Jim Webb

Who is Jim Webb?

James Henry "Jim" Webb, Jr. is a former United States Senator from Virginia. He is also an author and a former Secretary of the Navy. He is a member of the Democratic Party.

A 1968 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, Webb served as a Marine Corps infantry officer until 1972, and is a highly decorated Vietnam War combat veteran. During his four years with the Reagan administration, Webb served as the first Assistant Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs, then as Secretary of the Navy.

Webb won the Democratic nomination for the 2006 Virginia Senate race by defeating Harris Miller in the primary, then won the general election by defeating the Republican incumbent George Allen. Webb's thin margin in the general election kept the outcome uncertain for nearly two days after polls closed on November 7, 2006, and provided the final seat that tilted the Senate to Democratic control. On his sixty-fifth birthday, he announced that he would not seek re-election in 2012, saying that he did not want to spend his whole life in politics, and that he wanted to return to the private sector. He was succeeded by former Governor and fellow Democrat Tim Kaine.