Richard Durbin, Senator for Illinois

Durbin is the senior senator from Illinois and is a Democrat. He has served since Jan 7, 1997. Durbin is next up for reelection in 2020.

He was previously the representative for Illinois’s 20^th congressional district as a Democrat from 1983 to 1996.

Analysis

Legislative Metrics

Read our 2017 Report Card for Durbin.

Ideology–Leadership Chart

Durbin 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 Durbin has sponsored and cosponsored. See full analysis methodology.

Ratings from Advocacy Organizations

Human Rights Campaign: 100% Planned Parenthood Action Fund: 100% NIAC Action: A League of Conservation Voters: 87% American Civil Liberties Union: 35% United States Chamber of Commerce: 35% NumbersUSA: 18% The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws: D Americans for Prosperity: 3% The Club for Growth: 0% FreedomWorks: 0%

Committee Membership

Richard Durbin sits on the following committees:

Senate Committee on Appropriations
- Ranking Member, Subcommittee on Department of Defense
- Member, Subcommittee on Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies
- Member, Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development
- Member, Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government
- Member, Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs
- Member, Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies
Senate Committee on the Judiciary
- Ranking Member, Subcommittee on Border Security and Immigration
- Member, Subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism
- Member, Subcommittee on the Constitution
Senate Committee on Rules and Administration

Enacted Legislation

Durbin was the primary sponsor of 33 bills that were enacted. The most recent include:

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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

Durbin sponsors bills primarily in these issue areas:

Education (23%) Health (20%) International Affairs (14%) Armed Forces and National Security (13%) Government Operations and Politics (8%) Crime and Law Enforcement (8%) Taxation (7%) Finance and Financial Sector (7%)

Recent Bills

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

View All » | View Cosponsors »

As Senate Minority Whip, Durbin may be focused on his responsibilities other than introducing legislation, such as setting the chamber’s agenda, uniting his party, and brokering deals.

Voting Record

Key Votes

Durbin’s Vote	Vote Description
Yea	On the Nomination PN1525: Dominic W. Lanza, of Arizona, to be United States District Judge for the District of Arizona Sep 6, 2018. Nomination Confirmed 60/35.
Nay	H.R. 5515: John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 Aug 1, 2018. Conference Report Agreed to 87/10. H.R. 5515 authorizes and prioritizes funding for the Department of Defense (DoD) and military activities and construction, and prescribes military personnel strengths for Fiscal Year 2019. The bill complies with the bipartisan budget agreement and authorizes $639.1 billion in base funding. Further, the bill authorizes ...
Yea	On the Nomination PN1330: Joel M. Carson III, of New Mexico, to be United States Circuit Judge for the Tenth Circuit May 15, 2018. Nomination Confirmed 77/21.
Yea	H.R. 5325: Legislative Branch Appropriations Act, 2017 Sep 28, 2016. Bill Passed 72/26.
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.J.Res. 124 (113th): Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2015 Sep 18, 2014. Joint Resolution Passed 78/22.
Yea	On the Nomination PN1210: Edward G. Smith, of Pennsylvania, to be United States District Judge for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania Mar 26, 2014. Nomination Confirmed 69/31.
Nay	H.R. 4310 (112th): National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013 Dec 21, 2012. Conference Report Agreed to 81/14.
Nay	H.R. 1540 (112th): National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 Dec 15, 2011. Conference Report Agreed to 86/13.
Yea	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 ...

Missed Votes

From Jan 1997 to Sep 2018, Durbin missed 79 of 6,772 roll call votes, which is 1.2%. This is on par with 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
1997 Jan-Mar	35	0	0.0%	0^th
1997 Apr-Jun	125	1	0.8%	56^th
1997 Jul-Sep	103	0	0.0%	0^th
1997 Oct-Nov	35	0	0.0%	0^th
1998 Jan-Mar	52	2	3.8%	61^st
1998 Apr-Jun	131	2	1.5%	72^nd
1998 Jul-Sep	109	0	0.0%	0^th
1998 Oct-Oct	22	1	4.5%	83^rd
1999 Jan-Mar	81	0	0.0%	0^th
1999 Apr-Jun	111	0	0.0%	0^th
1999 Jul-Sep	112	0	0.0%	0^th
1999 Oct-Nov	70	0	0.0%	0^th
2000 Feb-Mar	51	0	0.0%	0^th
2000 Apr-Jun	120	0	0.0%	0^th
2000 Jul-Sep	89	1	1.1%	45^th
2000 Oct-Dec	38	5	13.2%	75^th
2001 Jan-Mar	63	1	1.6%	75^th
2001 Apr-Jun	157	2	1.3%	72^nd
2001 Jul-Sep	68	1	1.5%	42^nd
2001 Oct-Dec	92	1	1.1%	46^th
2002 Jan-Mar	59	0	0.0%	0^th
2002 Apr-Jun	107	1	0.9%	56^th
2002 Jul-Sep	61	1	1.6%	46^th
2002 Oct-Nov	26	0	0.0%	0^th
2003 Jan-Mar	112	4	3.6%	89^th
2003 Apr-Jun	150	1	0.7%	31^st
2003 Jul-Sep	108	2	1.9%	64^th
2003 Oct-Nov	89	0	0.0%	0^th
2004 Jan-Mar	64	1	1.6%	68^th
2004 Apr-Jun	88	0	0.0%	0^th
2004 Jul-Sep	42	1	2.4%	57^th
2004 Oct-Dec	22	1	4.5%	71^st
2005 Jan-Mar	81	0	0.0%	0^th
2005 Apr-Jun	89	5	5.6%	87^th
2005 Jul-Sep	76	0	0.0%	0^th
2005 Oct-Dec	120	0	0.0%	0^th
2006 Jan-Mar	83	0	0.0%	0^th
2006 Apr-Jun	107	2	1.9%	50^th
2006 Jul-Sep	73	0	0.0%	0^th
2006 Nov-Dec	16	0	0.0%	0^th
2007 Jan-Mar	126	1	0.8%	34^th
2007 Apr-Jun	112	2	1.8%	67^th
2007 Jul-Sep	119	2	1.7%	55^th
2007 Oct-Dec	85	0	0.0%	0^th
2008 Jan-Mar	85	0	0.0%	0^th
2008 Apr-Jun	77	0	0.0%	0^th
2008 Jul-Sep	47	0	0.0%	0^th
2008 Oct-Dec	6	0	0.0%	0^th
2009 Jan-Mar	118	1	0.8%	58^th
2009 Apr-Jun	96	3	3.1%	76^th
2009 Jul-Sep	89	0	0.0%	0^th
2009 Oct-Dec	94	0	0.0%	0^th
2010 Jan-Mar	108	0	0.0%	0^th
2010 Apr-Jun	96	1	1.0%	41^st
2010 Jul-Sep	44	0	0.0%	0^th
2010 Nov-Dec	51	0	0.0%	0^th
2011 Jan-Mar	46	0	0.0%	0^th
2011 Apr-Jun	58	2	3.4%	63^rd
2011 Jul-Sep	49	0	0.0%	0^th
2011 Oct-Dec	82	3	3.7%	71^st
2012 Jan-Mar	63	0	0.0%	0^th
2012 Apr-Jun	109	0	0.0%	0^th
2012 Jul-Sep	28	0	0.0%	0^th
2012 Nov-Dec	50	0	0.0%	0^th
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	2	2.2%	72^nd
2014 Apr-Jun	123	0	0.0%	0^th
2014 Jul-Sep	54	0	0.0%	0^th
2014 Nov-Dec	96	0	0.0%	0^th
2015 Jan-Mar	135	0	0.0%	0^th
2015 Apr-Jun	85	2	2.4%	69^th
2015 Jul-Sep	52	0	0.0%	0^th
2015 Oct-Dec	67	0	0.0%	0^th
2016 Jan-Mar	38	1	2.6%	45^th
2016 Apr-Jun	79	7	8.9%	94^th
2016 Jul-Sep	34	1	2.9%	61^st
2016 Nov-Dec	12	0	0.0%	0^th
2017 Jan-Mar	101	2	2.0%	80^th
2017 Apr-Jun	54	6	11.1%	97^th
2017 Jul-Sep	53	0	0.0%	0^th
2017 Oct-Dec	117	0	0.0%	0^th
2018 Jan-Mar	63	3	4.8%	81^st
2018 Apr-Jun	80	0	0.0%	0^th
2018 Jul-Sep	69	4	5.8%	78^th

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

Richard Durbin is pronounced:

RI-cherd // DER-bun

The letters stand for sounds according to the following table:

Letter	Sounds As In
B b	bat
CH ch	chin
D d	day
ER er	her
I i	pin
N n	not
R r	rag
U u	cup

Capital letters indicate a stressed syllable.

Sen. Richard Durbin

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