John Moolenaar

John Robert Moolenaar (/ˈmoʊlənɑːr/ MOLE-ən-arr; born May 8, 1961) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for Michigan's 2nd congressional district since 2015 (known as the 4th congressional district until 2023). A member of the Republican Party, he served in the Michigan House of Representatives from 2003 to 2008 and the Michigan Senate from 2011 to 2014.[1]

John Moolenaar
Member of the
U.S. House of Representatives
from Michigan
Assumed office
January 3, 2015
Preceded byDave Camp
Constituency4th district (2015–2023)
2nd district (2023–present)
Member of the Michigan Senate
from the 36th district
In office
January 1, 2011 – December 31, 2014
Preceded byTony Stamas
Succeeded byJim Stamas
Member of the Michigan House of Representatives
from the 98th district
In office
January 1, 2003 – December 31, 2008
Preceded byTony Stamas
Succeeded byJim Stamas
Personal details
Born
John Robert Moolenaar

(1961-05-08) May 8, 1961
Midland, Michigan, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
SpouseAmy Moolenaar
Children6
EducationHope College (BS)
Harvard University (MPA)
WebsiteHouse website

Early life and education

Moolenaar was born in a family of Dutch Americans on May 8, 1961, in Midland, Michigan. In 1983, he earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Hope College. He earned a Master of Public Administration from Harvard University in 1989.

Career

Moolenaar is a chemist, and worked at Dow Chemical Company for eight months before entering politics.[2] He was elected to the Michigan House of Representatives in 2002, where he served three terms. In 2010, he was elected to the Michigan Senate, where he served one term.[3] Before his election to the legislature, Moolenaar served on the Midland City Council.[4]

In 2014, Moolenaar ran for the United States House of Representatives seat representing Michigan's 4th congressional district. He won the Republican primary election in August, defeating Paul Mitchell,[5] and the general election in November.

Moolenaar and fellow Michigan representative Andy Levin have introduced legislation to delay any deportations of Iraqis to Iraq for two years.[6]

In December 2020, Moolenaar signed an amicus brief before the United States Supreme Court in Texas v. Pennsylvania, et al., which sought to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election results.[7]

Elections

Moolenaar was elected to represent the 36th district in the Michigan State Senate in 2010. He defeated Democrat Andy Neumann in the November 2 general election, 56,634 votes to 32,154.

Moolenaar ran in the 2014 election for the U.S. House to represent Michigan's 4th District. He won the Republican nomination in the August 5 primary against Paul Mitchell and Peter Konetchy. He defeated Jeff Holmes (D), Will Tyler White (Libertarian) and George Zimmer (U.S. Taxpayers) in the November 4 general election.

U.S. House of Representatives

Committee assignments

Caucus memberships

Political positions

Marriage

Moolenaar voted against the Respect for Marriage Act codifying Loving v. Virginia and Obergefell v. Hodges, recognizing marriages across state lines regardless of "sex, race, ethnicity, or national origin of those individuals."[11]

2020 presidential election

In December 2020, Moolenaar was one of 126 Republican members of the House of Representatives to sign an amicus brief in support of Texas v. Pennsylvania, a lawsuit filed at the United States Supreme Court contesting the results of the 2020 presidential election, in which Joe Biden defeated[12] incumbent Donald Trump. The Supreme Court declined to hear the case on the basis that Texas lacked standing under Article III of the Constitution to challenge the results of an election held by another state.[13][14][15]

References
  1. 2011-2012 Michigan Manual: State Senator John Moolenaar
  2. "Biography". house.gov. December 11, 2012. Retrieved May 29, 2015.
  3. Gonzales, Nathan L. (November 21, 2014). "Freshman Class Filled With Losers". Roll Call. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
  4. "Meet Senator Moolenaar - Senator John Moolenaar". Senator John Moolenaar. Archived from the original on October 29, 2014. Retrieved October 29, 2014.
  5. "Sen. John Moolenaar defeats Paul Mitchell in 4th District congressional Republican primary race". MLive.com. August 6, 2014. Retrieved October 29, 2014.
  6. article on death of Aldaoud and related issues
  7. "Motion of U.S. Representative Mike Johnson and 105 Other Members for leave to file amicus brief" (PDF). Supreme Court of the United States. Retrieved December 11, 2020.
  8. "Member List". Republican Study Committee. Archived from the original on January 1, 2019. Retrieved January 2, 2018.
  9. "Members". Republican Main Street Partnership. Archived from the original on August 26, 2018. Retrieved January 25, 2018.
  10. "Members". U.S. - Japan Caucus. Retrieved December 14, 2018.
  11. Bobic, Igor (July 19, 2022). "These 157 House Republicans Voted Against Protections For Same-Sex Marriage". Huffington Post. Retrieved July 20, 2022.
  12. Blood, Michael R.; Riccardi, Nicholas (December 5, 2020). "Biden officially secures enough electors to become president". AP News. Archived from the original on December 8, 2020. Retrieved December 12, 2020.
  13. Liptak, Adam (December 11, 2020). "Supreme Court Rejects Texas Suit Seeking to Subvert Election". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on December 11, 2020. Retrieved December 12, 2020.
  14. "Order in Pending Case" (PDF). Supreme Court of the United States. December 11, 2020. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 11, 2020. Retrieved December 11, 2020.
  15. Diaz, Daniella. "Brief from 126 Republicans supporting Texas lawsuit in Supreme Court". CNN. Archived from the original on December 12, 2020. Retrieved December 11, 2020.
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