Shelley Moore Capito

Biography

Overview

Shelley Moore Capito is a Republican U.S. Senator from West Virginia, first elected to the Senate in 2014. She is the first woman elected to the U.S. Senate from West Virginia and the first West Virginia Republican to win a full term in the Senate since 1942. She previously served as the U.S. representative from West Virginia's 2nd congressional district from 2001 to 2015. Capito has served as chair of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee since 2025 and is the dean of West Virginia's congressional delegation.

Career

Capito has championed legislation on healthcare access, including telehealth expansion for seniors and rural areas, cardiac rehabilitation, and cognitive impairment screening for Medicare beneficiaries. She introduced the ADVANCE Act in 2023 to support nuclear energy development, which was incorporated into the Fire Grants and Safety Act and signed into law in July 2024. She partnered with Democrats on updating the Congressional Accountability Act and has sponsored approximately 40 bills on international trade—more than any other legislative topic during her career. On votes, she has broken with her party on healthcare matters, opposing the repeal of the Affordable Care Act without a replacement, and has supported bipartisan legislation on the opioid crisis and stem-cell research funding.

Prior political experience

Capito was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 2014, defeating Democratic Secretary of State Natalie Tennant with 62% to 34%. She was reelected in 2020 with over 70% of the vote, defeating progressive activist Paula Jean Swearengin. In her 2020 reelection campaign, she easily defeated Republican primary challengers. Prior to her Senate elections, she served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2001 to 2015. In her 2000 House election, she defeated Democratic lawyer Jim Humphreys by two percentage points in an upset, becoming the first Republican to represent West Virginia in Congress since 1983. She was subsequently reelected to the House seven times.

Biographical material adapted from the Wikipedia article (retrieved April 29, 2026), available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Ideology

Liberal–Conservative (DW-NOMINATE dim 1)

Liberal

Conservative

119th Congress+0.284

Secondary axis (DW-NOMINATE dim 2)(?)

−1

+1

+0.144

Source: Voteview DW-NOMINATE · 661 scored votes

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Officeholding history

Term	Seat	Term dates	Termination	Predecessor	Successor
2nd	U.S. Senate WV Class 2	2021–present	In progress	Shelley Moore Capito	—
1st	U.S. Senate WV Class 2	2015–2021	Term ended	—	Shelley Moore Capito
7th	U.S. House WV-2	2013–2015	Term ended	Shelley Moore Capito	Riley M. Moore
6th	U.S. House WV-2	2011–2013	Term ended	Shelley Moore Capito	Shelley Moore Capito
5th	U.S. House WV-2	2009–2011	Term ended	Shelley Moore Capito	Shelley Moore Capito
4th	U.S. House WV-2	2007–2009	Term ended	Shelley Moore Capito	Shelley Moore Capito
3rd	U.S. House WV-2	2005–2007	Term ended	Shelley Moore Capito	Shelley Moore Capito
2nd	U.S. House WV-2	2003–2005	Term ended	Shelley Moore Capito	Shelley Moore Capito
1st	U.S. House WV-2	2001–2003	Term ended	—	Shelley Moore Capito

Committee assignments

Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works
SenateChairman· 2021–present
Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies
SenateChairman· 2021–present
Department of Homeland Security
Senate· 2021–present
Senate Committee on Rules and Administration
Senate· 2021–present
Department of Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies
Senate· 2021–present
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies
Senate· 2021–present
Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies
Senate· 2021–present
Chemical Safety, Waste Management, Environmental Justice, and Regulatory Oversight
SenateEx Officio· 2021–present
Aviation, Space, and Innovation
Senate· 2021–present
Fisheries, Wildlife, and Water
SenateEx Officio· 2021–present
Consumer Protection, Technology, and Data Privacy
Senate· 2021–present
Senate Committee on Appropriations
Senate· 2021–present
Department of Defense
Senate· 2021–present
Surface Transportation, Freight, Pipelines, and Safety
Senate· 2021–present
Clean Air, Climate, and Nuclear Innovation and Safety
SenateEx Officio· 2021–present
Transportation and Infrastructure
SenateEx Officio· 2021–present
Telecommunications and Media
Senate· 2021–present
Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
Senate· 2021–present

Current term legislation

Bills sponsored this term10

Bills cosponsored this term10

Elections

Year	Seat	Result	Vote share	Field
2020	U.S. Senate WV Class 1	Won	70.28%	Shelley Moore Capito70.28% Paula Jean Swearengin27.00% David Moran2.72%