Roy Blunt

Roy Dean Blunt (born January 10, 1950) is an American politician who served as a United States senator from Missouri from 2011 to 2023.

Blunt was born on January 10, 1950, in Niangua, Missouri, the son of Neva Dora (née Letterman) and Leroy Blunt, a politician.

He earned a B.A. degree in history in 1970 from Southwest Baptist University.

Two years later, he earned a master's degree in history from Southwest Missouri State University.

During his time in college, he received three draft deferments from the Vietnam War.

Blunt was a high school history teacher at Marshfield High School from 1970 to 1972; he later taught at Southwest Baptist University and as a member of the adjunct faculty at Drury University.

Blunt entered politics in 1973, when he was appointed county clerk and chief election official of Greene County, Missouri.

He was subsequently elected to the position three times and served a total of 12 years.

In 1980 incumbent Republican Lieutenant Governor Bill Phelps ran for governor.

Blunt, the Greene County Clerk, decided to run for the open seat and won the Republican primary, but lost the general election to State Representative Ken Rothman 56%–44%.

In 1984, after incumbent Democratic Missouri Secretary of State James Kirkpatrick decided to retire, Blunt ran for the position and won the Republican primary with 79% of the vote.

In the general election, he defeated Democratic State Representative Gary D.. Sharpe 54%–46%.

He became the first Republican to hold the post in 50 years.

A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as the 33rd Missouri Secretary of State (1985–1993) and U.S. Representative for Missouri's 7th congressional district (1997–2011).

Born in Niangua, Missouri, Blunt is a graduate of Southwest Baptist University and Southwest Missouri State University (now Missouri State University).

After serving as Missouri Secretary of State from 1985 to 1993, he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives for Missouri's 7th congressional district in 1996.

In 1988, he won reelection against Democrat James Askew 61%–38%.

Since incumbent Republican Governor John Ashcroft was term-limited, Blunt ran for the governorship in 1992.

Missouri Attorney General William Webster won the Republican primary, defeating Blunt and Missouri Treasurer Wendell Bailey 44%–40%–15%.

Webster lost the general election to Mel Carnahan.

He went on to serve as president of Southwest Baptist University, his alma mater, from 1993 to 1996.

In 1996 Blunt decided to run for the United States House of Representatives after incumbent U.S. Representative Mel Hancock honored his pledge to serve only four terms.

Blunt ran in Missouri's 7th congressional district, the state's most conservative district, in the Ozark Mountains in the southwest.

Blunt's political action committee is the Rely on Your Beliefs Fund.

On August 6, 1996, he won the Republican primary, defeating Gary Nodler 56%–44%.

In the general election, he defeated Democrat Ruth Bamberger 65%–32%.

Blunt voted in favor of school prayer and supported the No Child Left Behind Act.

He voted in favor of school vouchers within the District of Columbia but against broader legislation allowing states to use federal money to issue vouchers for private or religious schools.

There, he served as Republican Whip from 2003 to 2009.

He received a 17% rating from the National Education Association in 2003.

Blunt received a 97% rating from the United States Chamber of Commerce.

He supported efforts to overhaul U.S. bankruptcy laws, requiring consumers who seek bankruptcy protection to repay more of their debts.

Blunt opposes federal cap and trade legislation and supports drilling for oil on the U.S. coastline.

He does not believe in man-made global warming, stating: "There isn't any real science to say we are altering the climate or path of the Earth."

Blunt successfully ran for the U.S. Senate in 2010.

The next year, he was elected vice chairman of the Senate Republican Conference.

Blunt, who was the dean of Missouri's congressional delegation, was elected to serve as Policy Committee chairman in November 2018.

On March 8, 2021, he announced that he would not seek reelection in 2022.

He was succeeded in the U.S. Senate by Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt.

On July 17, 2023, it was announced that Blunt was appointed as a member of Southwest Airlines's board of directors.