Chairman Tom Cole
Identified by Time Magazine as "one of the sharpest minds in the House," Tom Cole is currently serving his eleventh term representing the 4th Congressional District of Oklahoma in the U.S. House of Representatives. At the outset of his service in Congress, Cole was named one of the "Five Freshmen to Watch" by Roll Call. In 2016, he was recognized by Newsmax as the "hardest working member in Congress."
Cole is recognized as a tireless advocate for taxpayers and small businesses, a supporter of a strong national defense, and a leader in promoting biomedical research. As a member of Chickasaw Nation of Oklahoma and the longest-serving Native American in the history of the U.S. House of Representatives, Cole is considered the foremost expert in the House on Native American issues.
Cole now serves as the 43rd Chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, marking the first Native American and first Oklahoman to hold the gavel.
Personal
Cole's late mother Helen served as a state representative, state senator, and the mayor of Moore in her native state of Oklahoma. Cole's late father John served for 20 years in the United States Air Force and worked an additional two decades as a civilian federal employee at Tinker Air Force Base.
A former professor of history and politics at the University of Oklahoma and Oklahoma Baptist University, Cole holds a B.A. from Grinnell College, an M.A. from Yale University, and a Ph.D. from the University of Oklahoma. Cole was a Thomas Watson Fellow and a Fulbright Fellow at the University of London. In addition, he is also a recipient of honorary degrees from Randall University (formerly Hillsdale Bible College), Oklahoma City University, and Gallaudet University.
Tom, his wife Ellen, and his son Mason, a teacher himself, reside in Moore, Oklahoma.
Before Congress
Cole, a fifth-generation Oklahoman, is widely regarded as one of the GOP's top political strategists and has a robust background of service to his home state of Oklahoma.
He served as a field representative and District Director for former Congressman Mickey Edwards in the early 1980’s and as Oklahoma State Director for Ronald Reagan in 1984. He served as State Chairman of the Oklahoma Republican Party from 1985 to 1989 and as a Member of the Oklahoma State Senate from 1988 to 1991.
He then became the Executive Director of the National Republican Congressional Committee during the 1992 election cycle.
From 1995 to 1999, Cole served as Oklahoma's Secretary of State. In this capacity, he served as former Governor Frank Keating's chief legislative strategist and liaison to the state's federal delegation. Keating tapped Cole to lead the successful effort in securing federal funds to assist the rebuilding of Oklahoma City in the wake of the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building on April 19,1995.
In 1999, Cole was asked to become chief of staff to the Republican National Committee, where he served during the historic 2000 cycle in which Republicans won the White House, the House, and the Senate for the first time in 48 years.
In Congress
Tom Cole first won election for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives in 2002, receiving the endorsement from the outgoing Congressman, the Honorable J.C. Watts.
Throughout his time in Congress, Cole has served on seven committees, including Appropriations, Armed Services, Budget, Education and Workforce, Ethics, Natural Resources, and Rules.
Cole has served on the Appropriations Committee, one of the most powerful committees in Congress, since 2009. Throughout his 15-year tenure on the Committee, he has been appointed to five of the 12 subcommittees, including the Defense Subcommittee which has judication of half of discretionary funding.
At the beginning of the 113th Congress, he was appointed Chairman of the Legislative Branch Subcommittee. Cole subsequently served as the top Republican on the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies panel (LHHS), which has discretion over the most non-defense spending of the federal government. There, he pushed for reforms to the appropriations process, including more input for authorizers and consensus on earmarks among the four appropriations subcommittee leaders. He most recently chaired the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies (THUD) Subcommittee, where he responsibly focused taxpayer dollars on highway, railway, and aviation safety programs and the housing needs of our nation’s most vulnerable citizens. It was under Cole’s leadership that, for the first time in 22 years, the President signed both the LHHS and Defense bills into law by the September 30th deadline.
In 2019, Cole was notably appointed the Vice Ranking Member in the Minority, then Vice Chair in the Majority under Chairwoman Emeritus Kay Granger. In April of 2024, Cole became the first Native American, and the first Oklahoman, to chair the full committee.
Cole has served in a handful of other leadership roles in Congress, particularly as Ranking Member and subsequently Chairman of the Rules Committee, Chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee, and a Deputy Whip for the Republican Conference. Since 2009, Cole has served as the Republican Co-Chair of the Congressional Native American Caucus. He also sits on the House Republican Steering Committee, which determines Member committee assignments.
Additional Accolades and Honors
Following in his mother’s footsteps, Cole was inducted into the Chickasaw Hall of Fame in 2004. He received the same honor in the Oklahoma Hall of Fame in 2017.
The National Congress of American Indians has recognized Cole's distinguished service with the Congressional Leadership Award on three separate occasions (2007, 2011, and 2017), which is more than any other Member of Congress in the history of the organization.
Cole is featured in the play Sliver of a Full Moon by Mary Kathryn Nagle for his role in the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act in 2013.
Known as an eternal learner and voracious reader, Cole shares his current and favorite books on social media and encourages others to read along with him.
