John Cornyn

John Cornyn
Official portrait, 2017
United States Senator
from Texas
Assumed office
December 2, 2002
Serving with Ted Cruz
Preceded byPhil Gramm
Ranking Member of the Senate Narcotics Caucus
In office
January 20, 2021 – January 3, 2023
Preceded byDianne Feinstein
Succeeded byChuck Grassley
Chair of the Senate Narcotics Caucus
In office
January 3, 2019 – January 20, 2021
Preceded byChuck Grassley
Succeeded bySheldon Whitehouse
Senate Majority Whip
In office
January 3, 2015 – January 3, 2019
LeaderMitch McConnell
Preceded byDick Durbin
Succeeded byJohn Thune
Senate Minority Whip
In office
January 3, 2013 – January 3, 2015
LeaderMitch McConnell
Preceded byJon Kyl
Succeeded byDick Durbin
Chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee
In office
January 3, 2009 – January 3, 2013
Preceded byJohn Ensign
Succeeded byJerry Moran
49th Attorney General of Texas
In office
January 13, 1999 – December 1, 2002
GovernorGeorge W. Bush
Rick Perry
Preceded byDan Morales
Succeeded byGreg Abbott
Justice of the Texas Supreme Court
In office
January 2, 1991 – October 18, 1997
Preceded byFranklin Spears
Succeeded byDeborah Hankinson
Judge of the Texas 37th Judicial District Court
In office
January 1, 1985 – January 1, 1991
Preceded byRichard Woods
Succeeded byAnn-Marie Aaron
Personal details
Born
John Cornyn III

(1952-02-02) February 2, 1952 (age 72)
Houston, Texas, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse
Sandy Hansen
(m. 1979)
Children2
EducationTrinity University (BA)
St. Mary's University, Texas (JD)
University of Virginia (LLM)
WebsiteSenate website

John Cornyn III (/ˈkɔːrnɪn/ COR-nin; born February 2, 1952) is an American politician, attorney, and former jurist serving as the senior United States senator from Texas, a seat he has held since 2002. A member of the Republican Party, he served on the Texas Supreme Court from 1991 to 1997 and as the attorney general of Texas from 1999 to 2002.

Born in Houston, Cornyn is a graduate of Trinity University and St. Mary's University School of Law and received an LL.M. degree from the University of Virginia School of Law. He was a judge on Texas's 37th District Court from 1985 to 1991.[1][2] He was elected an associate justice of the Texas Supreme Court, where he served from 1991 to 1997. While serving on that court, Cornyn played an important role in crafting its decision to uphold the constitutionality of Texas's anti-sodomy law (later ruled unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court in Lawrence v. Texas).

In 1998, Cornyn was elected Attorney General of Texas, serving one term before winning a seat in the U.S. Senate in 2002. He was reelected in 2008, 2014, and 2020. Cornyn chaired the National Republican Senatorial Committee from 2009 to 2013, and served as the Senate majority whip for the 114th and 115th Congresses.[3][4]

  1. ^ "New Judges" (PDF). In Chambers. Vol. 11, no. 3. December 1984. p. 16. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 28, 2021. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  2. ^ "New Judges" (PDF). In Chambers. Vol. 19, no. 1. January 1992. p. 11. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 28, 2021. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  3. ^ John Wagner; Mike DeBonis (November 14, 2018). "Congressional leadership elections: House Republicans elect Kevin McCarthy as next leader; Pelosi seeks to shore up votes for speaker". The Washington Post. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
  4. ^ "Cornyn Elected To NRSC Chairmanship" (Press release). National Republican Senatorial Committee. November 18, 2008. Archived from the original on November 20, 2008.

© MMXXIII Rich X Search. We shall prevail. All rights reserved. Rich X Search