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House History

Republican Conference Chairmen

(1863-present)

The House Republican Conference Chairman presides over conference meetings, which are composed of all members of the Republican party. The chair is elected by the conference, and is limited to two consecutive full terms. A list of House Republican Conference Chairmen from 1863 to present is presented below.

The House Republican Conference serves as the organizational forum to elect party leaders at the outset of each new Congress. The conference meets on a weekly basis to discuss party policy, pending legislative issues, and other matters of mutual concern. Further information on the Conference's current activity is available on the House Republican Conference Web site.

Congress Name State Years of Service
38th-39th Justin S. Morrill Vermont 1863-18671
40th n/a2 ......... 1867-1869
41st Robert C. Schenck Ohio 1869-18713
41st Nathaniel P. Banks Massachusetts 1869-18713
42nd Austin Blair Michigan 1871-1873
43rd Horace Maynard Tennessee 1873-1875
44th George W. McCrary Iowa 1875-1877
45th Eugene Hale Maine 1877-1879
46th William P. Frye Maine 1879-1881
47th George M. Robeson New Jersey 1881-1883
48th-50th Joseph G. Cannon Illinois 1883-1889
51st-53rd Thomas J. Henderson Illinois 1889-1895
54th-55th Charles H. Grosvenor Ohio 1895-1899
56th-57th Joseph G. Cannon Illinois 1899-1903
58th-60th William P. Hepburn Iowa 1903-1909
61st-62nd Frank D. Currier New Hampshire 1909-1913
63rd-65th William S. Greene Massachusetts 1913-1919
66th-67th Horace M. Towner Iowa 1919-1923
68th Sydney Anderson Minnesota 1923-1925
69th-72nd Willis C. Hawley Oregon 1925-1933
73rd Robert Luce Massachusetts 1933-1935
74th Frederick R. Lehlbach New Jersey 1935-1937
75th-81st Roy O. Woodruff Michigan 1937-1951
82nd-84th Clifford R. Hope Kansas 1951-1957
85th-87th Charles Hoeven Iowa 1957-1963
88th Gerald R. Ford Michigan 1963-1965
89th-90th Melvin Laird Wisconsin 1965-1969
91st-95th John B. Anderson Illinois 1969-1979
96th Samuel L. Devine Ohio 1979-1981
97th-99th Jack Kemp New York 1981-19874
100th Dick Cheney Wyoming 1987-19894
101st-102nd Jerry Lewis California 1989-1993
103rd Richard K. Armey Texas 1993-1995
104th-105th John A. Boehner Ohio 1995-1999
106th-107th J. C. Watts Jr. Oklahoma 1999-2003
108th-109th Deborah Pryce Ohio 2003-2007
110th Adam Putnam Florida 2007-2009
111th Mike Pence Indiana 2009-2011
112th Jeb Hensarling Texas 2011-present

1 Representative Morrill is the first officially designated Republican Conference chairman. There exists no clear evidence of formal chairmanships of Republican organizations in earlier Congresses.

2 Conference minutes show three Members (Representative Nathaniel Banks of Massachusetts, Luck Poland of Vermont, and Samuel Hooper of Massachusetts) chairing three separate meetings.

3 Conference minutes show Representative Schenck elected; chairman, but Representative Banks chairing two early meetings, possibly in Schenck's absence.

4 On June 4, 1987, Representative Cheney was elected Conference Chair to succeed Representative Kemp who resigned from the post.


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