Congressman Patrick McHenry became only the third person in 40 years to represent the people of North Carolina’s 10th Congressional District when he was elected in 2004.

Upon entering Congress, Mr. McHenry won membership on the House Financial Services Committee, which drafts and reviews all federal legislation involving the banking and financial services industry. He also serves on two additional committees: the House Budget Committee, which drafts the federal budget each year, and the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, which has jurisdiction to investigate any matter with federal policy implications. Congressman McHenry serves as Deputy Republican Whip and Vice Chairman of Finance for the National Republican Congressional Committee’s Executive Committee.   

Congressman McHenry is the recipient of several awards including: the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Council's (SBE) "Small Business Champion"; the Americans for Tax Reform's (ATR) "Hero of the Taxpayer"; the Property Rights Alliance's (PRA) "Protector of Property Rights"; and, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's "Spirit of Enterprise" Award.

Congressman McHenry previously represented North Carolina House District 109 in the North Carolina House of Representatives. He is a graduate of Ashbrook High School in Gastonia, North Carolina and Belmont Abbey College, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in History. Congressman McHenry worked on the 1996 campaign staff of Robin Hayes for Governor, has been involved in two technology companies, and served as Coalition Director in the Bush for President Campaign in 2000. He also served as Special Assistant to the Secretary of the United States Department of Labor, a post he was appointed to by President Bush.

Congressman McHenry is a member of the Chambers of Commerce in all 10 counties of the Tenth District, the Gastonia Rotary Club, the National Rifle Association and Saint Michael's Church. He also sits on the Board of Directors of the United Way’s Success by Six Youth Program.

Congressman McHenry maintains his residence in the Tenth District and commutes to Washington each week from his home in Cherryville, North Carolina.

Legislative priorities:

• Second Amendment:  Congressman McHenry is a strong proponent of the right to keep and bear firearms. He supports efforts to allow active and retired law enforcement officers to carry concealed weapons in any part of America. He also sponsored “reciprocity” legislation, which allows people with concealed carry permits issued in one state to carry their weapons in other states.

• Pro-Life:  Congressman McHenry strongly believes in protecting the rights of the unborn. He supports legislation that would put an end to abortion and assisted suicide, prohibit euthanasia, and opposes legislation that generally disregards the sanctity of human life.

• Traditional Marriage:  Congressman McHenry believes that marriage is between one man and one woman, and is the principal institution that holds society together. He opposes efforts to allow same-sex marriage, and opposes the appointment of activist judges who legislate from the bench.

• Jobs:  Congressman McHenry supports four principles to help bring good jobs to North Carolina. As small businesses are responsible for two-thirds of all new job creation, the congressman supports cutting regulations on small business that strangle job growth. He supports tort reform, which will lower the cost of heath care by limiting useless lawsuits. Furthermore, Mr. McHenry supports the continued education and training of workers through institutions like community colleges. He also supports tax relief, which will spur economic growth and job creation, as taxpayers will spend more of their hard-earned dollars in the private sector.

• Social Security:  Congressman McHenry believes in reforming the Social Security system by allowing younger workers to voluntarily invest a portion of their Social Security taxes into a “nest-egg” that they can pass on to their children. Social Security is facing a crisis: In 10 years, the program will start paying out more money than it will receive from tax revenues. When the program was created, there were 40 workers for every retiree. Now there are only three workers per retiree.