Lankford, James

James Lankford is the senior United States Senator from Oklahoma, a position he has held since 2015. Before joining the Senate, he represented Oklahoma's 5th congressional district in the House of Representatives from 2011 to 2015. An ordained Southern Baptist minister, Lankford spent over a decade as the president of the Falls Creek Baptist Conference Center, one of the largest youth camps in the country, before entering federal politics.

In the Senate, Lankford holds several influential leadership roles, including serving as the Chair of the Select Committee on Ethics. He is also a prominent member of the Committee on Finance and the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, where he chairs the Subcommittee on Border Management. His legislative work often centers on government oversight, regulatory affairs, and election security, having notably co-sponsored the Secure Elections Act to modernize voting technology.

Lankford has been a central figure in national debates regarding immigration and fiscal policy. He served as the lead Republican negotiator for a major bipartisan border security bill in 2024 and recently supported the Big Beautiful Bill, which introduced work requirements for Medicaid. Throughout his tenure, he has remained active in various caucuses, including those focused on rare diseases and relations with Taiwan.