Ted Budd
RepublicanU.S. Senator, NC| Age | 54 (b. 1971-10-21) |
| Gender | Male |
| In office since | 2017-01-03 (~9 yrs) |
| Race / ethnicity | White |
| Religion | Evangelical Christian |
| Education | B.S. in Business Administration, Appalachian State University (1994); Master of Theology, Dallas Theological Seminary (1998); MBA, Wake Forest University (2007) |
| Prior occupation | Gun store and indoor shooting range owner (ProShots, Rural Hall, NC, founded 2010); Executive VP and co-owner of the Budd Group janitorial and facilities services company (divested 2003) |
| Military service | No |
| Birthplace | Winston-Salem, North Carolina |
| Marital status | married — Amy Kate Adams |
| Children | 3 |
| Residence | Davie County, North Carolina (300-acre farm on Yadkin River) |
| Notable relatives | Father Richard Budd, former CEO of AgriBioTech and founder of the Budd Group janitorial company |
Pending research: languages · openly lgbtq.
Career & politics
| First elected | 2016 |
| Previous offices | U.S. Representative, North Carolina 13th Congressional District (2017-2023) |
| Committees | Senate Armed Services Committee (Subcommittees: Emerging Threats and Capabilities; Personnel; Cybersecurity; Airland) · Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation (Chairman, Subcommittee on Science, Manufacturing, and Competitiveness) · Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship · Joint Economic Committee · Senate Select Committee on Intelligence (added January 2025) |
| Caucuses | Senate Republican Conference · Freedom Caucus (House, during House tenure) · Republican Study Committee (House, during House tenure) · Senate Taiwan Caucus · Career and Technical Education Caucus (Co-Chair) |
| Leadership | Chairman, Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Science, Manufacturing, and Competitiveness (119th Congress) |
| Ideology | Staunch conservative; strong Trump ally; Freedom Caucus member during House tenure; career top industries include anti-abortion, defense, and firearms sectors |
| Signature legislation | SOAR Act (Seeing Objects at Altitude Regularly Act) — mandating high-altitude balloon tracking, introduced March 2023 · Kids Off Social Media Act — co-sponsored January 2025 · Incentivizing REPI Sales Act of 2025 — bipartisan bill promoting military readiness · No Budget, No Pay Act — co-sponsored February 2023 · Gold Star Wives Day resolution — passed Senate by unanimous consent April 2025 |
Financial
Net worth: disclosed $2,820,000–$10,830,000 (2023) · estimate
| PS1 Rural Hall LLC (ProShots gun store and indoor range) | business_owned · $1,000,001–$5,000,000 · 2022 |
| Commercial warehouse on Hope Church Road | real_estate · $500,001–$1,000,000 · 2022 |
| Budd Farm, Advance, NC (two parcels, in children's names) | real_estate · $500,002–$1,000,000 · 2022 |
| Beach property, Wilmington, NC (two parcels, in children's names) | real_estate · $500,002–$1,000,000 · 2022 |
| Truist Financial bank deposit | other · $250,001–$500,000 · 2022 |
Top donors: Club for Growth ($353,635 (direct contributions); ~$7M in outside spending (2022 Senate race)) · Senate Leadership Fund (Super PAC) (significant outside spending in 2022) · Americans for Prosperity (significant outside spending in 2022) · National Republican Senatorial Committee (significant outside spending in 2022)
Top industries: Anti-Abortion organizations · Textiles · Defense/Military · Firearms/Gun manufacturers · Savings & Loans/Finance
Scandals & crimes ledger
resolved — AgriBioTech Bankruptcy Civil Case — Named Defendant in Fraudulent Transfer Lawsuit business
Ted Budd was named as a defendant in a civil lawsuit filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Las Vegas arising from the AgriBioTech Inc. bankruptcy. AgriBioTech, a seed company whose CEO was Ted Budd's father Richard Budd, declared bankruptcy on January 25, 2000, leaving approximately $50–62 million in unpaid debts to about 1,200 farmers across 39 states. The bankruptcy trustee alleged that Richard Budd improperly transferred millions in assets to family members, including Ted, and that the company improperly repaid a $10 million family loan before bankruptcy rather than paying farmers. Ted Budd was one of 11 'co-makers' of the $10 million loan and co-signed using stock as collateral. A U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge issued a $14.87 million judgment against the Budd family in January 2005. The case settled in May 2005 for $7.1 million ($6M from Budd entities, $1.1M from their law firm Womble Carlyle), with no admission of wrongdoing. Ted Budd's spokesperson stated the family lost their AgriBioTech stock investment in the bankruptcy.