Sheldon Whitehouse
DemocratU.S. Senator, RI| Age | 70 (b. 1955-10-20) |
| Gender | Male |
| In office since | 2007-01-04 (~19 yrs) |
| Race / ethnicity | White |
| Religion | Episcopalian |
| Education | St. Paul's School (Concord, NH); BA, Yale University (1978); JD, University of Virginia School of Law (1982) |
| Prior occupation | Attorney; law clerk (Supreme Court of West Virginia); Rhode Island Attorney General's Office attorney; legal counsel in RI Governor's Office under Gov. Bruce Sundlun; U.S. Attorney for Rhode Island (1994-1998); Rhode Island Attorney General (1999-2003) |
| Military service | No |
| Birthplace | Manhattan, New York |
| Marital status | married — Sandra Thornton Whitehouse |
| Children | 2 |
| Residence | Newport, Rhode Island |
| Notable relatives | Father: Charles Sheldon Whitehouse, U.S. Ambassador to Laos and Thailand; paternal grandfather: Edwin Sheldon Whitehouse, U.S. Minister to Guatemala and Colombia; great-great-grandfather: Charles Crocker, co-founder of Central Pacific Railroad; great-great-grandfather: Bishop Henry John Whitehouse (Episcopal) |
Pending research: languages · openly lgbtq.
Career & politics
| First elected | 2006 |
| Previous offices | Director, Rhode Island Department of Business Regulation (1992-1994) · U.S. Attorney for Rhode Island (1994-1998) · Rhode Island Attorney General (1999-2003) |
| Committees | Senate Environment and Public Works Committee (Ranking Member) · Senate Judiciary Committee · Senate Budget Committee · Senate Finance Committee |
| Caucuses | Caucus on International Narcotics Control (Co-Chair) |
| Leadership | Ranking Member, Senate Environment and Public Works Committee (119th Congress) |
| Ideology | Consistently liberal Democrat; GovTrack ranks among most liberal senators; known for aggressive climate advocacy and dark money reform; Voteview DW-NOMINATE score places him on the liberal end of the Senate Democratic caucus |
| Signature legislation | Inflation Reduction Act (2022) — climate and clean energy provisions co-shaped · 'Time to Wake Up' Senate floor speeches on climate change (300+ delivered since 2012) · SAFE Act (Safeguarding America's Future and Environment Act) — introduced with Rep. Cartwright · Carbon Scoring Act — requires CBO to score climate costs of major legislation · American Opportunity Carbon Fee Act — carbon pricing legislation · Save Our Future Act — fee on large corporate greenhouse gas emitters |
Financial
Net worth: disclosed $6,977,300–$20,966,997 (2023) · estimate
| Apple Inc. | stock · $1,000,001–$5,000,000 · 2023 |
| Amazon.com Inc. | stock · $500,001–$1,000,000 · 2023 |
| Microsoft Corporation | stock · $500,001–$1,000,000 · 2023 |
| NVIDIA Corporation | stock · $500,001–$1,000,000 · 2023 |
| Real estate, Newport, RI | real_estate · 2023 |
Top donors: Lawyers/Law Firms ($927,627) · American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) ($147,208)
Top industries: Lawyers/Law Firms · Securities & Investment · Real Estate · Environment
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.