List of foreign-born United States politicians
This is a list of United States politicians who were born outside the present-day United States, its territories (the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and American Samoa), and its outlying possessions. This list does not include politicians from the Philippines (such as Resident Commissioners of the Philippines), which (from 1898–1946) was held under various forms of government as an American territory before becoming a sovereign country.
These politicians have gained United States citizenship by means of: Birth (born outside the United States to a U.S. citizen parent [or parents] who met the requirements to transmit citizenship at birth), Derivation (acquired or derived citizenship after birth [and before age 18], either through a parent [or parents] who naturalized, or via birth to [or adoption by] a U.S. citizen parent [or parents] who did not meet the requirements to transmit citizenship at birth), or Naturalization (acquired citizenship by fulfilling the requirements of the naturalization process as established by Congress in the Immigration and Nationality Act). A person who acquired U.S. citizenship at birth is a natural-born citizen, and thus eligible to serve as President or Vice President.
Incumbents
Members of Congress
Representatives
Senators
Senator | Country/Place of Birth | Citizenship by | Party | Serving Since | Position(s) Held |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Michael Bennet | Birth | Democratic | 2009 | Superintendent of Denver Public Schools, and U.S. Senator from Colorado | |
Ted Cruz | Birth | Republican | 2013 | U.S. Senator from Texas, and 2016 Republican candidate for president | |
Tammy Duckworth | Birth | Democratic | 2017 | U.S. Representative and U.S. Senator from Illinois | |
Mazie Hirono | Naturalization | Democratic | 2013 | Lieutenant Governor of Hawaii, U.S. Representative and U.S. Senator from Hawaii | |
Chris Van Hollen | Birth | Democratic | 2017 | U.S. Representative and U.S. Senator from Maryland |
Members of the President's Cabinet
Cabinet Member | Place of Birth | Citizenship by | Party | Positions Held |
---|---|---|---|---|
Elaine Chao | Naturalization | Republican | Secretary of Transportation and former Secretary of Labor | |
Robert Wilkie | Birth | Republican | Secretary of Veterans Affairs |
Governors
Governor | Place of Birth | Citizenship by | Party | Serving Since | Position(s) Held |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Kate Brown | Birth | Democratic | 2015 | Oregon Secretary of State, and Governor of Oregon |
Others
Name | Place of Birth | Citizenship by | Party | Positions Held |
---|---|---|---|---|
Jorge Labarga | Naturalization | N/A | Supreme Court of Florida Chief Justice | |
Melania Trump | Naturalization | Republican | First Lady of the United States |
Former
Members of Congress
Representatives
Representative | Country/Place of Birth | Citizenship by | Party | Position(s) Held |
---|---|---|---|---|
Henry M. Arens | Derivation | Farmer-Labor | U.S. Representative from Minnesota | |
Edward Dickinson Baker | Derivation | Whig, later Republican | U.S. Representative from Illinois and Senator from Oregon | |
Ron Barber | Birth | Democratic | U.S. Representative from Arizona | |
William B. Barry | Unknown | Democratic | U.S. Representative from New York | |
Carlos Bee | Birth | Democratic | U.S. Representative from Texas | |
Victor L. Berger | Naturalization | Socialist | U.S. Representative from Wisconsin | |
John Bernard | Derivation | Farmer-Labor | U.S. Representative from Minnesota | |
Charles Gustav Binderup | Unknown | Democratic | U.S. Representative from Nebraska | |
Haldor Boen | Derivation | Populist | U.S. Representative from Minnesota | |
John W. Brown | Derivation | Jacksonian | U.S. Representative from New York | |
Aedanus Burke | Derivation | Anti-Administration | U.S. Representative from South Carolina | |
Thomas Burnside | Derivation | Democratic-Republican | U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania | |
Joseph Henry Burrows | Derivation | Greenback | U.S. Representative from Missouri | |
Joseph Cao | Naturalization | Republican | U.S. Representative from Louisiana | |
John Michael Clancy | Unknown | Democratic | U.S. Representative from New York | |
W. Bourke Cockran | Naturalization | Democratic | U.S. Representative from New York | |
James Cooney | Naturalization | Democratic | U.S. Representative from Missouri | |
William Crawford | Naturalization | Democratic-Republican | U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania | |
Thomas Cusack | Unknown | Democratic | U.S. Representative from Illinois | |
Geoff Davis | Birth | Republican | U.S. Representative from Kentucky | |
Steven Derounian | Unknown | Republican | U.S. Representative from New York | |
Lincoln Díaz-Balart | Naturalization | Republican | U.S. Representative from Florida | |
Samuel Dickstein | Unknown | Democratic | U.S. Representative from New York, Justice on the New York State Supreme Court | |
Michael Donohoe | Derivation | Democratic | U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania | |
Mervyn M. Dymally | Derivation | Democratic | Lieutenant Governor and U.S. Representative from California | |
John Ewing | Derivation | National Republican, then Whig | U.S. Representative from Indiana | |
Jacob Falconer | Derivation | Progressive | U.S. Representative from Washington | |
Michael F. Farley | Derivation | Democratic | U.S. Representative from New York | |
John Frederick Finerty | Derivation | Democratic | U.S. Representative from Illinois | |
Gustavus A. Finkelnburg | Derivation | Republican, then Liberal Republican | U.S. Representative from Missouri | |
Nicholas Ford | Derivation | Greenback | U.S. Representative from Missouri | |
Elizabeth Furse | Derivation | Democratic | U.S. Representative from Oregon | |
Bernard J. Gehrmann | Derivation | Progressive | U.S. Representative from Wisconsin | |
James McMahon Graham | Derivation | Democratic | U.S. Representative from Illinois | |
John Greig | Naturalization | Whig | U.S. Representative from New York | |
James Gunn | Derivation | Populist | U.S. Representative from Idaho | |
Michael Hahn | Derivation | Republican, then Unionist | U.S. Representative and Governor of Louisiana | |
Kittel Halvorson | Derivation | Populist | U.S. Representative from Minnesota | |
John Hardy | Unknown | Democratic | U.S. Representative from New York | |
Alexander Harper | Naturalization | Whig | U.S. Representative from Ohio | |
Richard A. Harrison | Derivation | Unionist | U.S. Representative from Ohio | |
Nils P. Haugen | Unknown | Republican | U.S. Representative from Wisconsin | |
Samuel Henderson | Naturalization | Federalist | U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania | |
Pete Hoekstra | Derivation | Republican | U.S. Representative from Michigan | |
William Hogan | Derivation | Jacksonian | U.S. Representative from New York | |
Einar Hoidale | Naturalization | Democratic | U.S. Representative from Minnesota and 1930 candidate for the Minnesota Senate | |
Pehr G. Holmes | Unknown | Republican | U.S. Representative from Massachusetts | |
Denis M. Hurley | Derivation | Republican | U.S. Representative from New York | |
Jacob Johnson | Unknown | Republican | U.S. Representative from Utah | |
John Johnson | Derivation | Independent Democratic | U.S. Representative from Ohio | |
Magnus Johnson | Naturalization | Farmer-Labor | U.S. Representative from Minnesota | |
Niels Juul | Derivation | Republican | U.S. Representative from Illinois | |
Ruben Kihuen | Naturalization | Democratic | U.S. Representative from Nevada | |
Jay Kim | Naturalization | Republican | U.S. Representative from California | |
Harold Knutson | Naturalization | Republican | U.S. Representative from Minnesota | |
Ernie Konnyu | Derivation | Republican | U.S. Representative from California | |
John Hans Krebs | Derivation | Democratic | U.S. Representative from California | |
Tom Lantos | Birth | Democratic | U.S. Representative from California | |
Charles August Lindbergh | Naturalization | Republican | U.S. Representative from Minnesota | |
Meyer London | Naturalization | Socialist | U.S. Representative from New York | |
John Baptiste Charles Lucas | Naturalization | Democratic-Republican | U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania | |
Blair McClenachan | Derivation | Democratic-Republican | U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania | |
William McCreery | Naturalization | Democratic-Republican | U.S. Representative from Maryland | |
Lawrence E. McGann | Unknown | Democratic | U.S. Representative from Illinois | |
John J. McGrath | Naturalization | Democratic | U.S. Representative from California | |
Joseph McLaughlin | Derivation | Republican | U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania | |
Frank J. McNulty | Unknown | Democratic | U.S. Representative from New Jersey | |
Mark Meadows | Birth | Republican | U.S. Representative from North Carolina | |
M. Alfred Michaelson | Unknown | Republican | U.S. Representative from Illinois | |
William Milnes Jr. | Derivation | Conservative | U.S. Representative from Virginia | |
William Moxley | Unknown | Republican | U.S. Representative from Illinois | |
James O'Brien | Unknown | Independent | U.S. Representative from New York | |
Daniel O'Reilly | Naturalization | Independent | U.S. Representative from New York | |
George F. O'Shaunessy | Unknown | Democratic | U.S. Representative from Rhode Island | |
Joseph Pulitzer | Unknown | Democratic | U.S. Representative from New York | |
John Quinn | Naturalization | Democratic | U.S. Representative from New York | |
John Richards | Naturalization | Democratic-Republican | U.S. Representative from New York | |
Ciro Rodriguez | Unknown | Democratic | U.S. Representative from Texas | |
Ileana Ros-Lehtinen | Derivation | Republican | U.S. Representative from Florida | |
William Russell | Naturalization | Jacksonian, then Whig | U.S. Representative from Ohio | |
Robert Rutherford | Derivation | Anti-Administration, then Democratic-Republican | U.S. Representative from Virginia | |
Peter Sailly | Naturalization | Democratic-Republican | U.S. Representative from New York | |
Dalip Singh Saund | Naturalization | Democratic | U.S. Representative from California | |
James Shields | Naturalization | Jacksonian | U.S. Representative from Ohio | |
Jerry Simpson | Derivation | Populist | U.S. Representative from Kansas | |
Charles Slade | Derivation | Jacksonian | U.S. Representative from Illinois | |
Alexander Smyth | Derivation | Democratic-Republican | U.S. Representative from Virginia | |
Karl Stefan | Derivation | Republican | U.S Representative from Nebraska | |
John Thomson | Derivation | Jacksonian | U.S. Representative from Ohio | |
Benjamin Walker | N/A | Federalist | U.S. Representative from New York | |
Michael Walsh | Derivation | Democratic | U.S. Representative from New York | |
Knud Wefald | Naturalization | Farmer-Labor | U.S. Representative from Minnesota | |
Theodore S. Weiss | Derivation | Democratic | U.S. Representative from New York | |
Campbell P. White | Naturalization | Jacksonian | U.S. Representative from New York | |
Charles W. Woodman | Derivation | Republican | U.S. Representative from Illinois | |
David Wu | Unknown | Democratic | U.S. Representative from Oregon |
Senators
Senator | Country/Place of Birth | Citizenship by | Party | Position(s) Held |
---|---|---|---|---|
David H. Armstrong | Derivation | Democratic | U.S. Senator from Missouri | |
Rudy Boschwitz | Naturalization | Republican | U.S. Senator from Minnesota | |
S. I. Hayakawa | Derivation | Republican | U.S. Senator from California | |
Magnus Johnson | Naturalization | Farmer-Labor | U.S. Senator from Minnesota | |
Samuel Johnston | Unknown | Federalist | Governor and U.S. Senator from North Carolina | |
John P. Jones | Derivation | Republican; Silver | U.S. Senator from Nevada | |
Octaviano Larrazolo | Derivation | Republican | Governor and U.S. Senator from New Mexico | |
Stephen Mallory | Birth | Democratic | U.S. Senator from Florida | |
Lee Mantle | Derivation | Republican, then Silver Republican | U.S. Senator from Montana | |
Mel Martinez | Naturalization | Republican | U.S. Senator from Florida | |
Thomas MacDonald Patterson | Derivation | Democratic | U.S. Senator from Colorado | |
John McCain | Birth | Republican | U.S. Senator from Arizona, 2000 Republican presidential candidate and 2008 Republican nominee for President of the United States | |
William Paterson | Derivation | Federalist | U.S. Senator from New Jersey, Governor of New Jersey and Associate Justice of the Supreme Court | |
Alexander Porter | Derivation | National Republican, later Whig | U.S. Senator from Louisiana | |
Carl Schurz | Derivation | Republican | U.S. Senator from Missouri | |
James Shields | Derivation | Democratic | U.S. Senator from Illinois, Minnesota and Missouri | |
George Sutherland | Unknown | Liberal, later Republican | U.S. Senator from Utah and Associate Justice of the Supreme Court | |
Robert F. Wagner | Unknown | Democratic | U.S. Senator from New York | |
Patrick Walsh | Unknown | Democratic | U.S. Senator from Georgia |
Delegates
Delegate | Country/Place of Birth | Citizenship by | Party | Position(s) Held |
---|---|---|---|---|
John Thomas Caine | Naturalization | Democratic | Delegate from Utah Territory. | |
John G. Campbell | Derivation | Democratic | Delegate from Arizona Territory. | |
George Q. Cannon | Naturalization | Republican | Delegate from Utah Territory, barred from being seated. | |
Daniel Clark | Naturalized | N/A | Delegate from Orleans Territory. | |
Charles P. Clever | Naturalized | N/A | Delegate from New Mexico Territory. | |
Mary Farrington | Birth | Republican | Delegate from Hawaii Territory. | |
David Archibald Harvey | Derivation | Republican | Delegate from Oklahoma Territory. | |
Santiago Iglesias | Naturalization | Socialist (PR) | Delegate (Resident Commissioner) from Puerto Rico | |
Julien de Lallande Poydras | Naturalization | N/A | Delegate from Orleans Territory. | |
Bernard Shandon Rodey | Naturalization | Republican | Delegate from New Mexico Territory. | |
Fr. Gabriel Richard | Naturalization | N/A | Delegate from Michigan Territory. | |
Daniel Sutherland | Derivation | Republican | Delegate from Alaska Territory. | |
Governors
Governor | Country/Place of Birth | Citizenship by | Party | Position(s) Held |
---|---|---|---|---|
Moses Alexander | Naturalization | Democratic | Governor of Idaho | |
Roger Allin | Naturalization | Republican | Governor of North Dakota | |
John Peter Altgeld | Derivation | Democratic | Governor of Illinois | |
Sigurd Anderson | Derivation | Republican | Governor of South Dakota | |
John Hugo Aronson | Derivation | Republican | Governor of Montana | |
Simon Bamberger | Naturalization | Democratic | Governor of Utah | |
Frank Bell | Naturalization | Republican | Governor of Nevada | |
James E. Boyd | Unknown | Democratic | Governor of Nebraska | |
Thomas Burke | Derivation | N/A | Governor of North Carolina | |
Raúl Héctor Castro | Derivation | Democratic | Governor of Arizona and Ambassador to Argentina, Bolivia, and El Salvador | |
Frank Henry Cooney | Derivation | Democratic | Governor of Montana | |
John Christopher Cutler | Unknown | Republican | Governor of Utah | |
James O. Davidson | Derivation | Republican | Lieutenant Governor and Governor of Wisconsin | |
William Richardson Davie | Unknown | Federalist | Governor of North Carolina | |
David William Davis | Unknown | Republican | Governor of Idaho | |
John N. Dempsey | Unknown | Democratic | Governor of Connecticut | |
Pierre Derbigny | Unknown | National Republican | Governor of Louisiana | |
John G. Downey | Naturalization | Democratic | Lieutenant Governor and Governor of California | |
Adolph Olson Eberhart | Derivation | Republican | Governor of Minnesota | |
Jennifer Granholm | Naturalization | Democratic | Attorney General of Michigan, and Governor of Michigan | |
Julius P. Heil | Unknown | Republican | Governor of Wisconsin | |
Joseph Blaine Johnson | Naturalization | Republican | Lieutenant Governor and Governor of Vermont | |
John Lind | Birth | Democratic | Governor of Minnesota | |
Madeleine M. Kunin | Unknown | Democratic | Governor of Vermont | |
Leo McCarthy | Unknown | Democratic | Lieutenant Governor of California | |
Knute Nelson | Naturalization | Republican | U.S. Representative, U.S. Senator and Governor of Minnesota | |
Ragnvald Anderson Nestos | Derivation | Republican | Governor of North Dakota | |
Albin Walter Norblad, Sr. | Unknown | Republican | Governor of Oregon | |
Hjalmar Petersen | Naturalization | Farmer-Labor | Lieutenant Governor and Governor of Minnesota | |
Aram J. Pothier | Derivation | Republican | Governor of Rhode Island | |
George Romney | Birth | Republican | Governor of Michigan, and 1968 Republican candidate for president | |
Edward Salomon | Derivation | Republican | Governor of Wisconsin | |
Edward S. Salomon | Unknown | N/A | Governor of Washington Territory | |
Arnold Schwarzenegger | Naturalization | Republican | Governor of California | |
Samuel H. Shapiro | Unknown | Democratic | Lieutenant Governor and Governor of Illinois | |
William E. Smith | Unknown | Republican | Governor of Wisconsin | |
Stan Stephens | Naturalization | Republican | Governor of Montana | |
John Swainson | Unknown | Democratic | Lieutenant Governor and Governor of Michigan | |
John K. Tener | Unknown | Republican | U.S. Representative and Governor of Pennsylvania | |
Lowell P. Weicker Jr. | Birth | Republican | U.S. Senator and Governor of Connecticut, and 1980 Republican candidate for president |
Mayors
Cabinet members
Others
Name | Country/Place of Birth | Citizenship by | Party | Position(s) Held |
---|---|---|---|---|
Louisa Adams | Unknown | Democratic-Republican | First Lady of the United States | |
David Brewer | Birth | Republican | Associate Justice of the Supreme Court | |
Columba Bush | Naturalization | Republican | First Lady of Florida | |
William Q. Dallmeyer | Unknown | Republican | State Treasurer of Missouri and Missouri State Representative | |
Felix Frankfurter | Unknown | Independent | Associate Justice of the Supreme Court | |
James Iredell | Unknown | Federalist | Attorney General of North Carolina and Associate Justice of the Supreme Court | |
Zalmay Khalilzad | Naturalization | Republican | United States Ambassador to the United Nations | |
James Wilson | Unknown | Federalist | Associate Justice of the Supreme Court | |
Juan C. Zapata | Unknown | Republican | Florida State Representative |
See also
- List of foreign-born French politicians