Education
He was educated at Saint Kevin"s College and University of Canterbury.
He was educated at Saint Kevin"s College and University of Canterbury.
Herlihy was first elected to Parliament in the 1996 elections as Member of Parliament for Otago, and was re-elected in the 1999 elections. In the 2002 elections, he lost narrowly to David Parker of the Labour Party. This loss was surprising to many commentators, as the Otago region has traditionally regarded as a safely in National hands.
Herlihy narrowly missed out on becoming a list Member of Parliament, being two places below the cut-off line.
Before entering politics, Herlihy was a farmer. On 1 July 2011 Herlihy was appointed to the board of Landcare Research.
He was a member of Parliament for the National Party from 1996 to 2002.