Career
Howard Morgan Griffith (born March 15, 1958) is the U.S. Representative for Virginia's 9th congressional district. He is a member of the Republican Party. The district takes in a large swath of southwestern Virginia, including the New River Valley.
He was the majority leader of the Virginia House of Delegates and represented the 8th District, serving from 1994 until 2011. The district included all of Salem, Virginia and parts of Roanoke County.
Griffith first became seriously involved in politics in 1986, when he was chosen as the chairman of the Salem Republican Party. He held that position from 1986 to 1988 and from 1991 to 1994.
In 1994 Griffith was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates. He served as the Vice-Chairman of the Rules Committee in the House of Delegates. He served on the Courts of Justice Committee, and was the chairman of its Criminal Law Subcommittee. He also served on the Commerce and Labor and the Militia, Police, and Public Safety Committees. He was elected House Majority Leader in 2000 and was the first Republican to hold that position in Virginia's history