Meet Mark
The son of a World War II Marine veteran, Mark Warner grew up in a working-class household. His family moved every few years but he was always able to attend good public schools. Mark was the first person in his family to graduate from college – putting himself through George Washington University through a combination of jobs and student loans.
Mark went on to Harvard Law School, but then changed course and decided to try building something of his own. He invested his life savings, a few thousand dollars, into starting a company. It failed after six weeks. So he tried again, and the next business failed after six months.
But Mark didn’t give up, and his third venture broke through. He was an early investor in the cell phone industry and eventually co-founded the company that became Nextel – one of Virginia’s largest telecommunications companies.
Passionate about supporting other entrepreneurs, Mark invested in hundreds of early-stage tech startups, helping to launch companies that generated tens of thousands of jobs.
In 2001, Mark was elected Governor of Virginia. When he left office in 2006, Virginia was ranked as the best state for business, the best-managed state, and the best state in which to receive a public education.
Mark was elected to serve Virginia in the U.S. Senate in 2008, where he has worked tirelessly to build consensus across the aisle to strengthen America’s economy and solve problems for Virginia families. Mark spearheaded the largest infrastructure and public lands investments in half a century, has significantly expanded Virginia’s domestic manufacturing, and has fought to lower health care costs and increase access to telehealth across the Commonwealth. In 2021, Mark became Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, where he has emerged as a key leader in protecting the highest levels of America’s national security.
Mark and his wife, Lisa Collis, live in Alexandria, where they raised their three wonderful daughters.
Mark is running for reelection to continue fighting to protect Virginia’s workforce, bring down costs, and promote innovation across our country. Above all, Mark is driven by a deep belief that every American deserves the same fair shot to build a life for themselves that he was given.