James Lankford facts for kids

Quick facts for kids The Reverend James Lankford
Official portrait, 2023
United States Senator from Oklahoma
Incumbent
Assumed office January 6, 2015 Serving with Markwayne Mullin
Preceded by	Tom Coburn
Senate positions Vice Chair of the Senate Republican Conference Incumbent Assumed office January 3, 2025 Leader John Thune Preceded by Shelley Moore Capito Chair of the Senate Ethics Committee Incumbent Assumed office January 3, 2025 Preceded by Chris Coons In office December 19, 2019 – February 3, 2021 Preceded by Johnny Isakson Succeeded by Chris Coons Vice Chair of the Senate Ethics Committee In office February 3, 2021 – January 3, 2025 Preceded by Chris Coons Succeeded by Chris Coons
Chair of the House Republican Policy Committee
In office January 3, 2013 – January 3, 2015
Leader	John Boehner
Preceded by	Tom Price
Succeeded by	Luke Messer
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Oklahoma's 5th district
In office January 3, 2011 – January 3, 2015
Preceded by	Mary Fallin
Succeeded by	Steve Russell
Personal details
Born	James Paul Lankford (1968-03-04) March 4, 1968 (age 57) Dallas, Texas, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Cindy Hennessey ​ (m. 1992)​
Children	2
Education	University of Texas at Austin (BS) Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (MDiv)
Website

James Paul Lankford (born March 4, 1968) is an American minister and politician. He is currently a United States Senator for Oklahoma, a position he has held since 2015. Before becoming a senator, he was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 2011 to 2015, representing Oklahoma's 5th district. He is a member of the Republican Party.

From 1996 to 2009, Lankford was the president of the Falls Creek Baptist Conference Center, a large youth camp in Oklahoma. He is an ordained Southern Baptist minister. In 2010, he ran for the U.S. House of Representatives and won. He was reelected in 2012. In 2014, he ran for the U.S. Senate and won a special election. He was reelected to the Senate in 2016 and 2022. In 2023, he became Oklahoma's senior (longest-serving) senator.

Early Life and Education

James Lankford was born on March 4, 1968, in Dallas, Texas. His mother was a school librarian. His grandparents owned a dry-cleaning business and a dairy farm. His stepfather worked for General Motors.

When he was four, his parents divorced. He lived with his mother and older brother in his grandparents' garage apartment for a while. He became a Christian at age eight. When he was twelve, his mother remarried, and they moved to Garland, Texas.

Lankford went to Lakeview Centennial High School in Garland. He also took part in the Close Up Washington program, which teaches students about government. In 1990, he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Secondary Education from the University of Texas at Austin. In 1994, he received a master's degree in Divinity from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He is an ordained Southern Baptist minister.

Ministry Work

In 1995, James Lankford moved to Oklahoma. From 1996 to 2009, he was the president of the Falls Creek Baptist Conference Center. This is a large youth camp run by the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma. In 2009, Lankford left his job at Falls Creek to run for Congress.

U.S. House of Representatives

Elections for the House

2010 Election

In 2010, the person holding the House seat for Oklahoma's 5th district decided not to run again. James Lankford entered the race. He won the Republican primary election and then defeated his Democratic opponent, Billy Coyle, in the general election with 62.53% of the votes.

2012 Election

Lankford ran for reelection in 2012 and won against Democrat Tom Guild with 59% of the votes. After this election, he was chosen to be the chairman of the House Republican Policy Committee.

House Committee Roles

While in the House, James Lankford served on several important committees:

• Committee on the Budget
• Committee on Oversight and Government Reform
  • He chaired the Subcommittee on Energy Policy, Health Care and Entitlements.
• United States House of Representatives Republican Policy Committee (as chairman)

House Group Memberships

He was also part of the:

• Congressional Coalition on Adoption

U.S. Senate

Elections for the Senate

2014 Special Election

Official portrait, 2015

In January 2014, Senator Tom Coburn announced he would be leaving his seat early. James Lankford decided to run in the special election to take his place. Lankford won the Republican primary in June 2014. In November, he won the special election with 67.9% of the votes, defeating Connie Johnson. This allowed him to serve the remaining two years of Coburn's term.

2016 Election

In 2016, Lankford ran for a full six-year term in the Senate. He was reelected, winning with 68% of the votes against Democratic candidate Mike Workman.

2022 Election

On April 6, 2021, Lankford announced he would seek reelection for his Senate seat. He was reelected in 2022 with 64% of the votes.

Time in the Senate

James Lankford officially became a U.S. Senator on January 6, 2015. In 2017, he helped introduce the Secure Elections Act. This bill aimed to give money to states to help them update their voting machines and systems.

In 2023, Senator Jim Inhofe retired, and James Lankford became the senior U.S. Senator from Oklahoma. This means he has served longer than the other senator from Oklahoma.

Lankford was a main Republican negotiator on a bill to address issues at the Mexico–United States border. The bill was released in February 2024, but it did not pass in the Senate.

He also voted for the Big Beautiful Bill in 2025. This bill made changes to healthcare funding and tax laws.

Senate Committee Roles

As a Senator, James Lankford serves on several important committees:

• Committee on Finance
  • He chairs the Subcommittee on Energy, Natural Resources, and Infrastructure.
  • He is also on the Subcommittee on Health Care and the Subcommittee on Taxation and IRS Oversight.
• Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
  • He is on the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations.
  • He chairs the Subcommittee on Border Management, Federal Workforce, and Regulatory Affairs.
• Select Committee on Ethics (as chairman)

Senate Group Memberships

He is also a member of:

• Rare Disease Caucus
• Senate Taiwan Caucus

Political Views

Taxes

Lankford believes in lowering taxes and reducing government spending. He has promised to support no new taxes. He supports getting rid of income and estate taxes and instead having a sales tax, which taxes what people buy rather than what they earn or save.

Guns

Lankford has an "A" rating from the NRA Political Victory Fund, a group that supports gun rights. He supports making it easier to buy guns across state lines. He is against a method called firearm microstamping, which would put a unique mark on bullet casings. In 2018, Lankford said he was open to requiring more thorough background checks for gun purchases. He believes the problem is the person using the gun, not the gun itself.

Defense

Lankford supports continuing the Patriot Act, which gives the government more power to investigate. He also believes that military bases should be a top priority for security.

Environment

Lankford supports exploring for more gas and oil in the U.S. and offshore. He believes that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) should not control emission standards because he thinks it slows down economic growth. He also believes that manure and other fertilizers should not be called pollutants.

Lankford has said he does not agree with the scientific idea of climate change. In 2010, he called it a "myth." In 2018, he criticized a group for funding projects that wanted to increase reporting on climate change in weather forecasts, saying it was "propagandizing" instead of science.

Healthcare

Lankford is against the Affordable Care Act (also known as Obamacare) and has voted to repeal it. He believes that health insurance paid for by the federal government is against the U.S. Constitution. He has said he will oppose any moves for a federal healthcare system.

LGBT Rights

Lankford speaking at a conference in 2016

Lankford is against same-sex marriage. In 2010, he spoke out against a law that added more penalties for hate crimes based on a person's sexual orientation or race.

He supported a statewide ban on same-sex marriage and civil unions in Oklahoma, which passed in 2004. When a federal judge said this ban was unconstitutional in 2014, Lankford disagreed, saying that marriage is a state issue and Oklahoma had made its decision. He also supported the Defense of Marriage Act, which defined marriage as between a man and a woman.

Lankford has defended businesses and people who oppose LGBT rights. In 2012, he stated that he believed homosexuality is a choice and that employers should be allowed to fire workers based on their sexual orientation. He later repeated this view on local television.

In 2015, Lankford criticized the Supreme Court's decision that said bans on same-sex marriage were unconstitutional. In 2022, he voted against the Respect for Marriage Act, a bill that would protect same-sex marriages nationwide. He said the bill did not respect religious freedom.

Xinjiang

In August 2018, Lankford and other lawmakers asked the Trump administration to take action against Chinese officials. They were concerned about human rights abuses in China's Xinjiang region, where many Uyghurs and other Muslim groups were being held in "political reeducation" camps.

Race Relations

In June 2020, Lankford said that President Trump's walk to a church near the White House was "confrontational." In an interview, he said that racism can pass from one generation to the next. He encouraged families to invite families of different backgrounds to their homes to build friendships.

In January 2021, after Lankford questioned the results of the 2020 presidential election, some Black leaders in Tulsa, Oklahoma, asked him to resign from a committee. They felt his questions about the election results, which focused on cities with many Black voters, were an attack on Black voters. Lankford later apologized for causing doubt about the election results.

2020 Election

After Joe Biden won the 2020 presidential election, Lankford initially said he would make sure Biden received intelligence briefings. However, he later said the media had misunderstood him and that he was not in a hurry for Biden to get the briefings.

Lankford had planned to object to some states' electoral votes to try and overturn the 2020 election results. But he changed his mind after the 2021 United States Capitol attack at the U.S. Capitol. He later apologized for questioning the election results in some states. He voted to acquit Donald Trump in his second impeachment trial. In May 2021, Lankford voted against creating a special committee to investigate the January 6 events.

Earmarks

In 2021, Lankford was against bringing back "earmarks" to the Senate. Earmarks are special funds added to bills for specific projects or places.

Debt Ceiling

Lankford was one of 31 Republican senators who voted against the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023. This bill was passed to raise the national debt ceiling.

Religion

Lankford praised a Supreme Court decision that made it clear that Americans can practice their faith everywhere, including at work.

Veterans

In 2022, Lankford was one of 11 senators who voted against the Honoring our PACT Act of 2022. This bill provided funding for research and benefits for veterans who were exposed to toxic substances during their military service.

Personal Life

James Lankford is married to Cindy Lankford, and they have two daughters. He attends Quail Springs Baptist Church in Oklahoma City.

Images for kids

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  Official portrait, 2023

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  Official portrait, 2015

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  Lankford speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in 2016

See also

In Spanish: James Lankford para niños