Ted Budd facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Ted Budd
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Official portrait, 2023
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| United States Senator from North Carolina |
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| Assumed office January 3, 2023 Serving with Thom Tillis
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| Preceded by | Richard Burr |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from North Carolina's 13th district |
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| In office January 3, 2017 – January 3, 2023 |
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| Preceded by | George Holding |
| Succeeded by | Richard Hudson (redistricting) |
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| Born |
Theodore Paul Budd
October 21, 1971 Winston-Salem, North Carolina, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse |
Amy Kate Adams
(m. 1994) |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | Appalachian State University (BS) Dallas Theological Seminary (ThM) Wake Forest University (MBA) |
| Website | |
Theodore Paul Budd (born October 21, 1971), known as Ted Budd, is an American businessman and politician. Since 2023, he has served as a United States senator for North Carolina.
Budd is a member of the Republican Party. Before becoming a senator, he was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 2017 to 2023. In 2022, he won the election to replace retiring Senator Richard Burr. He defeated the Democratic candidate, Cheri Beasley, and started his term on January 3, 2023.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Ted Budd was born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. When he was a boy, his family moved to a large farm in Davie County. There, they raised cattle and chickens. His father owned a company that provided services to other businesses.
Budd went to Davie County High School and graduated in 1990. He then studied business at Appalachian State University. Later, he earned advanced degrees from Dallas Theological Seminary and Wake Forest University.
Before entering politics, Budd owned a gun store in Rural Hall, North Carolina. He and his wife home-school their children, and he was a board member for a home-schooling organization in North Carolina.
U.S. House of Representatives (2017–2023)
Budd's political career began when he ran for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. This part of the U.S. government is called Congress, and its members help make laws for the country.
Elections
In 2016, Budd ran for Congress in North Carolina's 13th district. He won the Republican primary election with 20% of the vote in a race with 17 candidates. He then won the main election with 56.1% of the vote and took office in January 2017.
Budd was reelected in 2018 and again in 2020 with strong support from voters in his district.
Work in the House
During his time in the House, Budd voted on many important laws. He supported the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, which changed the country's tax laws. He also voted for a new trade agreement between the United States, Mexico, and Canada. He said this agreement would help North Carolina's farmers.
Budd was a member of the Freedom Caucus, a group of conservative Republicans in the House.
In 2021, Budd and some other Republican members of Congress were criticized. They missed votes in Washington, D.C., saying they needed to be absent because of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, they were attending the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) at the same time. An ethics group asked for an investigation into their actions.
Committee Work
In the House, members work in small groups called committees to focus on specific topics. Budd served on the Committee on Financial Services. This committee deals with banks, housing, and the economy.
U.S. Senate (2023–Present)
60–70%
50–60%
40–50%
80–90%
60–70%
50–60%
In 2021, Budd announced he would run for the U.S. Senate. The Senate is the other part of Congress. Each state has two senators.
2022 Senate Election
Budd's campaign for the Senate received a major boost when former President Donald Trump endorsed him. Budd won the Republican primary election with 58% of the vote.
In the general election, he faced Democrat Cheri Beasley. Budd won the election with 50.5% of the vote to Beasley's 47.3%. He was sworn in as a U.S. Senator on January 3, 2023.
Work in the Senate
As a senator, Budd has worked on new laws. In 2023, after a Chinese-operated balloon flew over the U.S., he introduced the Seeing Objects at Altitude Regularly (SOAR) Act. This bill would require high-altitude balloons to have tracking systems so officials know their location.
In January 2025, Budd co-sponsored the Kids Off Social Media Act (KOSMA). This bill aims to set a minimum age of 13 for using social media and stop platforms from showing algorithm-based content to users under 17.
Committee Work
In the Senate, Budd serves on several important committees, including:
- Committee on Armed Services
- Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions
- Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
- Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship
Political Views
A politician's political positions are their views on important issues. Here are some of Ted Budd's positions.
2020 Presidential Election
After the 2020 United States presidential election, Budd supported a lawsuit that challenged the election results in four states. The Supreme Court did not hear the case.
On January 6, 2021, he was one of the Republican lawmakers who objected to certifying the election results from Pennsylvania. Budd stated that he believed officials in that state had acted illegally.
Voting Laws
Budd opposes a Democratic bill called the For the People Act, which was designed to change voting rules across the country. Budd argued that the bill could weaken election security by changing rules for absentee voting and voter ID.
Foreign Policy
In 2020, Budd voted against a defense bill that would have prevented the president from removing U.S. soldiers from Afghanistan without approval from Congress. In 2024, he visited Israel to show support for the country.
Personal Life
Ted Budd met his wife, Amy Kate Adams, during a mission trip to the Soviet Union in 1991. They married in 1994 and have three children.
The family lives on the same farm in Davie County where Budd grew up. They home-school their children. Budd is also an assistant scoutmaster for his son's Boy Scout troop.
See also
In Spanish: Ted Budd para niños
