The following American politicians were affiliated with the Tea Party movement , which was generally considered to be conservative , libertarian-leaning ,[1] and populist .[2] [3] [4] The Tea Party movement advocated for reducing the U.S. national debt and federal budget deficit by reducing federal government spending and taxes .[5] [6] It was not a single, formal political party ,[7] but rather represented by activist groups such as the Tea Party Patriots and the Tea Party Express . The Tea Party Caucus was the primary grouping of Tea Party representatives and senators in Congress and was described as having a voting record similar to a third party.[8] [9] The Liberty Caucus and Freedom Caucus are closely associated with the Tea Party movement and many members of the Tea Party Caucus shifted to them following its dissolution around 2016.[10] [11] Tea Party members were almost entirely from the Republican party although attracted support from the Libertarian party as well; the following list of politicians were members of the Republican Party while in office unless otherwise noted.[1]
Sarah Palin at a rally sponsored by the Tea Party Express
Jeff Denham , representative for California's 19th and 10th congressional districts (2011–2015).[ citation needed ]
Steve Knight , member of the California State Assembly (2008–2012), member of the California State Senate (2012–2015),[26] representative from California's 25th congressional district (2015–2019), and a member of Tea Party Patriots.[ citation needed ]
Doug LaMalfa , representative from California's 1st congressional district (2013–present).[27]
Tom McClintock , representative from California's 4th and 5th congressional districts (2009–present) and a member of the Tea Party Caucus .[28]
Gary Miller , representative from California's 41st and 42nd congressional districts (1999–2015) and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.[29]
Ed Royce , representative from California's 39th and 40th congressional districts (1993–2019) and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.[30]
David Valadao , representative from California's 21st and 22nd congressional districts (2013–2019, 2021–present) and a member of Tea Party Patriots.[ citation needed ]
Sandy Adams , representative from Florida's 24th congressional district (2011–2013) and a member of the Tea Party Caucus , receiving the endorsement of the Central Florida Tea Party in 2012 .[34] [35]
Gus Bilirakis , representative from Florida's 9th and 12th congressional districts (2007–present) and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.[36]
Curt Clawson , Republican U.S. representative from Florida's 19th congressional district (2014–2017). Clawson delivered the Tea Party response to President Obama's State of the Union Address in 2015.[37]
Ander Crenshaw , representative from Florida's 4th congressional district (2001–2017) and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.[38]
Matt Gaetz , representative from Florida's 1st congressional district (2017–present) and a member of the Tea Party.[39]
Rich Nugent , representative from Florida's 5th and 11th congressional districts (2011–2017) and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.[40]
Dennis Ross , representative from Florida's 12th and 15th congressional districts (2011–2019) and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.[41]
Cliff Stearns , representative from Florida's 6th congressional district (1989–2013) and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.[42]
Allen West , representative from Florida's 22nd congressional district (2011–2013) and a member of the Tea Party Caucus, receiving the endorsement of FreedomWorks in 2012 .[43] [32]
Dan Webster , representative from Florida's 11th congressional district (2011–present).[44]
Ted Yoho , representative from Florida's 3rd congressional district (2013–2021).[45]
Rodney Alexander , representative from Louisiana's 5th congressional district (2003–2013) and a member of the Tea Party Caucus . Was a member of the Democratic Party until 2004.[56]
Bill Cassidy , Senator from Louisiana (2015–present), representative from Louisiana's 6th congressional district (2009–2015), and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.[65]
John Fleming , representative from Louisiana's 4th congressional district (2009–2017) and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.[66]
Jeff Landry , Governor of Louisiana (2024–present), Attorney Genral of Louisiana (2016–2024), representative from Louisiana's 3rd congressional district (2011–2013) and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.[67]
Steve Scalise , representative from Louisiana's 1st congressional district (2008–present) and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.[68]
David Vitter , Senator from Louisiana (2005–2017).[69]
Michele Bachmann at a Tea Party rally
Jim DeMint , Senator from South Carolina (2005–2013) and a founding member of the Tea Party Caucus .[86] In January 2012, Jim Davenport of The Huffington Post described DeMint as "a dean of the influential and well-funded tea party movement".[87]
Jeff Duncan , representative from South Carolina's 3rd congressional district (2011–present) and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.[50]
Mick Mulvaney , representative from South Carolina's 5th congressional district (2011–2017) and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.[28] In his 2010 election Mulvaney received the backing of the tea party.[88]
Mark Sanford , governor of South Carolina (2003–2011) and representative from South Carolina's 1st congressional district (2013–2019). Sanford has described himself as "Tea Party before the Tea Party was cool".[89]
Tim Scott , representative from South Carolina's 1st congressional district (2011–2012), Senator from South Carolina (2012–present), candidate for President in 2024 , and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.[28]
Joe Wilson , representative from South Carolina's 2nd congressional district (2001–present) and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.[90] In November 2009 Wilson spoke at tea party events at Ford Mansion in Morristown, New Jersey [91] and at Capitol Hill .[92]
Ron Paul addressing the Tea Party Patriots
Michael Burgess , representative from Texas's 26th congressional district (2003–present) and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.[99]
John Carter , representative from Texas's 31st congressional district (2003–present), secretary of the House Republican Conference , and a member of the Tea Party Caucus .[100]
John Culberson , representative from Texas's 7th congressional district (2001–2019) and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.[101]
Ted Cruz , senator from Texas (2013–present) and candidate for president in 2016 . Michelle Cottle of The Daily Beast called Cruz "the delight of the Tea Party anti-establishment conservatives"[102]
David Dewhurst , Lieutenant Governor of Texas (2003–2015). In April 2012 Gary Scharrer of the Houston Chronicle wrote that Dewhurst "emphasizes that he embraced the core principles of the Tea Party, before that movement gained momentum".[103]
Blake Farenthold , representative from Texas's 27th congressional district (2011–2018) and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.[104]
Louie Gohmert , representative from Texas's 1st congressional district (2005–present) and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.[105]
Ralph Hall , representative from Texas's 4th congressional district (1981–2015) and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.[106]
Jim Landtroop , member of the State House from District 85 in the early 2010s.[107]
Kenny Marchant , representative from Texas's 24th congressional district (2005–present) and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.[108]
Randy Neugebauer , representative from Texas's 19th congressional district (2003–2017) and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.[109]
Dan Patrick , member of the State Senate (2007–2015) and Lieutenant Governor of Texas (2015–present).[110] [111] As state senator, Patrick created a Tea Party Caucus in the Texas legislature in late 2010.[112]
Ron Paul , representative from Texas's 22nd and 14th congressional districts (1976–1977, 1979–1985, 1997–2013) and a presidential candidate in 1988 , 2008 , and 2012 . In November 2010, Joshua Green of The Atlantic described Paul as the tea party's "intellectual godfather".[113]
Ken Paxton , Texas Attorney General (2015–present), state senator (2013–2015), and state representative (2003–2013).[114] [115]
Ted Poe , representative from Texas's 2nd congressional district (2005–2019) and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.[116]
Pete Sessions , representative from Texas's 5th , 32nd , and 17th congressional districts (1997–2019, 2021–present), chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee (2010), and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.[117]
Lamar Smith , representative from Texas's 21st congressional district (1987–2019) and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.[118]
Ron Johnson , senator from Wisconsin (2011–present). Johnson has said he "did kind of spring out of the Tea Party" and is happy to be associated with the movement.[123]
Liptak, Mark (March 13, 2010). "Tea-ing Up the Constitution" . The New York Times . Archived from the original on April 15, 2010. Retrieved October 31, 2010 . It is, of course, hard to say anything definitive about the Tea Party movement, a loose confederation of groups with no central leadership.
Smith, Perry (November 10, 2014). "Speculation Begins For Steve Knight's State Senate Seat". KHTS. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
Ross, Dennis (August 31, 2011). "tweet" . Archived from the original on September 13, 2014. Retrieved March 15, 2013 .
Trinko, Katrina (July 29, 2013). "Kentucky's Ted Cruz?" . National Review . Archived from the original on December 17, 2015. Retrieved November 5, 2015 .