John Robert Moolenaar ( ; born May 8, 1961) is an American politician serving as the

U.S. representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

for Michigan's 4th congressional district since 2015. 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.

Early life and education

Moolenaar was born in a family of

Dutch Americans Dutch Americans ( nl, Nederlandse Amerikanen) are Americans of Dutch descent whose ancestors came from the Netherlands in the recent or distant past. Dutch settlement in the Americas started in 1613 with New Amsterdam, which was exchanged with ...

on May 8, 1961, in

Midland, Michigan Midland is a city in and the county seat of Midland County, Michigan. The city's population was 42,547 as of the 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Midland Micropolitan Statistical Area, part of the larger Saginaw-Midland-Bay City Com ...

. In 1983, he earned a Bachelor of Science degree from

Hope College Hope College is a private Christian liberal arts college in Holland, Michigan. It was originally opened in 1851 as the Pioneer School by Dutch immigrants four years after the community was first settled. The first freshman college class matricu ...

. He earned a Master of Public Administration from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...

in 1989.

Career

Moolenaar is a chemist, and worked at Dow Chemical Company for eight months before entering politics. 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. Before his election to the legislature, Moolenaar served on the Midland City Council. In 2014, Moolenaar ran for the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

seat representing . He won the Republican primary election in August, defeating Paul Mitchell, 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. 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.

Elections

Moolenaar was elected to represent the Michigan's 36th Senate district, 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

*United States House Committee on Appropriations, Committee on Appropriations]

**United States House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies, Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies ** United States House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies, Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies

Caucus memberships

* Republican Study Committee * Republican Main Street Partnership * U.S.-Japan Caucus

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."

2020 presidential election

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

References

External links

Congressman John Moolenaar
official U.S. House website
Campaign website
* * * , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Moolenaar, John 1961 births 21st-century American chemists 21st-century American politicians American people of Dutch descent Dow Chemical Company employees Harvard Kennedy School alumni Hope College alumni Living people Republican Party members of the Michigan House of Representatives Michigan city council members Republican Party Michigan state senators People from Midland, Michigan Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Michigan