Richard Shelby

Richard Shelby
Official portrait, 2011
United States Senator from Alabama
In office January 3, 1987 – January 3, 2023
Preceded by	Jeremiah Denton
Succeeded by	Katie Britt
Committee chairmanships Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee In office April 10, 2018 – February 3, 2021 Preceded by Thad Cochran Succeeded by Patrick Leahy Chair of the Senate Rules Committee In office January 3, 2017 – April 10, 2018 Preceded by Roy Blunt Succeeded by Roy Blunt Chair of the Senate Banking Committee In office January 3, 2015 – January 3, 2017 Preceded by Tim Johnson Succeeded by Mike Crapo In office January 3, 2003 – January 3, 2007 Preceded by Paul Sarbanes Succeeded by Chris Dodd Chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee In office January 20, 2001 – June 6, 2001 Preceded by Bob Graham Succeeded by Bob Graham In office January 3, 1997 – January 3, 2001 Preceded by Arlen Specter Succeeded by Bob Graham
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Alabama's 7th district
In office January 3, 1979 – January 3, 1987
Preceded by	Walter Flowers
Succeeded by	Claude Harris Jr.
Member of the Alabama Senate from the 16th district
In office November 4, 1970 – November 8, 1978
Preceded by	Clint Reid
Succeeded by	Ryan deGraffenried Jr.
Personal details
Born	Richard Craig Shelby (1934-05-06) May 6, 1934 (age 90) Birmingham, Alabama, U.S.
Political party	Republican (after 1994)
Other political affiliations	Democratic (until 1994)
Spouse	Annette Nevin ​ (m. 1960)​
Children	2
Education	University of Alabama (BA, LLB)
Signature
Richard Shelby's voice Shelby, as chair of the Senate Banking Committee, introduces the Senate version of the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act Recorded November 4, 2003

Richard Craig Shelby (born May 6, 1934) is an American lawyer and politician who served as a United States senator from Alabama from 1987 to 2023. First elected to the U.S. Senate in 1986 as a Democrat who later switched to the Republican Party in 1994, he chaired the Senate Appropriations Committee from 2018 to 2021. He previously chaired the Senate Intelligence Committee, the Senate Banking Committee, and the Senate Rules Committee. He was the longest-serving U.S. senator from Alabama, surpassing John Sparkman's record in March 2019.^[1]

Born in Birmingham, Alabama, Shelby received his law degree from the Birmingham School of Law in 1961. He went on to serve as city prosecutor from 1963 to 1971. During this period he worked as a U.S. magistrate for the Northern District of Alabama (1966–1970) and Special Assistant Attorney General of Alabama (1969–1971). He won a seat in the Alabama Senate in 1970. In 1978, he was elected from the 7th district to the United States House of Representatives, where he was among a group of conservative Democrats known as the boll weevils.

In 1986, Shelby won a tight race as a Democrat for the U.S. Senate. In 1994, the day after the Republican Revolution in which the GOP gained the majority in Congress midway through President Bill Clinton's first term, Shelby switched parties and became a Republican. He was reelected by a large margin in 1998, facing no significant electoral opposition thereafter. Apart from his narrow win as a Democrat in 1986, Shelby has always won his Senate seat with more than 60% of the vote.

In February 2021, Shelby announced that he would not seek reelection in 2022.^[2] Katie Britt, his former chief of staff, won the election to succeed him.^[3] At the time of his retirement, he was the dean of Alabama's congressional delegation. Due to his party switch, Shelby is the last Democrat to have held or won election to Alabama's Class 3 Senate seat.