James A. Himes

Overview

James A. Himes represents Connecticut in the U.S. House of Representatives as a Democrat. With 593 recorded votes across a wide range of policy areas, his record reflects a legislator who generally supports his party's positions but does so from a moderate stance. His voting patterns show particular engagement in healthcare, defense, and environmental and energy policy. On defense and foreign policy, Himes has shown strong support, voting in favor of measures like the National Defense Authorization Act and veterans' care legislation. He voted yea on all 11 foreign policy measures in the dataset, and supported 74.2% of defense-related votes, suggesting a posture that favors maintaining U.S. military readiness and international engagement. He also supported the War Powers Resolution measure directing the President to remove forces from hostilities in Lebanon, reflecting an interest in congressional oversight of military action. On domestic policy, Himes has frequently supported healthcare and education measures, voting yea on roughly 62% and 73% of bills in those areas respectively. He backed labor-related legislation at a high rate (83.3%) and supported taxation measures at 61.5%. In contrast, he opposed the majority of budget resolutions in the dataset (voting yea only 21.9% of the time), including the fiscal year 2027 budget resolution and continuing appropriations, reflecting disagreement with the spending frameworks put forward during this period. His record on environmental and energy votes shows a mixed pattern, with a 31.4% yea rate. He voted against a measure disapproving EPA regulations on California harbor craft emissions while supporting the Water Resources Development Act and the Ratepayer Protection Act. On banking and finance, despite representing a state with significant financial sector presence, he voted nay on the majority of recorded banking measures (71.4%).

Key Positions

• •Voted in favor of all 11 foreign policy measures on record, showing consistent support for U.S. international engagement.
• •Supported the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2027 and veterans' care legislation, while also voting to direct the President to remove forces from hostilities in Lebanon under the War Powers Resolution.
• •Opposed the fiscal year 2027 budget resolution and the continuing appropriations measure, voting against the majority of budget bills in the dataset (yea on only 21.9%).
• •Supported healthcare-related motions including the Do No Harm in Medicaid Act recommit motion and a motion related to the Lower Health Care Premiums for All Americans Act.
• •Voted against an EPA regulatory disapproval resolution related to California harbor craft emissions standards, while supporting the Water Resources Development Act and the Ratepayer Protection Act.
• •Supported labor-related legislation at a high rate, voting yea on 5 of 6 labor measures.
• •Voted in favor of education-related bills at a 72.7% rate, backing 8 of 11 measures in the category.
• •Opposed the majority of banking and finance measures on record, voting nay on 5 of 7 bills in that category.