Mike Fitzpatrick’s Biography
A life-long resident of Bucks County, Mike Fitzpatrick has been an active member of the community, working to make our region a better place to live, work, and raise a family. Like many local residents, Mike is concerned about the current economic direction of our nation, the failure of Congress to properly address mounting job losses, and an agenda in Congress that fails to reflect the desires and concerns of the American public.
Mike has a long history of fighting for the interests of local residents and listening to their concerns. As a Bucks County Commissioner, Mike helped to preserve over 11,000 acres of beautiful farmland, parkland and critical natural areas. His record on open space earned him recognition from a variety of environmental organizations, including the Greenspace Alliance.
Mike oversaw efforts to make much-needed upgrades to the county’s emergency management system, which was outdated at the time. Improvements included enhancement of the county’s 9-1-1 system and the establishment of a new state-of-the-art emergency operations center.
In the wake of the 9-11 attacks on our nation, Mike took a leadership role in the five-county region’s anti-terrorism task force. He was also a champion of responsible county social service programs, economic and job creation and efficient governmental administration.
When Congressman Jim Greenwood departed Congress in 2004, Mike was encouraged by his friends and neighbors to continue his service to the people of the county as a Member of Congress.
During his two-years in Congress, Mike demonstrated himself to be an independent voice of the people and was a tireless advocate for residents. He supported federal educational funding for local school districts, fought efforts by Republican leadership in Congress to scale back Medicaid spending, worked to restore cuts to Amtrak funding, and worked tirelessly to bring The National Veterans Cemetery to Bucks County.
Mike was also a frequent critic of the GOP leadership on environmental issues as well. He successfully led the fight to restore funding for a federal program funding flood mitigation and watershed projects. Without his efforts, the Neshaminy Creek would not have received the needed $3 million in grant funding for flood mitigation projects to help address local residents concerns.
Mike received the endorsement of the Sierra Club for his hard work on environmental issues. Mike’s efforts on behalf of the environment have continued as a private citizen, and in 2007, he co-chaired the successful effort to pass a ballot initiative authorizing Bucks County to secure $87 million for open space protection.
He has a demonstrated record of breaking with the party leadership in Congress on issues important to local residents, noting that the job of a Member of Congress is to listen to the will of the people.
He is running for Congress because he believes the district’s current representation in the House of Representatives is more concerned with currying favor with special interests and party leadership than representing the interests of local voters.
A graduate of Bishop Egan High School in Fairless Hills, Bucks County, Mike went on to St. Thomas University with an academic scholarship where he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in 1985 from the school’s Honors Program. He worked all four years while attending college and was awarded the university’s highest service award at graduation.
Three years later, Mike earned his law degree from the Dickinson School of Law of the Pennsylvania State University where he was named Business Manager of the Dickinson Journal of International Law.
Upon graduation from the Dickinson School of Law in 1988, Mike was admitted to the practice of law before the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania and the Supreme Court of New Jersey and in 2000 before the United States Supreme Court.
Fitzpatrick and his wife, Kathleen have been married twenty years and have six children – three girls (Katie, Maggie and Molly) and three boys (Jimmy, Mick and Tommy). Mike and Kathy have been life-long residents of Bucks County and have served their community in many capacities.
An Eagle Scout, Mike has remained active in Scouting and is a past-President of the Bucks County Council of the Boy Scouts of America. His wife Kathy is a former girl scout and Sunday School Teacher. Kathy continues to support the Girl Scouts and serves as a neighborhood leader for many fund raising charities.
