Atif Qarni
Atif Qarni | |
|---|---|
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| 19th Virginia Secretary of Education | |
| In office January 13, 2018 – November 24, 2021 | |
| Governor | Ralph Northam |
| Preceded by | Dietra Trent |
| Succeeded by | Fran Bradford |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Atif Mustafa Qarni 1978 (age 45–46) Pakistan |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Fatima Pashaei |
| Education | George Washington University George Mason University (MA) Strayer University (MEd) Vanderbilt University |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Branch/service |  U.S. Marine Corps |
| Years of service | 1996–2004 |
| Rank | Sergeant |
| Unit | Reserve |
| Battles/wars | Iraq War |
Atif Mustafa Qarni (born 1978) is an American teacher, former military non-commissioned officer, and Democratic politician who was appointed by Governor Ralph Northam as Virginia Secretary of Education.[1] Emigrating from Karachi, Pakistan, with his family at the age of ten, Qarni grew up in Parkville, Maryland, before moving to Manassas, Virginia, in 2005. He served in the United States Marine Corps, was deployed to Iraq as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom, and rose to the rank of Sergeant.[2] He served as a paralegal at the international law firm McDermott Will & Emery LLP before beginning a career in teaching. Qarni ran for a seat in the Virginia House of Delegates in 2013, losing to incumbent Bob Marshall, and for the Virginia Senate in 2015, losing the Democratic nomination to Jeremy McPike.
In 2024, he ran in the Democratic Primary for Congress in the Virginia 10th congressional district and lost to Suhas Subramanyam, placing third place.[3][4]
Electoral history
[edit]| Date | Election | Candidate | Party | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Virginia House of Delegates, 13th district | |||||
| Nov 5, 2013[5] | General | Robert G. Marshall | Republican | 8,946 | 51.33 |
| Atif M. Qarni | Democratic | 8,448 | 48.47 | ||
| Write Ins | 35 | 0.20 | |||
| Virginia Senate, 29th district | |||||
| Jun 9, 2015[6] | Primary | Jeremy S. McPike | Democratic | 1,377 | 43.18 |
| Atif M. Qarni | Democratic | 1,152 | 36.12 | ||
| Michael T. Futrell | Democratic | 660 | 20.70 | ||
References
[edit]- ^ Times-Dispatch, GRAHAM MOOMAW Richmond (21 December 2017). "Northam names Prince William civics teacher Atif Qarni as education secretary". Richmond.com. Retrieved December 24, 2017.
- ^ Khan, Hasan (August 5, 2016). "Footprints: Marine turned teacher countering Trump's rhetoric". Dawn.com. Retrieved December 24, 2017.
- ^ "Atif Qarni for VA 10". Qarni for Congress. Retrieved 2024-01-19.
- ^ "Atif Qarni". Ballotpedia. Retrieved 2024-01-19.
- ^ "November 2013 General Election Official Results". Virginia State Board of Elections. Archived from the original on 2015-04-06. Retrieved January 7, 2015.
- ^ "June 2015 Democratic Primary Official Results". Virginia State Board of Elections. Archived from the original on June 11, 2016. Retrieved May 29, 2016.
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- 1978 births
- American politicians of Pakistani descent
- Asian-American people in Virginia politics
- Candidates in the 2013 United States elections
- George Mason University alumni
- George Washington University alumni
- Living people
- Pakistani emigrants to the United States
- People from Manassas, Virginia
- State cabinet secretaries of Virginia
- Strayer University alumni
- United States Marine Corps personnel of the Iraq War
- Virginia Democrats
- Candidates in the 2024 United States House of Representatives elections
- Virginia politician stubs