Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.)

He received his MBA from California State University in 1994.

McCarthy won his first elected position, to the Kern County Community College District Board, in 2000.

California Assemblyman

He was elected to the California Assembly in 2002. Though the freshman class was large, McCarthy distinguished himself as an affable and effective lawmaker. He built relationships with other legislators through games of pick-up basketball and visits to their districts.

He was so popular that he was elected Assembly minority leader during his first term. In that position, he helped Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) coordinate his transition into office. This gave him an inside line to the state's executive office; McCarthy helped Schwarzenegger cut the state budget deficit, reorganize the workers' compensation system, and draft a redistricting proposal that ensured that no party had more than a seven percent advantage among registered voters.

Making Friends in the House

Just four days before the filing deadline in 2006, Thomas announced he wouldn't seek reelection. McCarthy was the obvious choice to succeed the veteran GOP lawmaker. He faced no opposition in the primary, and in his heavily Republican district securing the GOP nomination all but guaranteed victory. He eventually garnered 71 percent of the vote.

Because McCarthy did not face a competitive general election, he spent much of his freshman House campaign helping fellow political neophytes running for House open seats. McCarthy traveled around the country and raised more than $1 million, which he divided among 12 Republican congressional candidates and the NRCC. Nine of the members he contributed to eventually won.

House Leadership

McCarthy's shrewd move made him immediately popular among House GOP leaders. During his first term, McCarthy scored seats on the House Administration and Agriculture committee and helped assign freshmen seats on the various committees.

McCarthy was also named an NRCC fundraiser, where he helped organize a campaign against Democratic freshmen. McCarthy's strategy called for radio, television and phone ads that linked the Democrats to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and highlighted their liberal records.

His ultimate goal was a speedy return to a House GOP majority. In the lead-up to the 2008 elections, McCarthy gave his fellow NRCC members watches engraved with the acronym TEAM, which stands for Time to Earn a Majority. "Every time they look at what time it is, it's time to earn a majority," he told the Weekly Standard.

McCarthy co-chaired the Republican Platform Committee during the 2008 Republican National Convention. After the 2008 elections, Cantor selected McCarthy as his chief deputy whip, which is the highest appointed position in the House Republican Conference. He will be responsible for counting votes and convincing Republicans to toe the party line on important votes.

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