Darin LaHood | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2017 | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromIllinois | |
| Assumed office September 17, 2015 | |
| Preceded by | Aaron Schock |
| Constituency | 18th district (2015–2023) 16th district (2023–present) |
| Member of theIllinois Senate from the 37th district | |
| In office March 1, 2011 – September 10, 2015 | |
| Preceded by | Dale Risinger |
| Succeeded by | Chuck Weaver |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Darin McKay LaHood (1968-07-05)July 5, 1968 (age 57) |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 3 |
| Parent |
|
| Education | Loras College (BA) John Marshall Law School, Chicago (JD) |
| Signature |  |
| Website | House website Campaign website |
LaHood on the death of Chase White, a deputyUnited States Marshal. Recorded January 11, 2019 | |
Darin McKay LaHood (/ləˈhʊd/lə-HOOD; born July 5, 1968)[1] is an American attorney and politician who has served as aU.S. representative fromIllinois since 2015. A member of theRepublican Party, LaHood has represented the16th district since 2023, and previously represented the18th district from 2015 to 2023, a district which was once represented byHouse Minority LeaderRobert H. Michel. The son of RepublicanRay LaHood, who represented this district from 1995 until 2009, previously served in theIllinois Senate from the 37th legislative district from 2011 to 2015, before being elected to Congress in aspecial election following the resignation ofAaron Schock.[2]
During the 2022 redistricting process, the 18th congressional district was eliminated as Illinois lost a seat in the apportionment process. After new district boundaries were adopted, LaHood opted to run in the 16th congressional district.[3]
A native ofPeoria, Illinois, LaHood is the son of Kathy (Dunk) andRay LaHood,[4][5] the 16thUnited States secretary of transportation and before that a seven-term U.S. representative for the district his son now represents.[6] His father is of Lebanese and German descent.[citation needed]
The younger LaHood is the eldest of four siblings, and went to theAcademy of Our Lady/Spalding Institute.[7] He graduated fromLoras College in Iowa and received hisJuris Doctor fromJohn Marshall Law School.[7]
LaHood was aprosecutor in theTazewell Countystate's attorney's office and theUnited States Attorney's Office for theDistrict of Nevada inLas Vegas.[8] Upon returning to Peoria in 2005, he took up private law practice; as of 2011[update] he was in the Peoria law firm of Miller, Hall & Triggs.[9]
LaHood ran forPeoria Countystate's attorney in 2008, losing to incumbent Kevin Lyons, 43,208 votes to 36,449. He was also involved[clarification needed] in several other Republican campaigns, includingBill Brady's2010 campaign for governor andDan Rutherford's campaign forIllinois Treasurer.[9]
LaHood was appointed to the Illinois Senate on February 27, 2011, at age 42.[9] He took office on March 1, the day afterDale Risinger retired.[10] When appointed, LaHood announced he would run for election to a full term in 2012, which he won, running unopposed.[9][11]
On July 7, 2015, LaHood defeatedMike Flynn 69%–28%, in the Republican primary forIllinois's 18th congressional district, replacing Aaron Schock. He defeated Democratic nominee Rob Mellon in the September 10 special general election[12] by a large margin.[13] He was sworn in by House SpeakerJohn Boehner on September 17, 2015.[14]
In the November 8, 2016, general election, LaHood defeated Democratic nomineeJunius Rodriguez, 250,506 votes (72.1%) to 96,770 (27.9%).[15]
In the November 6, 2018, general election, LaHood defeated Rodriguez again, 195,927 votes (67.2%) to 95,486 (32.8%).
In the November 3, 2020, general election, LaHood defeated Democratic nominee George Petrilli, 261,840 votes (70.41%) to 110,039 (29.59%).
LaHood has called himself afiscal conservative focused on budget issues.[9]
LaHood serves on the House Ways and Means Committee and theCommittee on the Chinese Communist Party.[16]
On May 25, 2016, LaHood introduced legislation through the Science, Space, and Technology Committee that approved the Networking and Information Technology Research and Development (NITRD) Modernization Act of 2016. The NITRD Program was originally authorized by the High Performance Computing Act of 1991. NITRD is the federal government's primary research portfolio on transformative high-end computing, high-speed networking, high capacity systems software, cybersecurity, and related advanced information technologies.[17]
LaHood drew criticism from constituents for declining to hold an opentown hall during the February 2017 recess.[18] Constituents from across the 18th congressional district gathered in Bloomington Normal and Jacksonville to request a town hall to discuss a variety of issues, including access to health care, immigration laws, and freedom of the press.[19][20][21] LaHood spoke to the demonstrators outside the Farm Bureau building in Peoria who had come to push for a town hall, saying: "We live in a democracy. People may not always agree with me and that's why I have to go before voters like I did in November. I was fortunate to receive 72 percent of the vote in that election. But this is part of the process."[22]In 2025, with increasing pressure to host a town hall, Lahood insisted that he was accessible to constituents.[23] Despite the reassurance, Lahood failed to attend a town hall hosted in his honor on March 26, 2025, in Peoria, IL.[24]
LaHood is a member of theRepublican Main Street Partnership[25] and theRepublican Study Committee.[26]
LaHood voted for theTax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017.[27] In a letter to the editor in theState Journal Register, he stated that the bill would help his constituents save money and make businesses more competitive globally, includingState Farm Insurance,John Deere, and other local businesses.[28]
During the 116th Congress (2019-2020), LaHood cosponsored the Great American Outdoors Act H.R.1957,[29] establishing the National Parks and Public Land Legacy Restoration Fund for priority deferred maintenance projects on federal lands managed by the National Park Service, the Forest Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Land Management, and the Bureau of Indian Education. In FY2021-FY2025, the fund will accrue up to $1.9 billion per year from revenues on federal lands and waters received from oil, gas, coal, or alternative or renewable energy development.
For the119th Congress:[30]
LaHood believes that humans "play a role" regardingclimate change and that there is "no doubt about that." Despite this, he has a 0% lifetime rating from theLeague of Conservation Voters, indicating consistent votes against environmental causes.
LaHood opposes "able-bodied working men" from accessingMedicaid. He supports full repeal of theAffordable Care Act. Ofsingle-payer healthcare, LaHood has said he would consider a bill if it was "fiscally sound" and benefited his constituents.[33]
LaHood opposesnet neutrality and believes that revoking it has "zero effect" on privacy or data collection.[33]
LaHood supportstax reform, specifically of corporate loopholes. In April 2017, he said he would not vote for a tax cut bill unless it was "revenue neutral" so it would not add to the deficit.[33] However, in December, LaHood voted for theTax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, which, according to theCongressional Budget Office, will add $1.414 trillion to the national debt.[27][34] In 2025, LaHood supported theOne Big Beautiful Bill Act, legislation that would add $3.4 trillion to the national deficit.[35][36]
LaHood was among the 71 Republicans who voted against final passage of theFiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 in the House.[37]
LaHood supportsimmigration reform, including shortening the time that it takes for people to legally enter the United States. He is "100 percent supportive" of increasing the number of people allowed to immigrate to the U.S.[33]
In 2017, LaHood said that PresidentDonald Trump should release histax returns and would vote in favor of requiring such disclosure if a bill mandating it was presented to the House. Of Trump's visits toMar-a-Lago, LaHood said that "more business should be conducted in the White House than in Florida."[33] He supported theSpecial Counsel investigation intoRussian interference in the 2016 presidential election.[33]
In December 2020, LaHood was one of 126 Republican members of theHouse of Representatives to sign anamicus brief in support ofTexas v. Pennsylvania, a lawsuit filed at theUnited States Supreme Court contesting the results of the2020 presidential election, in whichJoe Biden defeated Trump.[38] The Supreme Court declined to hear the case on the basis that Texas lackedstanding underArticle III of the Constitution to challenge the results of an election held by another state.[39][40][41]
On January 6, 2021, a mob of Trump supportersentered the U.S. Capitol Building while Congress was debating theElectoral College certification. LaHood and his staff were among those kept under police lockdown for over four hours. That evening, LaHood voted to certify Biden as the 46th President-elect.[42]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Kevin W. Lyons (incumbent) | 25,548 | 55.57 | |
| Republican | Darin LaHood | 20,429 | 44.43 | |
| Total votes | 45,977 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Darin LaHood (incumbent) | 87,838 | 100.0 | |
| Total votes | 87,838 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Darin LaHood | 45,490 | 69.54 | |
| Republican | Michael J. Flynn | 12,593 | 27.68 | |
| Republican | Donald Ray Rients | 1,246 | 2.74 | |
| Republican | Robin Miller | 16 | 0.03 | |
| Total votes | 45,490 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Darin LaHood | 35,329 | 68.84 | |
| Democratic | Robert Mellon | 15,979 | 31.14 | |
| Write-in votes | Constant "Conner" Vlakancic | 7 | 0.01 | |
| Write-in votes | Roger K. Davis | 4 | 0.01 | |
| Total votes | 51,319 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Darin LaHood (incumbent) | 250,506 | 72.13 | |
| Democratic | Junius Rodriguez | 96,770 | 27.86 | |
| Write-in votes | Don Vance | 7 | 0.00 | |
| Total votes | 347,283 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Darin LaHood (incumbent) | 61,722 | 78.87 | |
| Republican | Donald Ray Rients | 16,535 | 21.13 | |
| Total votes | 78,257 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Darin LaHood (incumbent) | 195,927 | 67.23 | |
| Democratic | Junius Rodriguez | 95,486 | 32.77 | |
| Total votes | 291,413 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Darin LaHood (incumbent) | 261,840 | 70.41 | |
| Democratic | George Petrilli | 110,039 | 29.59 | |
| Total votes | 371,879 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Darin LaHood (incumbent) | 197,621 | 66.3 | |
| Democratic | Elizabeth Haderlein | 100,325 | 33.7 | |
| Total votes | 297,946 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Darin LaHood (incumbent) | 310,925 | 99.9 | |
| Green | Scott Summers (write-in) | 183 | 0.1 | |
| Total votes | 311,108 | 100.0 | ||
| Republicanhold | ||||
LaHood lives inDunlap, a suburb of Peoria, with his wife Kristen; they married in 2000. They have three children.[54][55]
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromIllinois's 18th congressional district 2015–2023 | Constituency abolished |
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromIllinois's 16th congressional district 2023–present | Incumbent |
| U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial) | ||
| Preceded by | United States representatives by seniority 152nd | Succeeded by |
| People | |
|---|---|
| Other | |
