List of United States senators from Texas
Texas was admitted to the United States on December 29, 1845, and elects its U.S. senators to Class 1 and Class 2. The state's current senators are Republicans John Cornyn (serving since 2002) and Ted Cruz (serving since 2013). A total of 27 Democrats, 7 Republicans, and 1 Liberal Republican have served or are serving as U.S. senators from Texas. Morris Sheppard was Texas's longest-serving senator (1913–1941).
List of senators[]
Class 1 Class 1 U.S. senators belong to the electoral cycle that has recently been contested in 2000, 2006, 2012, and 2018. The next election will be in 2024. |
C |
Class 2 Class 2 U.S. senators belong to the electoral cycle that has recently been contested in 2002, 2008, 2014, and 2020. The next election will be in 2026. | ||||||||||
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# | Senator | Party | Dates in office | Electoral history | T | T | Electoral history | Dates in office | Party | Senator | # | |
Vacant | December 29, 1845 – February 21, 1846 |
Texas did not elect its senators until two months after statehood. | 1 | 29th | 1 | Texas did not elect its senators until two months after statehood. | December 29, 1845 – February 21, 1846 |
Vacant | ||||
1 | ![]() Thomas Jefferson Rusk |
Democratic | February 21, 1846 – July 29, 1857 |
Elected in 1846. | Elected in 1846. | February 21, 1846 – March 3, 1859 |
Democratic | ![]() Sam Houston |
1 | |||
30th | 2 | Re-elected in 1847. | ||||||||||
31st | ||||||||||||
Re-elected in 1851. | 2 | 32nd | ||||||||||
33rd | 3 | Re-elected in 1853. Retired. | ||||||||||
34th | ||||||||||||
Re-elected in 1857. Died. |
3 | 35th | ||||||||||
Vacant | July 29, 1857 – November 9, 1857 |
|||||||||||
2 | ![]() James Pinckney Henderson |
Democratic | November 9, 1857 – June 4, 1858 |
Appointed to finish Rusk's term. Died. | ||||||||
Vacant | June 4, 1858 – September 27, 1858 |
|||||||||||
3 | ![]() Matthias Ward |
Democratic | September 27, 1858 – December 5, 1859 |
Appointed to continue Rusk's term. Lost nomination to finish Rusk's term. | ||||||||
36th | 4 | Elected in 1859. Expelled following Texas's secession from the Union. |
March 4, 1859 – July 11, 1861 |
Democratic | ![]() John Hemphill |
2 | ||||||
4 | ![]() Louis Wigfall |
Democratic | December 5, 1859 – March 23, 1861 |
Elected to finish Rusk's term. Withdrew. | ||||||||
37th | ||||||||||||
Vacant | March 23, 1861 – March 30, 1870 |
U.S. Civil War and Reconstruction. | ||||||||||
U.S. Civil War and Reconstruction. | July 11, 1861 – March 31, 1870 |
Vacant | ||||||||||
4 | 38th | |||||||||||
39th | 5 | |||||||||||
40th | ||||||||||||
5 | 41st | |||||||||||
5 | ![]() James W. Flanagan |
Republican | March 30, 1870 – March 3, 1875 |
Elected upon readmission. | ||||||||
Elected upon readmission. | March 31, 1870 – March 3, 1877 |
Republican | ![]() Morgan C. Hamilton |
3 | ||||||||
42nd | 6 | Re-elected in 1871. Retired. | ||||||||||
43rd | Liberal Republican | |||||||||||
6 | ![]() Samuel B. Maxey |
Democratic | March 4, 1875 – March 3, 1887 |
Elected in 1875. | 6 | 44th | Republican | |||||
45th | 7 | Elected in 1876. | March 4, 1877 – March 3, 1895 |
Democratic | ![]() Richard Coke |
4 | ||||||
46th | ||||||||||||
Re-elected in 1881. Lost re-election. |
7 | 47th | ||||||||||
48th | 8 | Re-elected in 1882. | ||||||||||
49th | ||||||||||||
7 | ![]() John Henninger Reagan |
Democratic | March 4, 1887 – June 10, 1891 |
Elected in 1887. Resigned to become chairman of the Railroad Commission of Texas. |
8 | 50th | ||||||
51st | 9 | Re-elected in 1888. Retired. | ||||||||||
52nd | ||||||||||||
8 | ![]() Horace Chilton |
Democratic | June 10, 1891 – March 22, 1892 |
Appointed to continue Reagan's term. Lost election to finish Reagan's term. | ||||||||
9 | ![]() Roger Q. Mills |
Democratic | March 23, 1892 – March 3, 1899 |
Elected to finish Reagan's term. | ||||||||
Re-elected in 1893. Retired. |
9 | 53rd | ||||||||||
54th | 10 | Elected in 1894. Retired. |
March 4, 1895 – March 3, 1901 |
Democratic | ![]() Horace Chilton |
5 | ||||||
55th | ||||||||||||
10 | ![]() Charles Allen Culberson |
Democratic | March 4, 1899 – March 3, 1923 |
Elected in 1899. | 10 | 56th | ||||||
57th | 11 | Elected in 1901. | March 4, 1901 – January 3, 1913 |
Democratic | ![]() Joseph Weldon Bailey |
6 | ||||||
58th | ||||||||||||
Re-elected January 25, 1905.[1] | 11 | 59th | ||||||||||
60th | 12 | Re-elected in 1907. Resigned. | ||||||||||
61st | ||||||||||||
Re-elected January 24, 1911. | 12 | 62nd | ||||||||||
Appointed to continue Bailey's term. Lost election to finish Bailey's term. Retired. |
January 4, 1913 – January 29, 1913 |
Democratic | ![]() Rienzi Melville Johnston |
7 | ||||||||
January 29, 1913 – February 3, 1913 |
Vacant | |||||||||||
Elected January 28, 1913 to finish Bailey's term. | February 3, 1913 – April 9, 1941 |
Democratic | ![]() Morris Sheppard |
8 | ||||||||
63rd | 13 | Elected January 28, 1913 to the full term. | ||||||||||
64th | ||||||||||||
Re-elected in 1916. Lost re-election. |
13 | 65th | ||||||||||
66th | 14 | Re-elected in 1918. | ||||||||||
67th | ||||||||||||
11 | ![]() Earle B. Mayfield |
Democratic | March 4, 1923 – March 3, 1929 |
Elected in 1922. Lost renomination. |
14 | 68th | ||||||
69th | 15 | Re-elected in 1924. | ||||||||||
70th | ||||||||||||
12 | ![]() Tom Connally |
Democratic | March 4, 1929 – January 3, 1953 |
Elected in 1928. | 15 | 71st | ||||||
72nd | 16 | Re-elected in 1930. | ||||||||||
73rd | ||||||||||||
Re-elected in 1934. | 16 | 74th | ||||||||||
75th | 17 | Re-elected in 1936. Died. | ||||||||||
76th | ||||||||||||
Re-elected in 1940. | 17 | 77th | ||||||||||
April 9, 1941 – April 21, 1941 |
Vacant | |||||||||||
Appointed to continue Sheppard's term. Died. |
April 21, 1941 – June 26, 1941 |
Democratic | ![]() Andrew Jackson Houston |
9 | ||||||||
June 26, 1941 – August 4, 1941 |
Vacant | |||||||||||
Elected to finish Sheppard's term. | August 4, 1941 – January 3, 1949 |
Democratic | ![]() W. Lee O'Daniel |
10 | ||||||||
78th | 18 | Re-elected in 1942. Retired. | ||||||||||
79th | ||||||||||||
Re-elected in 1946. Retired. |
18 | 80th | ||||||||||
81st | 19 | Elected in 1948. | January 3, 1949 – January 3, 1961 |
Democratic | ![]() Lyndon B. Johnson |
11 | ||||||
82nd | ||||||||||||
13 | ![]() Price Daniel |
Democratic | January 3, 1953 – January 14, 1957 |
Elected in 1952. Resigned. |
19 | 83rd | ||||||
84th | 20 | Re-elected in 1954. Re-elected in 1960, but resigned to become Vice President of the United States. | ||||||||||
85th | ||||||||||||
14 | ![]() William A. Blakley |
Democratic | January 15, 1957 – April 28, 1957 |
Appointed to continue Daniel's term. Retired when his successor was elected. | ||||||||
15 | ![]() Ralph Yarborough |
Democratic | April 29, 1957 – January 3, 1971 |
Elected to finish Daniel's term. | ||||||||
Re-elected in 1958. | 20 | 86th | ||||||||||
87th | 21 | Appointed to begin Johnson's term. Lost election to finish Johnson's term. |
January 3, 1961 – June 14, 1961 |
Democratic | ![]() William A. Blakley |
12 | ||||||
Elected to finish Johnson's term. | June 15, 1961 – January 3, 1985 |
Republican | ![]() John Tower |
13 | ||||||||
88th | ||||||||||||
Re-elected in 1964. Lost renomination. |
21 | 89th | ||||||||||
90th | 22 | Re-elected in 1966. | ||||||||||
91st | ||||||||||||
16 | ![]() Lloyd Bentsen |
Democratic | January 3, 1971 – January 20, 1993 |
Elected in 1970. | 22 | 92nd | ||||||
93rd | 23 | Re-elected in 1972. | ||||||||||
94th | ||||||||||||
Re-elected in 1976. | 23 | 95th | ||||||||||
96th | 24 | Re-elected in 1978. Retired. | ||||||||||
97th | ||||||||||||
Re-elected in 1982. | 24 | 98th | ||||||||||
99th | 25 | Elected in 1984. | January 3, 1985 – November 30, 2002 |
Republican | ![]() Phil Gramm |
14 | ||||||
100th | ||||||||||||
Re-elected in 1988. Resigned to become U.S. Secretary of the Treasury. |
25 | 101st | ||||||||||
102nd | 26 | Re-elected in 1990. | ||||||||||
103rd | ||||||||||||
Vacant | January 20, 1993 – January 23, 1993 |
|||||||||||
17 | ![]() Bob Krueger |
Democratic | January 23, 1993 – June 14, 1993 |
Appointed to continue Bentsen's term. Lost election to finish Bentsen's term. | ||||||||
18 | ![]() Kay Bailey Hutchison |
Republican | June 14, 1993 – January 3, 2013 |
Elected to finish Bentsen's term. | ||||||||
Re-elected in 1994. | 26 | 104th | ||||||||||
105th | 27 | Re-elected in 1996. Retired and resigned early to give successor preferential seniority. | ||||||||||
106th | ||||||||||||
Re-elected in 2000. | 27 | 107th | ||||||||||
November 30, 2002 – December 2, 2002 |
Vacant | |||||||||||
Appointed to finish Gramm's term, having been elected to the next term. | December 2, 2002 – present |
Republican | ![]() John Cornyn |
15 | ||||||||
108th | 28 | Elected in 2002. | ||||||||||
109th | ||||||||||||
Re-elected in 2006. Retired. |
28 | 110th | ||||||||||
111th | 29 | Re-elected in 2008. | ||||||||||
112th | ||||||||||||
19 | ![]() Ted Cruz |
Republican | January 3, 2013 – present |
Elected in 2012. | 29 | 113th | ||||||
114th | 30 | Re-elected in 2014. | ||||||||||
115th | ||||||||||||
Re-elected in 2018. | 30 | 116th | ||||||||||
117th | 31 | Re-elected in 2020. | ||||||||||
118th | ||||||||||||
To be determined in the 2024 election. | 31 | 119th | ||||||||||
120th | 32 | To be determined in the 2026 election. | ||||||||||
# | Senator | Party | Years in office | Electoral history | T | T | Electoral history | Years in office | Party | Senator | # | |
Class 1 | Class 2 |
List of living former senators[]
As of August 2021, there are three living former U.S. senators from Texas. The most recent and most recently serving senator to die was Lloyd Bentsen (served 1971–1993) on May 23, 2006.
Senator | Term of office | Date of birth (and age) |
---|---|---|
Phil Gramm | January 3, 1985 – November 30, 2002 | July 9, 1942 |
Bob Krueger | January 23, 1993 – June 14, 1993 | September 19, 1935 |
Kay Bailey Hutchison | June 14, 1993 – January 3, 2013 | July 22, 1943 |
Superlatives[]
Longest service[]
Senator | First served | Last served | Length of service |
---|---|---|---|
Morris Sheppard | February 3, 1913 | April 9, 1941 | 28 years, 65 days (10,292 days) |
Charles Allen Culberson | March 4, 1899 | March 4, 1923 | 24 years, 0 days (8,765 days) |
Tom Connally | March 4, 1929 | January 3, 1953 | 23 years, 305 days (8,706 days) |
John Tower | June 15, 1961 | January 3, 1985 | 23 years, 202 days (8,603 days) |
Lloyd Bentsen | January 3, 1971 | January 20, 1993 | 22 years, 17 days (8,053 days) |
Shortest service[]
Senator | First served | Last served | Length of service |
---|---|---|---|
Rienzi Melville Johnston | January 4, 1913 | January 29, 1913 | 3 weeks and 4 days (25 days) |
Andrew Jackson Houston | April 21, 1941 | June 26, 1941 | 2 months and 5 days (66 days) |
Bob Krueger | January 21, 1993 | June 14, 1993 | 4 months, 3 weeks and 3 days (144 days) |
James Pinckney Henderson | November 9, 1857 | June 4, 1858 | 6 months, 3 weeks and 5 days (207 days) |
William A. Blakley | January 15, 1957 | April 28, 1957 | Combined total: 8 months, 24 days (265 days) |
January 3, 1961 | June 14, 1961 |
Youngest at beginning of service[]
Senator | Date of birth | First served | Age |
---|---|---|---|
John Tower | September 29, 1925 | June 15, 1961 | 35 years, 8 months and 17 days |
Horace Chilton | December 29, 1853 | June 10, 1891 | 37 years, 5 months and 12 days |
Morris Sheppard | May 28, 1875 | February 3, 1913 | 37 years, 8 months and 6 days |
Joseph Weldon Bailey | October 6, 1862 | March 4, 1901 | 38 years, 4 months and 26 days |
Lyndon B. Johnson | August 27, 1908 | January 3, 1949 | 40 years, 4 months and 7 days |
Oldest at end of service[]
Senator | Date of birth | Last served | Age |
---|---|---|---|
Andrew Jackson Houston | June 21, 1854 | June 26, 1941 | 87 years and 5 days |
Tom Connally | August 19, 1877 | January 3, 1953 | 75 years, 4 months and 15 days |
John Henninger Reagan | October 8, 1818 | June 10, 1891 | 72 years, 8 months and 2 days |
Lloyd Bentsen | February 11, 1921 | January 20, 1993 | 71 years, 11 months and 9 days |
John Cornyn | February 2, 1952 | Present | 69 years, 6 months and 26 days |
See also[]
- United States congressional delegations from Texas
- List of United States representatives from Texas
References[]
- ^ The World Almanac and Encyclopedia 1906. New York: The Press Publishing Co. New York World. 1905. p. 108.
- United States senators from Texas
- Lists of United States senators by state
- Lists of Texas politicians