Patrick Leahy, Senator for Vermont

Leahy is the senior senator from Vermont and is a Democrat. He has served since Jan 14, 1975. Leahy is next up for reelection in 2022.

Analysis

Legislative Metrics

Read our 2017 Report Card for Leahy.

Ideology–Leadership Chart

Leahy is shown as a purple triangle ▲ in our ideology-leadership chart below. Each dot is a member of the Senate positioned according to our liberal–conservative ideology score (left to right) and our leadership score (leaders are toward the top).

The chart is based on the bills Leahy has sponsored and cosponsored. See full analysis methodology.

Ratings from Advocacy Organizations

Human Rights Campaign: 100% Planned Parenthood Action Fund: 100% American Civil Liberties Union: 94% League of Conservation Voters: 93% NIAC Action: A The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws: B United States Chamber of Commerce: 33% NumbersUSA: 10% Americans for Prosperity: 4% The Club for Growth: 0% FreedomWorks: 0%

Committee Membership

Patrick Leahy sits on the following committees:

Ranking Member, Senate Committee on Appropriations
- Ranking Member, Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs
- Ex Officio, Subcommittee on Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies
- Ex Officio, Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development
- Ex Officio, Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government
- Ex Officio, Subcommittee on Legislative Branch
- Ex Officio, Subcommittee on Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies
- Ex Officio, Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies
- Member, Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies
- Member, Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies
- Member, Subcommittee on Department of Defense
- Member, Subcommittee on Department of Homeland Security
- Member, Subcommittee on Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies
Joint Committee on the Library
Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry
- Member, Subcommittee on Conservation, Forestry, and Natural Resources
- Member, Subcommittee on Livestock, Marketing, and Agriculture Security
- Member, Subcommittee on Nutrition, Agricultural Research, and Specialty Crops
Senate Committee on the Judiciary
- Member, Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights
- Member, Subcommittee on Border Security and Immigration
- Member, Subcommittee on Oversight, Agency Action, Federal Rights and Federal Courts
- Member, Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology and the Law
Senate Committee on Rules and Administration

Enacted Legislation

Leahy was the primary sponsor of 104 bills that were enacted. The most recent include:

View All »

We consider a bill enacted if one of the following is true: a) it is enacted itself, b) it has a companion bill in the other chamber (as identified by Congress) which was enacted, or c) if at least about half of its provisions were incorporated into bills that were enacted (as determined by an automated text analysis, applicable beginning with bills in the 110^th Congress).

Bills Sponsored

Issue Areas

Leahy sponsors bills primarily in these issue areas:

Crime and Law Enforcement (27%) Government Operations and Politics (22%) Taxation (14%) International Affairs (13%) Commerce (10%) Immigration (8%)

Recent Bills

Some of Leahy’s most recently sponsored bills include...

View All » | View Cosponsors »

Voting Record

Key Votes

Leahy’s Vote	Vote Description
Yea	On the Nomination PN372: Kevin Christopher Newsom, of Alabama, to be United States Circuit Judge for the Eleventh Circuit Aug 1, 2017. Nomination Confirmed 66/31.
Nay	H.R. 5325: Legislative Branch Appropriations Act, 2017 Sep 28, 2016. Bill Passed 72/26.
Nay	S. 2943: National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 Jun 14, 2016. Bill Passed 85/13.
Yea	H.R. 22: Developing a Reliable and Innovative Vision for the Economy Act Dec 3, 2015. Conference Report Agreed to 83/16. H.R 22, formerly the Hire More Heroes Act, has become the Senate’s vehicle for passage of the Developing a Reliable and Innovative Vision for the Economy Act or DRIVE Act (S. 1647). The DRIVE Act is a major bipartisan transportation bill that would authorize funding ...
Yea	H.R. 22: Developing a Reliable and Innovative Vision for the Economy Act Jul 30, 2015. Bill Passed 65/34. This vote turned H.R 22, originally the Hire More Heroes Act, into the Senate’s vehicle for passage of the Developing a Reliable and Innovative Vision for the Economy Act or DRIVE Act (S. 1647), a major bipartisan transportation bill, and the Export-Import Bank Reform and ...
Nay	H.R. 5771 (113th): Tax Increase Prevention Act of 2014 Dec 16, 2014. Bill Passed 76/16.
Nay	H.J.Res. 124 (113th): Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2015 Sep 18, 2014. Joint Resolution Passed 78/22.
Yea	H.R. 1540 (112th): National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 Dec 15, 2011. Conference Report Agreed to 86/13.
Nay	H.R. 4853 (111th): Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010 Dec 15, 2010. Motion Agreed to 81/19. The Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010 (Pub.L. 111–312, H.R. 4853, 124 Stat. 3296, enacted December 17, 2010), also known as the 2010 Tax Relief Act, was passed by the United States Congress on December 16, 2010, and signed into ...
Yea	On the Nomination PN177: Gen. George W. Casey, Jr., in the Army, to be General Feb 8, 2007. Nomination Confirmed 83/14.

Missed Votes

From Jan 1975 to Sep 2018, Leahy missed 599 of 16,293 roll call votes, which is 3.7%. This is worse than the median of 1.5% among the lifetime records of senators currently serving. The chart below reports missed votes over time.

Show the numbers...

Time Period	Votes Eligible	Missed Votes	Percent	Percentile
1975 Jan-Mar	118	8	6.8%	0^th
1975 Apr-Jun	141	9	6.4%	0^th
1975 Jul-Sep	170	14	8.2%	0^th
1975 Oct-Dec	182	11	6.0%	0^th
1976 Jan-Mar	109	18	16.5%	0^th
1976 Apr-Jun	263	9	3.4%	0^th
1976 Jul-Sep	315	23	7.3%	0^th
1976 Oct-Oct	13	0	0.0%	0^th
1977 Jan-Mar	92	8	8.7%	0^th
1977 Apr-Jun	178	18	10.1%	50^th
1977 Jul-Sep	233	18	7.7%	50^th
1977 Oct-Dec	133	16	12.0%	0^th
1978 Jan-Mar	78	8	10.3%	50^th
1978 Apr-Jun	119	1	0.8%	0^th
1978 Jul-Sep	237	5	2.1%	0^th
1978 Oct-Oct	86	4	4.7%	0^th
1979 Feb-Mar	32	0	0.0%	0^th
1979 Apr-Jun	121	6	5.0%	33^rd
1979 Jul-Sep	171	8	4.7%	0^th
1979 Oct-Dec	184	14	7.6%	0^th
1980 Jan-Mar	67	0	0.0%	0^th
1980 Apr-Jun	216	40	18.5%	67^th
1980 Jul-Sep	179	17	9.5%	67^th
1980 Oct-Dec	84	7	8.3%	0^th
1981 Jan-Mar	57	0	0.0%	0^th
1981 Apr-Jun	125	1	0.8%	0^th
1981 Jul-Sep	122	8	6.6%	75^th
1981 Oct-Dec	193	68	35.2%	75^th
1982 Feb-Mar	79	1	1.3%	0^th
1982 Apr-Jun	127	2	1.6%	50^th
1982 Jul-Sep	177	1	0.6%	25^th
1982 Oct-Dec	86	0	0.0%	0^th
1983 Feb-Mar	54	0	0.0%	0^th
1983 Apr-Jun	122	0	0.0%	0^th
1983 Jul-Sep	92	2	2.2%	25^th
1983 Oct-Nov	103	5	4.9%	50^th
1984 Jan-Mar	45	8	17.8%	75^th
1984 Apr-Jun	144	8	5.6%	50^th
1984 Jul-Sep	68	1	1.5%	0^th
1984 Oct-Oct	34	3	8.8%	50^th
1985 Jan-Mar	22	1	4.5%	60^th
1985 Apr-Jun	116	2	1.7%	60^th
1985 Jul-Sep	60	2	3.3%	60^th
1985 Oct-Dec	183	4	2.2%	20^th
1986 Jan-Mar	51	2	3.9%	60^th
1986 Apr-Jun	103	10	9.7%	80^th
1986 Jul-Sep	149	1	0.7%	40^th
1986 Oct-Oct	56	11	19.6%	80^th
1987 Jan-Mar	50	1	2.0%	29^th
1987 Apr-Jun	123	7	5.7%	71^st
1987 Jul-Sep	120	10	8.3%	57^th
1987 Oct-Dec	127	1	0.8%	0^th
1988 Jan-Mar	84	1	1.2%	0^th
1988 Apr-Jun	137	7	5.1%	71^st
1988 Jul-Sep	127	5	3.9%	43^rd
1988 Oct-Oct	31	0	0.0%	0^th
1989 Jan-Mar	26	0	0.0%	0^th
1989 Apr-Jun	77	0	0.0%	0^th
1989 Jul-Sep	118	1	0.8%	57^th
1989 Oct-Nov	91	0	0.0%	0^th
1990 Jan-Mar	48	0	0.0%	0^th
1990 Apr-Jun	95	0	0.0%	0^th
1990 Jul-Sep	114	0	0.0%	0^th
1990 Oct-Oct	69	0	0.0%	0^th
1991 Jan-Mar	41	0	0.0%	0^th
1991 Apr-Jun	74	1	1.4%	86^th
1991 Jul-Sep	96	0	0.0%	0^th
1991 Oct-Nov	69	0	0.0%	0^th
1992 Jan-Mar	61	4	6.6%	71^st
1992 Apr-Jun	74	1	1.4%	71^st
1992 Jul-Sep	117	5	4.3%	57^th
1992 Oct-Oct	18	5	27.8%	86^th
1993 Feb-Mar	93	1	1.1%	67^th
1993 Apr-Jun	99	1	1.0%	50^th
1993 Jul-Sep	109	2	1.8%	70^th
1993 Oct-Nov	94	3	3.2%	44^th
1994 Jan-Mar	86	0	0.0%	0^th
1994 Apr-Jun	92	0	0.0%	0^th
1994 Jul-Sep	136	0	0.0%	0^th
1994 Oct-Dec	15	0	0.0%	0^th
1995 Jan-Mar	125	13	10.4%	82^nd
1995 Apr-Jun	171	3	1.8%	27^th
1995 Jul-Sep	184	0	0.0%	0^th
1995 Oct-Dec	133	0	0.0%	0^th
1996 Jan-Mar	60	1	1.7%	50^th
1996 Apr-Jun	122	3	2.5%	75^th
1996 Jul-Sep	121	1	0.8%	50^th
1996 Oct-Oct	3	3	100.0%	92^nd
1997 Jan-Mar	35	1	2.9%	83^rd
1997 Apr-Jun	125	0	0.0%	0^th
1997 Jul-Sep	103	6	5.8%	94^th
1997 Oct-Nov	35	0	0.0%	0^th
1998 Jan-Mar	52	1	1.9%	33^rd
1998 Apr-Jun	131	1	0.8%	61^st
1998 Jul-Sep	109	1	0.9%	39^th
1998 Oct-Oct	22	0	0.0%	0^th
1999 Jan-Mar	81	0	0.0%	0^th
1999 Apr-Jun	111	2	1.8%	71^st
1999 Jul-Sep	112	3	2.7%	70^th
1999 Oct-Nov	70	1	1.4%	60^th
2000 Feb-Mar	51	0	0.0%	0^th
2000 Apr-Jun	120	10	8.3%	95^th
2000 Jul-Sep	89	1	1.1%	45^th
2000 Oct-Dec	38	5	13.2%	75^th
2001 Jan-Mar	63	0	0.0%	0^th
2001 Apr-Jun	157	3	1.9%	84^th
2001 Jul-Sep	68	0	0.0%	0^th
2001 Oct-Dec	92	3	3.3%	79^th
2002 Jan-Mar	59	0	0.0%	0^th
2002 Apr-Jun	107	0	0.0%	0^th
2002 Jul-Sep	61	2	3.3%	67^th
2002 Oct-Nov	26	0	0.0%	0^th
2003 Jan-Mar	112	1	0.9%	57^th
2003 Apr-Jun	150	2	1.3%	48^th
2003 Jul-Sep	108	2	1.9%	64^th
2003 Oct-Nov	89	0	0.0%	0^th
2004 Jan-Mar	64	0	0.0%	0^th
2004 Apr-Jun	88	2	2.3%	71^st
2004 Jul-Sep	42	0	0.0%	0^th
2004 Oct-Dec	22	6	27.3%	93^rd
2005 Jan-Mar	81	1	1.2%	61^st
2005 Apr-Jun	89	0	0.0%	0^th
2005 Jul-Sep	76	0	0.0%	0^th
2005 Oct-Dec	120	1	0.8%	44^th
2006 Jan-Mar	83	0	0.0%	0^th
2006 Apr-Jun	107	1	0.9%	28^th
2006 Jul-Sep	73	0	0.0%	0^th
2006 Nov-Dec	16	0	0.0%	0^th
2007 Jan-Mar	126	2	1.6%	56^th
2007 Apr-Jun	112	0	0.0%	0^th
2007 Jul-Sep	119	0	0.0%	0^th
2007 Oct-Dec	85	0	0.0%	0^th
2008 Jan-Mar	85	1	1.2%	52^nd
2008 Apr-Jun	77	0	0.0%	0^th
2008 Jul-Sep	47	2	4.3%	63^rd
2008 Oct-Dec	6	0	0.0%	0^th
2009 Jan-Mar	118	0	0.0%	0^th
2009 Apr-Jun	96	3	3.1%	76^th
2009 Jul-Sep	89	2	2.2%	76^th
2009 Oct-Dec	94	3	3.2%	86^th
2010 Jan-Mar	108	0	0.0%	0^th
2010 Apr-Jun	96	2	2.1%	63^rd
2010 Jul-Sep	44	2	4.5%	82^nd
2010 Nov-Dec	51	0	0.0%	0^th
2011 Jan-Mar	46	3	6.5%	78^th
2011 Apr-Jun	58	3	5.2%	74^th
2011 Jul-Sep	49	1	2.0%	48^th
2011 Oct-Dec	82	0	0.0%	0^th
2012 Jan-Mar	63	1	1.6%	63^rd
2012 Apr-Jun	109	1	0.9%	46^th
2012 Jul-Sep	28	0	0.0%	0^th
2012 Nov-Dec	50	2	4.0%	73^rd
2013 Jan-Jan	1	0	0.0%	0^th
2013 Jan-Mar	92	0	0.0%	0^th
2013 Apr-Jun	76	0	0.0%	0^th
2013 Jul-Sep	43	0	0.0%	0^th
2013 Oct-Dec	80	0	0.0%	0^th
2014 Jan-Mar	93	0	0.0%	0^th
2014 Apr-Jun	123	1	0.8%	26^th
2014 Jul-Sep	54	0	0.0%	0^th
2014 Nov-Dec	96	6	6.2%	84^th
2015 Jan-Mar	135	0	0.0%	0^th
2015 Apr-Jun	85	1	1.2%	46^th
2015 Jul-Sep	52	0	0.0%	0^th
2015 Oct-Dec	67	2	3.0%	75^th
2016 Jan-Mar	38	1	2.6%	45^th
2016 Apr-Jun	79	4	5.1%	84^th
2016 Jul-Sep	34	0	0.0%	0^th
2016 Nov-Dec	12	0	0.0%	0^th
2017 Jan-Mar	101	1	1.0%	64^th
2017 Apr-Jun	54	1	1.9%	62^nd
2017 Jul-Sep	53	2	3.8%	77^th
2017 Oct-Dec	117	1	0.9%	52^nd
2018 Jan-Mar	63	1	1.6%	56^th
2018 Apr-Jun	80	3	3.8%	77^th
2018 Jul-Sep	71	8	11.3%	92^nd

Primary Sources

The information on this page is originally sourced from a variety of materials, including:

@unitedstates/congress-legislators, a community project gathering congressional information
The House and Senate websites, for committee membership and voting records
United States Congressional Roll Call Voting Records, 1789-1990 by Howard L. Rosenthal and Keith T. Poole.
Martis’s “The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress”, via Keith Poole’s roll call votes data set, for political party affiliation for Members of Congress from 1789 through about year 2000
GPO Member Guide for the photo
GovInfo.gov, for sponsored bills

Patrick Leahy is pronounced:

PAT-chrik // LAY-hee

The letters stand for sounds according to the following table:

Letter	Sounds As In
A a	cat
AY ay	say
CH ch	chin
EE ee	meet
H h	hat
I i	pin
K k	king
L l	leg
P p	pen
R r	rag
T t	top

Capital letters indicate a stressed syllable.

Sen. Patrick Leahy

Links

Follow GovTrack on social media for more updates:

On GovTrack Insider:

I have an opinion I want to share.

I need help, have a question, or want to schedule a tour.