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Sen. Richard Durbin

Senate Minority Whip

Senator from Illinois, Democrat

Durbin, a Democrat, is a senator from Illinois and has served since Jan 7, 1997 (next election in 2020).

He was previously the representative for Illinois's 20th congressional district (1983-1996).

What you can do

Photo of Sen. Richard Durbin [D-IL]

Analysis

Legislative Metrics

Read our 2016 Report Card for Durbin.

Sponsorship Analysis

Our unique analysis of the bills Durbin has sponsored and cosponsored provides insight into his position in the Senate.

Each dot in the chart below is a member of the Senate. The dots are positioned horizontally according to our progressive—conservative ideology score and vertically according to our leadership score (leaders toward the top). Durbin is shown as a purple triangle. (analysis methodology)

Committee Membership

Richard Durbin sits on the following committees:

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 about one third or more of its provisions were incorporated into bills that were enacted (as determined by an automated text analysis, applicable beginning with bills in the 110th Congress).

Bills Sponsored

Issue Areas

Durbin sponsors bills primarily in these issue areas:

Education (23%) Health (21%) Armed Forces and National Security (17%) International Affairs (9%) Finance and Financial Sector (8%) Government Operations and Politics (7%) Crime and Law Enforcement (7%) Taxation (6%)

Recent Bills

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

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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 PN101: Heather Wilson, of South Dakota, to be Secretary of the Air Force
May 8, 2017. Nomination Confirmed 76/22.
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 Jul 2017, Durbin missed 72 of 6,400 roll call votes, which is 1.1%. This is on par with the median of 1.3% among the lifetime records of senators currently serving. The chart below reports missed votes over time.

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Primary Sources

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