career

Hanley began her career as a teacher at George Mason Junior-Senior High School in the city of Falls Church. She also worked as a guidance counselor at the University of Missouri before leaving teaching in 1970.

From 1976 to 1982, she and her husband owned and operated the Manor Home Center in Mountain Lake Park, Maryland.

In 1984, Hanley was appointed to the Fairfax County School Board by Providence District Supervisor James M. Scott to replace Ann P. Kahn.

Supervisor Scott announced his resignation in May 1986, and Circuit Court Judge Barnard F. Jennings set a special election to fill the unexpired term for Scott's Providence District seat. Hanley defeated Republican State Delegate Stephen E. Gordy in the July 15 election.

The following March, Hanley announced she would seek reelection to a full term as Supervisor from the Providence District. In the November 3 election, Hanley soundly defeated Republican Myron Smith with 62 percent of the vote.

Despite Republican attempts to link her to then chair of the board Audrey Moore and a general sentiment against incumbents, Hanley was able to retain her seat on the board of supervisors in the 1991 elections, defeating Steve Armstrong.

Tom Davis was elected to Congress in 1994, necessitating a special election to fill his vacant seat as chairman of the board of supervisors. Hanley won the February 1995 special election, defeating Springfield Supervisor Elaine McConnell. Nine months later, Hanley retained the chair by defeating school board chairman Gary L. Jones in the November regular election.

Hanley opted for a less visible presence as chair than some of her predecessors, such as Jack Herrity and Tom Davis, saying that the community did not prefer "show horses over workhorses", and also garnered some criticism as not having a clearly defined vision.

However, the Republicans did not field a candidate against her in the 1999 election, and she handily defeated her three independent challengers, winning by a 3 to 1 margin.

In 2000, Hanley sought the Democratic nomination to run for Lieutenant Governor of Virginia, following the withdrawal of State Senator Emily Couric due to illness, but withdrew in November. Richmond mayor Tim Kaine would ultimately gain his party's nomination in the 2001 election.

In 2003, Hanley did not seek reelection to the board of supervisors, and instead mounted a primary challenge against Jim Moran for Virginia's 8th congressional district in 2004, after Moran damaged himself politically by saying that American Jews were responsible for pushing the country to war with Iraq and that Jewish leaders could prevent war if they wanted to. She abandoned that campaign in November for family reasons.

In July 2004, Governor Mark Warner appointed her to the Commonwealth Transportation Board. Following Tim Kaine's election as governor in November 2005, she was rumored to be a possible contender for Virginia Secretary of Transportation, but was passed over in favor of incumbent Secretary Pierce Homer. Instead, Kaine appointed her as Secretary of the Commonwealth of Virginia following the Virginia General Assembly's rejection of his first nominee, state AFL-CIO President Daniel G. LeBlanc.

Governor Terry McAuliffe appointed Hanley to the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority Board in November 2014.

She previously served as Secretary of the Fairfax County Electoral Board.

References

  1. ↑ "Electoral Board Members | Elections". www.fairfaxcounty.gov. Retrieved November 2, 2026.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  2. ↑ Hall, Thomas C. (January 10, 2000). "Inner Loop: Relocation ... or class reunion?". Washington Business Journal. Retrieved October 5, 2015.
  3. 1 2 "Fairfax Profiles: Katherine Hanley". The Washington Post. November 22, 1984. ProQuest 138133520.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Lipton, Eric (February 3, 1995). "FAIRFAX BOARD CHAIRMAN CANDIDATES PRESENT DIVERGENT PERSONALITIES". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  5. ↑ Anderson, John Ward; Hilzenrath, David S. (December 31, 1987). "Fairfax Board Takes New Direction". The Washington Post. Retrieved October 2, 2018.
  6. ↑ "Fairfax Supervisors Appoint New School Board Member". The Washington Post. June 19, 1984. ProQuest 138268261.
  7. ↑ Hockstader, Lee (May 5, 1986). "Scott Says He'll Quit Fairfax Post". The Washington Post. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  8. ↑ "Around the Region: Election Set for Scott Seat". The Washington Post. May 7, 1986. ProQuest 138998128.
  9. ↑ Turcol, Thomas (July 23, 1986). "Herrity Charge Could Hurt Other Officials". The Washington Post. ProQuest 139054236.
  10. ↑ "HANLEY HOPES FOR FULL TERM IN PROVIDENCE". The Washington Post. March 26, 1987. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  11. ↑ Hockstader, Lee; Jordan, Mary (November 4, 1987). "MOORE TROUNCES HERRITY". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  12. ↑ Baker, Donald P.; Baker, Peter (July 1, 1993). "FOR WILDER, AN OPPORTUNITY THAT MISSED". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved October 2, 2015. Two years ago, Armstrong ran as a Republican against Supervisor Katherine K. Hanley (D-Providence), routinely blasting the failures of the "Moore-Hanley board."
  13. ↑ Shear, Eric Lipton; Michael D. (February 8, 1995). "FAIRFAX ELECTS DEMOCRAT HANLEY CHAIRMAN". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved October 2, 2015.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  14. ↑ Lipton, Eric (November 16, 1995). "FAIRFAX VOTES FOR THE STATUS QUO". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved October 5, 2015.
  15. ↑ Lipton, Eric (November 17, 1996). "HANLEY'S VISION CALLED OBSCURE". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved October 5, 2015.
  16. ↑ Shear, Michael D. (August 24, 2000). "Hanley Eyes Run for Va. No. 2 Post". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved October 5, 2015.
  17. ↑ Shear, Michael D. (November 28, 2000). "Hanley Says She Won't Run For Lt. Gov". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved October 5, 2015.
  18. ↑ Hsu, Spencer S. (March 11, 2003). "Moran Said Jews Are Pushing War". The Washington Post. ProQuest 409438036.
  19. ↑ Shear, Michael D.; Whoriskey, Peter (November 14, 2003). "Hanley Ends Effort to Challenge Moran". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved September 24, 2015.
  20. ↑ Shear, Michael D. (March 18, 2016). "Kaine Plans To Draw on Fairfax for Key Adviser". The Washington Post. Retrieved September 24, 2015.
  21. ↑ "Hanley On Deck To Advise Kaine On Appointments - Fairfax Focus". The Washington Post. March 20, 2006. Archived from the original on September 25, 2015. Retrieved September 24, 2015.
  22. ↑ Barton, Mary Ann (November 14, 2014). "Governor Appoints Kate Hanley to Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority Board". Reston Patch. Patch.com. Retrieved October 2, 2015.
  23. ↑ Goff, Karen (November 17, 2014). "Former Supervisor Hanley Appointed to MWAA Board". Reston Now. Local News Now LLC. Retrieved October 2, 2015.
  24. ↑ "Electoral Board Members | Elections". www.fairfaxcounty.gov. Fairfax County Government. Archived from the original on August 19, 2021. Retrieved November 2, 2026.