Claire McCaskill

Claire McCaskill

Claire Conner McCaskill (/məˈkæskəl/; born July 24, 1953) is the senior United States Senator from Missouri and a member of the Democratic Party. She defeated Republican incumbent Jim Talent in the 2006 United States Senate election, by a margin of 49.6% to 47.3%. She is the first woman elected to the U.S. Senate from Missouri in her own right. She became the state's senior U.S. Senator upon the retirement of Kit Bond in 2011 and won a bid for re-election in 2012, where she defeated Republican Todd Akin by a margin of 54.7% to 39.2%.

Before her election to the U.S. Senate, McCaskill was State Auditor of Missouri from 1999 to 2007. She previously served as Jackson County Prosecutor (1993–1998) and a member of the Missouri House of Representatives (1983–1989). She was an unsuccessful candidate for Governor of Missouri in the 2004 gubernatorial election. She is a native of Rolla and graduate of the University of Missouri.

In the U.S. Senate, McCaskill serves as a member of the Committee on Armed Services, Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, and Special Committee on Aging. She is chairperson of the Subcommittee on Contracting Oversight.