| Barry Knight | |
| Office: | Member of the Virginia House of Delegates |
| Constituency: | 81st district (2009–2024) 98th district (2024–present) |
| Term Start: | January 8, 2009 |
| Preceded: | Terrie Suit |
| Succeeded: | Incumbent |
| Birth Date: | 26 September 1954 |
| Birth Place: | Princess Anne County, Virginia |
| Party: | Republican |
| Spouse: | Paula Jane Whitehurst |
| Children: | Hunter, Kyle, Forrest |
| Residence: | Virginia Beach, Virginia |
| Occupation: | Hog farmer |
| Committees: | Counties, Cities and Towns; Transportation |
| Website: | barrydknight.com |
Barry D. Knight (born September 26, 1954, in Princess Anne County, Virginia) is an American politician. A Republican, he was elected a member of the Virginia House of Delegates in a special election on January 6, 2009. He the 98th district, made up of parts of the cities of Virginia Beach and Chesapeake.[1] [2]
Knight was born and raised on a farm. After graduation from Kempsville High School, he worked as a truck driver to raise enough money to buy his own hog farm. his business, Barry D. Knight Farms, produced about 12,000 hogs a year.[2] [3]
Knight was named the Virginia Farm Bureau's Young Farmer of the Year in 1983. He was president of the Tidewater Pork Producers 1984 - 1990. He was chairman of the Southern States Cooperative, and vice president of the Virginia Beach Farm Bureau.[3]
Knight married Paula Jane Whitehurst, c.1983. They have three sons, Hunter, Kyle and Forrest.[2] [3]
Knight served on the Virginia Pork Board, a gubernatorial appointment, 1995 - c.2001. He was appointed to the Virginia Beach Planning Commission in 2003, and was elected chair in 2006.[3]
In September 2008, Delegate Terrie Suit resigned her 81st district seat to take a job as a lobbyist. Knight ran for the Republican nomination, winning a three-way primary contest on November 29 over Virginia Beach Sheriff Paul Lanteigne and Tom Keeley, a retired United States Navy officer. Knight received 1,309 votes out of 2,218 ballots cast.[4] He went on to beat Democratic activist John LaCombe handily in the special election on January 6, 2009.[1]