Christopher A. Coons
DemocratU.S. Senator, DE| Age | 62 (b. 1963-09-09) |
| Gender | Male |
| In office since | 2010-11-15 (~15 yrs) |
| Race / ethnicity | White (English and Irish ancestry) |
| Religion | Christian; Presbyterian (his wife is Catholic and the family has attended a Catholic church) |
| Education | B.A. in chemistry and political science, Amherst College (1985); J.D., Yale Law School (1992); Master of Arts in Religion (M.A.R.), Yale Divinity School (1992) |
| Prior occupation | Attorney; in-house counsel at W.L. Gore & Associates for about eight years; earlier worked in the nonprofit sector (including with the National Coalition for the Homeless and the 'I Have a Dream' Foundation) and as a volunteer/relief worker in Kenya and with the South African Council of Churches |
| Military service | No |
| Birthplace | Greenwich, Connecticut |
| Marital status | Married — Annie Lingenfelter Coons |
| Children | 3 |
| Residence | Wilmington, Delaware |
| Notable relatives | Stepfather Robert W. Gore was a longtime president/leader of W.L. Gore & Associates (inventor of Gore-Tex); no immediate family members in elected politics |
Pending research: languages · openly lgbtq.
Career & politics
| First elected | 2010 |
| Previous offices | President, New Castle County Council (2001-2005) · County Executive, New Castle County, Delaware (2005-2010) |
| Committees | Senate Committee on Appropriations · Senate Committee on Foreign Relations · Senate Committee on the Judiciary · Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship · Senate Select Committee on Ethics |
| Leadership | Chair, Senate Select Committee on Ethics (117th and 118th Congresses, 2021-2025); Vice Chair thereafter · Chair (2021-2025) / Ranking Member, Appropriations Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs (SFOPS) |
| Party history | Registered Republican (member of College Republicans) in his youth; switched to and registered as a Democrat by 1988 after experiences abroad; Democrat ever since |
| Ideology | DW-NOMINATE 1st dimension -0.239 (118th Congress) per Voteview, indicating a mainstream/moderate liberal Democrat |
| Signature legislation | Courthouse Ethics and Transparency Act (2022) - requires online publication of federal judges' financial disclosure reports · Provisions in the American Innovation and Competitiveness Act (2017) supporting science, manufacturing, and small business · Supporter/co-sponsor of the First Step Act (2018) criminal justice reform · International Nuclear Energy Act (with Sen. Jim Risch) · Platform Accountability and Transparency Act (social media data transparency) |
Financial
Net worth: disclosed $5,605,194–$15,305,996 (2023) · estimate
| W.L. Gore & Associates (stake/holding) | business_owned · $6,000,003 · 2018 |
| W.L. Gore & Associates (additional holding) | business_owned · $1,000,001 · 2018 |
Top donors: American Israel Public Affairs Cmte (AIPAC) ($446,255) · Young, Conaway et al ($90,700) · Capital Group Companies ($58,000) · Apollo Global Management ($50,000) · Lockheed Martin ($39,500)
Top industries: Pro-Israel · Democratic/leadership PACs · Lawyers & law firms · Lobbyists & Public Relations · Private Equity & Investment Firms
Scandals & crimes ledger
No recorded incidents. Under the adjudicated-only methodology, an entry appears only when a court or official body has formally acted and the record is cited.