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James M. Kelly
James M. Kelly
	Kelly in August 2020
Assistant Commandant for Reserve
	In office; June 14, 2021 – June 18, 2022
Preceded by	Todd C. Wiemers
Succeeded by	Miriam L. Lafferty
Member of the Maryland House of Delegates; from the 9B district
	In office; January 11, 1995 – August 31, 2001
Succeeded by	Melissa J. Kelly
Personal details
Born	July 5, 1960 (age 64); Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.
Political party	Republican

James M. Kelly (born July 5, 1960) is a Washington, D.C. lobbyist and a former Maryland politician. He was first elected in 1994 to represent District 9B, which covers a portion of Baltimore County, Maryland. An officer in the United States Coast Guard Reserve, he became Assistant Commandant for Reserve in Washington, DC, on June 14, 2021.^[1]^[2]

Background

Kelly was first elected in 1994 when he defeated Democrat Stephen W. Lafferty for the new District 9B seat. Previously, there was a District 9 that was served by Gerry L. Brewster, John J. Bishop, and Martha Scanlan Klima. Klima went on to win District 9A's election. In the 1998 Republican primary election, Kelly was unchallenged.^[3] Furthermore, he was unchallenged in the general election, as well.^[4]

Kelly resigned from his position in 2001 and was replaced by his wife, Melissa J. Kelly,^[5] by Governor Parris Glendening.^[6] Kelly resigned his position as he was appointed by President George W. Bush to serve in the White House as his Special Assistant for Intergovernmental Affairs.^[7]

Education

Kelly Attended Towson High School in Towson, Maryland. After serving time in the military, Kelly joined the Maryland State Police and went to college, receiving his B.S. in business administration and finance from the University of Maryland University College^[2] in 1988.

While working in the White House, Kelly earned his Master of Arts degree in National Security and Strategic Studies through the U.S. Naval War College.

Career

As mentioned previously, Kelly enlisted in U.S. Coast Guard Reserves in 1977 and attended Officer Candidate School, graduating in 1990. He has since been promoted to rear admiral.^[8] Kelly was also a Maryland State Trooper for the Maryland State Police from 1984 until 1989.

Kelly worked as a commercial lending and troubled-loan restructuring officer from 1989 until 1994. He was a small business owner from 1995 until 1997. In 2001, Kelly was hired as senior advisor to Undersecretary for Memorial Affairs for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

Kelly received numerous awards during his career. He is a member of the Reserve Officers Association and the Maryland Troopers Association. He was a recipient of the Award for Duty Beyond the Call of Duty as Maryland State Trooper, which he received in 1985. He also received the award for Outstanding Junior Officer from the U.S. Coast Guard Marine Safety Office in 1994. He holds a Certificate of Achievement from the Maryland Federation of College Republicans [1] in 1995. In 1996, he was selected as Legislator of the Year by the Alliance for the Mentally Ill [2]. Additionally, he was selected as Outstanding Junior Officer in entire Fifth District from the U.S. Coast Guard in 1997. Also in 1997, Kelly received the Certificate of Achievement from the Maryland Association of Psychiatric Support Services.

In 2001, as mentioned previously, Kelly was tapped by President Bush to work for the White House. Kelly was responsible for briefing the President on state, local, and tribal issues throughout the United States.

In 2005, together with Ken Meyer, Duane Parde and Daniel J. Ostergaard, he opened a lobbying firm in DC.^[7]^[9]