George Darden

Infobox_Congressman
name =Buddy Darden


date of birth=birth date and age|1943|11|22
place of birth =Hancock County, Georgia
state = Georgia
district = 7th
term_start =November 8, 1983
term_end=January 3, 1995
preceded = Larry McDonald
succeeded = Bob Barr
religion =
party =Democrat
spouse = Lillian Darden

George Washington "Buddy" Darden, III (born November 22, 1943) is an American politician and lawyer.

Darden was born in Hancock County, Georgia and graduated from Sparta High School in Sparta, Georgia in 1961. He earned his Bachelor of Arts (A.B.) at the University of Georgia (UGA) in Athens in 1965 and his Juris Doctor from the UGA School of Law in 1967. He received many honors and awards while a student, including being elected President of the Student Body.

Darden was married to the former Lillian Budd (b. May 15, 1945) on February 18, 1968, and has two children, Lillian Christine (b. December 17, 1971; now Christine Darden Brennan) and George Washington IV (b. August 7, 1974).

Upon graduation from law school, Darden was employed in the office of the District Attorney of Cobb County, Georgia. After serving as assistant district attorney in Cobb County from 1968 to 1972, he was elected District Attorney and served from 1973 to 1977. Darden was elected to the Georgia House of Representatives as a Democrat in 1980. He served in that body from 1981 until 1983. Upon the sudden death of U.S. Representative Larry McDonald in the 1983 downing of Korean Air Flight 007, Darden resigned from the Georgia General Assembly after winning the special election to fill McDonald's seat for the remainder of the Ninety-eighth Congress. He was reelected to five more terms in that seat until losing his reelection bid in 1994. He was an unsuccessful candidate for the Democratic nomination for the U.S. House in 2002.

Since leaving Congress, Darden has served as a delegate to the Democratic National Conventions in 1996, 2000 and 2004. He has also served on numerous boards and commissions, including serving as chairman of the Judicial Nominating Commission in the administration of Georgia Governor Roy Barnes from 1999 to 2003.

In 1992, Darden became a member of the Board of Trustees for LaGrange College in LaGrange, Georgia. In 2002, Darden was named Chairman of the Board of Trustees, and served as Chairman for five years. He retired as Chair in 2007. In recognition of his service to the college, LaGrange College conferred on him an honorary Doctor of Laws degree on May 19, 2007. Darden was the commencement speaker at the graduation ceremony during which he was honored.

Since 1995, Darden has been a partner in the Atlanta law firm of McKenna, Long, and Aldridge, and he currently resides in Marietta, Georgia.

References

*CongLinks|congbio=D000051