Mike Lee facts for kids

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Quick facts for kids Mike Lee
Official portrait, 2017

Chair of the Senate Energy Committee
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2025
Preceded by	Joe Manchin
Chair of the Joint Economic Committee
In office January 3, 2019 – February 3, 2021
Preceded by	Erik Paulsen
Succeeded by	Don Beyer
United States Senator from Utah
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2011 Serving with John Curtis
Preceded by	Bob Bennett

Personal details
Born	Michael Shumway Lee (1971-06-04) June 4, 1971 (age 54) Mesa, Arizona, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Sharon Burr (m. 1993)
Children	3
Parent	Rex E. Lee (father)
Relatives	Udall-Hunt-Lee family
Education	Brigham Young University (BA, JD)
Website

Michael Shumway Lee (born June 4, 1971) is an American lawyer and politician. He serves as a United States senator for Utah. He has held this position since 2011. As a member of the Republican Party, Lee became Utah's senior senator in 2019.

His father, Rex E. Lee, was a U.S. Solicitor General. His brother, Thomas Rex Lee, is a former justice on the Utah Supreme Court. Mike Lee started his career working for judges. He also worked as an assistant U.S. attorney for Utah. From 2005 to 2006, he was a general counsel for Utah Governor Jon Huntsman Jr..

In 2010, Mike Lee won the U.S. Senate election in Utah. He defeated the sitting senator, Bob Bennett, in the Republican primary. He then won the main election.

Lee was reelected in 2016 and 2022. He also led the Joint Economic Committee from 2019 to 2021.

Early Life and Education

Mike Lee was born in Mesa, Arizona, on June 4, 1971. His father, Rex E. Lee, was a top lawyer for President Ronald Reagan. Mike's older brother, Thomas Rex Lee, later became a judge.

When Mike was one year old, his family moved to Provo, Utah. His father became a dean at Brigham Young University's law school. Mike spent his childhood years partly in Utah and partly in McLean, Virginia. His father worked in Washington, D.C., for the U.S. Department of Justice.

After finishing Timpview High School in 1989, Lee went to Brigham Young University. He was chosen to be the student association president. He earned a bachelor's degree in political science in 1994. He then studied law at BYU's J. Reuben Clark Law School, graduating in 1997.

Legal Career

After law school, Lee worked for different judges. He was a clerk for Judge Dee Benson in Utah from 1997 to 1998. Then, he worked for Judge Samuel Alito from 1998 to 1999. Alito later became a U.S. Supreme Court Justice.

Lee then worked at a law firm in Washington, D.C. He focused on cases for higher courts. In 2002, he returned to Utah. He became an assistant U.S. attorney in Salt Lake City. He prepared legal papers and argued cases in court. From 2005 to 2006, he was a general counsel for Utah Governor Jon M. Huntsman Jr.. He again worked for Justice Alito at the U.S. Supreme Court from 2006 to 2007. After that, Lee worked at another law firm in Salt Lake City.

U.S. Senate

Elections

2010 Election

Lee ran for the U.S. Senate in 2010. He talked about making the federal government smaller. He also suggested changing the U.S. Constitution. He wanted a flat tax system and limits on how many terms members of Congress could serve.

In the Republican primary election on June 22, Lee won the nomination. He received 51% of the votes. In the general election on November 2, Lee won with 62% of the votes.

2016 Election

Mike Lee speaking at a conference in National Harbor, Maryland in 2015.

Lee was reelected in 2016. Several conservative groups supported his campaign.

2022 Election

Lee won the Republican primary election against two other candidates. In the main election, he faced independent candidate Evan McMullin. The Utah Democratic Party supported McMullin instead of putting forward their own candidate. Lee won the election with 53% of the votes.

Time in Office

Political Views

Mike Lee is known as a conservative Republican. Studies have shown he is one of the most conservative members of the Senate. He often votes in line with Republican positions.

9/11 Responders Fund

In 2019, Lee was one of two senators who initially blocked a bill. This bill would have provided more money for the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund. This fund helps people who were hurt or became sick after the September 11, 2001, attacks. After facing criticism, Lee later voted against the bill, which eventually passed.

Criminal Justice Reform

Lee has supported changes to the criminal justice system. In 2018, he supported the First Step Act. This bill aimed to improve programs for former prisoners. It also gave judges more flexibility in sentencing nonviolent offenders. The bill passed and became law.

Democracy and Elections

In 2020, Lee stated that the United States is "not a democracy." He argued it is a constitutional republic. He said that liberty and peace are the main goals, not just democracy.

In 2021, Lee criticized the For the People Act. This act aimed to expand voting rights and change campaign finance laws. Lee and other conservatives believed it would take too much power over elections away from state governments.

Economy

Lee has worked with Senator Amy Klobuchar on antitrust laws. These laws aim to prevent large technology companies like Facebook, Apple, and Amazon from becoming too powerful.

Environment

In 2017, Lee was among senators who asked President Trump to leave the Paris Agreement. This agreement is about fighting climate change. Lee has received campaign money from oil, gas, and coal companies. He has also questioned the scientific agreement on climate change. He opposes a carbon tax to deal with climate change.

In 2019, Lee spoke about the Green New Deal. He called the plan "absurd." He also suggested that having more babies was a solution to environmental issues. The Green New Deal proposal itself does not mention population growth.

Flint Water Crisis

In 2016, Lee initially blocked a vote on federal aid for the Flint water crisis in Michigan. This crisis involved lead-contaminated water pipes. He was the last senator to oppose the aid before it eventually passed.

Foreign Policy

Lee has often spoken about U.S. military actions abroad. He has supported ending U.S. involvement in conflicts like the Yemen civil war and the war in Afghanistan. He believes Congress should approve military actions.

In 2023, Lee introduced a bill called the DEFUND Act. This bill aims to withdraw the U.S. from the United Nations. In January 2025, Lee called for the U.S. to leave the NATO alliance.

Healthcare

Lee was part of a group of senators who worked on a plan to replace the Affordable Care Act in 2017. He eventually opposed the bill, which helped stop it from passing.

Immigration

In 2019, Lee voted against a bill that would have funded barriers along the U.S.-Mexico border. He also introduced a bill to change rules for green cards. Later that year, he voted to block President Trump's national emergency declaration. This declaration would have used military funds to build border barriers.

LGBT Rights

In 2015, Lee disagreed with the Supreme Court's decision that made same-sex marriage legal across the U.S. In 2022, he voted against the Respect for Marriage Act. This law requires the U.S. government to recognize same-sex and interracial marriages.

National Security

Lee has voted against extending parts of the USA PATRIOT Act. This law gives the government more power for surveillance in terrorism cases.

Social Security

In 2011, Lee proposed a plan to change the U.S. Social Security system. This plan would make workers born after 1969 wait until age 70 to receive full benefits. It would also give smaller checks to higher-income earners.

In 2020, Lee was the only senator to vote against a bill for people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). This bill would have removed a five-month waiting period for them to receive Social Security benefits.

Spending

In 2018, Lee was among senators who voted against a large spending bill. This bill would have prevented a government shutdown.

Proposed Sale of Public Lands

In June 2025, Lee suggested selling large amounts of public lands. He said this would help fund a budget plan. However, senators from western states, where much of this land is located, opposed the idea.

Supreme Court

In 2019, Lee supported a resolution to limit the Supreme Court to nine justices. This came after some Democratic presidential candidates suggested adding more justices.

In 2016, Lee opposed considering President Obama's Supreme Court nominee during an election year. However, in 2020, he supported an immediate vote to confirm President Trump's nominee, Amy Coney Barrett, less than two months before that year's presidential election.

Trade

In 2018, Lee was among senators who asked President Trump to keep the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). They wanted it updated for the modern economy. In 2018, he also urged Trump to submit the new United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA) to Congress quickly.

Veterans

In 2022, Lee was among 11 senators who voted against the Honoring our PACT Act of 2022. This bill would have funded research and benefits for veterans exposed to toxic substances during their service.

Personal Life

Mike Lee married Sharon Burr in 1993. They live in Alpine, Utah, and have three children. Lee is related to former U.S. senators Mark Udall and Tom Udall, and former Senator Gordon H. Smith.

As a young adult, Lee served a two-year mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Texas.

In October 2020, Lee announced he had tested positive for COVID-19. He had attended an event where he was in close contact with others who also tested positive.

Lee has been involved with various organizations, including the BYU alumni board and the Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies. He earned the Eagle Scout award in 1989.

Books

Since becoming a senator in 2010, Lee has written several books:

The Freedom Agenda: Why a Balanced Budget Amendment is Necessary to Restore Constitutional Government (2011)
Why John Roberts Was Wrong About Healthcare: A Conservative Critique of The Supreme Court's Obamacare Ruling (2013)
Our Lost Constitution: The Willful Subversion of America's Founding Document (2015)
Written Out of History: The Forgotten Founders Who Fought Big Government (2017)
Our Lost Declaration: America's Fight Against Tyranny from King George to the Deep State (2019)
Saving Nine: The Fight Against the Left's Audacious Plan to Pack the Supreme Court and Destroy American Liberty (2022)