Adam Kinzinger

Early life, education, and early political career

Kinzinger was born on February 27, 1978, in Kankakee, Illinois, the son of Betty Jo, an elementary school teacher, and Rus Kinzinger, a CEO of religious faith–based organizations. After spending part of his youth in Jacksonville, Florida, he was primarily raised in Bloomington, Illinois. He graduated from Normal Community West High School in 1996 and earned a bachelor's degree in political science from Illinois State University in 2000.

In 1998, while a student at Illinois State, Kinzinger ran for election as a county board member in McLean County. He won, defeating an incumbent, and at age 20 was one of the youngest county board members in McLean County history. Kinzinger remained on the board until resigning in 2003.

Kinzinger worked as an intern for then–U.S. Senator Peter Fitzgerald shortly after his graduation from Illinois State, as part of a program offered there.

Military service

Kinzinger resigned from the McLean County Board in 2003 to join the United States Air Force. He was commissioned a second lieutenant in November 2003 and later awarded his pilot wings. Kinzinger was initially a KC-135 Stratotanker pilot and flew missions in South America, Guam, Iraq and Afghanistan. He later switched to flying the RC-26 surveillance aircraft and was stationed in Iraq twice. During his service in the Afghanistan and Iraq wars, Kinzinger earned the Air Medal six times.

Kinzinger has served in the Air Force Special Operations Command, Air Combat Command, Air Mobility Command, and Wisconsin Air National Guard and was progressively promoted to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. As part of his continued service with the Air National Guard, Kinzinger was deployed to the Mexico–United States border in February 2019 as part of efforts to maintain border security. Kinzinger retired from the Air National Guard after 20 years of service.

U.S. House of Representatives

Elections

Kinzinger met Republican U.S. Representatives Mike Pence, Mark Kirk, and Peter Roskam in January 2009 to discuss a possible run for Congress. He decided to run in Illinois's 11th congressional district, held by Democrat Debbie Halvorson. He started campaigning full-time in May 2009, when he returned home from his 3rd tour in Iraq. He was endorsed by former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin. Kinzinger won the five-candidate Republican primary on February 2, 2010, with 64% of the vote.

He was endorsed by the Chicago Tribune and the Chicago Sun-Times in the general election. Kinzinger defeated Halvorson 57–43% on November 2, 2010.

During his first term, Kinzinger represented a district that stretched from the outer southern suburbs of Chicago to Bloomington/Normal.

After redistricting, Kinzinger's district was eliminated. Much of its eastern portion, including Kinzinger's home in Channahon, near Joliet, was merged with the Rockford-based 16th District, represented by fellow Republican Don Manzullo, a 67-year-old politician first elected in 1992. Before redistricting, Kinzinger had represented 31% of the newly apportioned district, while Manzullo had represented at least 44% of it. In the March Republican primary, Kinzinger defeated Manzullo, 56–44%. In the general election, Kinzinger defeated Democrat Wanda Rohl, 62–38%.

Then-House Majority Leader Eric Cantor helped Kinzinger, who was a rising Republican star, topple Manzullo in the Illinois primary.

Kinzinger was targeted by the Club for Growth in 2014. In the Republican primary, he faced David Hale, a nurse and founder of the Rockford Tea Party. Kinzinger won with 78% of the vote.

In the general election, Kinzinger defeated Democratic nominee Randall Olsen with 71% of the vote.

Kinzinger won the March 2016 Republican primary with 100% of the vote. No candidates filed for the Democratic primary for his seat and no Democrat ran in the election; Kinzinger won the election with 99.9% of the vote.

Tenure

In 2010, Kinzinger signed a pledge sponsored by Americans for Prosperity promising to vote against any global warming legislation that would raise taxes.

Kinzinger sponsored the Veteran Emergency Medical Technician Support Act of 2013. The legislation, which would make it easier for veterans with emergency medical technician training in the military to get civilian licenses to perform the same job outside of the military, passed the House of Representatives by a voice vote but was not voted upon by the Senate.

On June 5, 2014, Kinzinger introduced a bill (H.R. 4801; 113th Congress) which would require the United States Secretary of Energy to prepare a report on the effects that thermal insulation has on both energy consumption and systems for providing potable water in federal buildings. Kinzinger argued that "with the federal government being the single largest consumer of energy in the country, doing our best to maximize the potential savings from improved insulation systems is a commonsense step I think everybody can agree on."

Kinzinger was a member of both the Republican Study Committee and the Republican Main Street Partnership.

Kinzinger was ranked as the 40th most bipartisan member of the House during the 114th United States Congress (and the third most bipartisan member of the House from Illinois) in the Bipartisan Index created by The Lugar Center and the McCourt School of Public Policy, which ranks members of Congress by their degree of bipartisanship (by measuring how often each member's bills attract co-sponsors from the opposite party and each member co-sponsors bills by members of the opposite party).

Kinzinger voted for the 2017 Republican healthcare legislation, which would have repealed major parts of the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare).

Kinzinger voted for the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Kinzinger was accused of stoking racial hatred by an Asian American op-ed writer for blaming China for the pandemic at a time that anti-Asian hate crimes and coronavirus-related discrimination were rising. Kinzinger authored and retweeted many tweets singling out China for blame. One such tweet was "Daily reminder: You are in your homes because #Chinahidthevirus."

Committee assignments

Committee on Energy and Commerce

Subcommittee on Communications and Technology

Subcommittee on Energy

Committee on Foreign Affairs

Subcommittee on the Middle East, North Africa, and International Terrorism

Subcommittee on Europe, Eurasia, Energy, and the Environment (Ranking Member)

United States House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack

Caucus memberships

Congressional Cement Caucus

Friends of a Free Syria Caucus

House Baltic Caucus

Congressional NextGen 9-1-1 Caucus

United States Congressional International Conservation Caucus

Climate Solutions Caucus

Congressional Taiwan Caucus

Republican Governance Group

Republican Main Street Partnership

Political positions

Domestic issues

As a lawmaker, Kinzinger was in favor of allowing concealed carry of firearms across state lines where concealed carry is legal.

On March 11, 2021, Kinzinger was one of eight Republican representatives who voted to pass the Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2021.

On May 29, 2022, Kinzinger announced that he was "open to" an assault weapons ban following the 2022 Robb Elementary School shooting that killed 22 people.

In 2017, Kinzinger voted to repeal the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare).

Economic issues

Kinzinger opposed the Dodd–Frank Act.

Kinzinger gained a 94% lifetime rating from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, a business-oriented group, and a 49% lifetime rating from the Club for Growth, a conservative group, which advocates for tax cuts, lower spending, deregulation, and free trade.

Although many House Republicans previously supported elements of the America COMPETES Act of 2022, Kinzinger was the only minority member to vote for the bill, after their House leadership urged a "No" vote, holding that the bill was too weak on China.

International issues

Kinzinger supported penalizing sanctuary cities.

Kinzinger supported Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA).

Kinzinger voted for the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020 which authorizes DHS to nearly double the available H-2B visas for the remainder of FY 2020.

Kinzinger voted for the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020 (H.R. 1158), which effectively prohibits ICE from cooperating with Health and Human Services to detain or remove illegal alien sponsors of unaccompanied alien children (UACs).

On Twitter, Kinzinger praised Donald Trump's decision to have Iranian Major General Qasem Soleimani, Commander of the Quds Force and the third most powerful person in Iran, killed. Reacting to news of the assassination, Kinzinger tweeted, "Mess with the bull, get the horns. If true, nice call, @realdonaldtrump." He continued tweeting, writing, "killed a man responsible for thousands of deaths in #Syria and elsewhere, including Americans. Let's see how long the #blameAmerica left takes to make him a poor victim."

Kinzinger also supported Trump's attacks on Iran's nuclear facilities in June 2025.

After the Russian invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022, Kinzinger supported providing aid to Ukraine. Until the end of his tenure, he was among the most vocal members of Congress on the topic on social media. He is a member of NAFO, an online pro-Ukrainian movement dedicated to countering propaganda and disinformation. His support stood in contrast to some Republicans who opposed the aid; when House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy declared the party would not "write a blank check" to Ukraine should they retake the House, Kinzinger accused him of "giving aid and comfort to the enemy, intentionally or unintentionally."

As the Russian invasion proved less successful than had generally been expected, Kinzinger argued additional U.S. support had become a more practical investment. He also rebutted claims that supplying aid would escalate the conflict, comparing that argument to "a husband saying, 'If you leave me, I'll hit you harder and so you can't go.' We should stop self-deterring like this because all the evidence points to the Russians not being able to do much about anything."

Social issues

Kinzinger opposed late-term abortion and the use of federal funds for abortion or health coverage that funds abortion.

Kinzinger was one of three Republicans to vote for H.R. 8297: Ensuring Access to Abortion Act of 2022.

Kinzinger voted for H.R. 8373: The Right to Contraception Act. This bill was designed to protect access to contraceptives and healthcare providers' ability to provide contraceptives and information related to contraception. The bill would also fund Planned Parenthood.

As of 2022, Kinzinger gained a 59% rating from the Human Rights Campaign, the nation's largest LGBTQ rights advocacy group.

In 2015, Kinzinger was one of 60 Republicans voting to uphold President Barack Obama's 2014 executive order banning federal contractors from making hiring decisions that discriminate based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

In 2016, Kinzinger was one of 43 Republicans to vote for the Maloney Amendment to H.R. 5055, intended to prohibit the use of funds for government contractors who discriminate against LGBT employees.

In 2019 and 2021, Kinzinger voted against the Equality Act. Nonetheless, he affirmed his support for the LGBT community and commitment to finding a suitable compromise that also protects religious liberty after his 2021 "no" vote.

On February 24, 2021, Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene hung a sign outside of her office reading "There are TWO genders: MALE & FEMALE 'Trust The Science!'" in response to Representative Marie Newman, whose office was directly across from hers and who put a transgender flag outside her office in support of the Equality Act. Kinzinger quote-tweeted Greene and said, "This is sad and I'm sorry this happened. Rep. Newmans [sic] daughter is transgender, and this video and tweet represents the hate and fame driven politics of self-promotion at all evil costs. This garbage must end, in order to #RestoreOurGOP". In an interview with Rolling Stone later that year, Kinzinger lambasted Tucker Carlson for mocking Pete Buttigieg's homosexuality after he took paternity leave, affirming that Buttigieg remained more competent than necessary as the Secretary of Transportation and calling Carlson's remark a "cheap shot" designed to keep his audience interested.

Criticism of Donald Trump

Kinzinger voted in line with President Donald Trump about 90% of the time and voted against Trump's first impeachment (though he later admitted to regretting this vote), but he subsequently became one of Trump's biggest critics and made headlines as a rare Republican officeholder willing to criticize him. In summer 2020, Kinzinger denounced QAnon and other baseless conspiracy theories that gained currency among Republican voters. After the 2020 presidential election, which Trump lost to Joe Biden, Kinzinger denounced Trump's claims that the election was stolen and criticized Trump's attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. In December 2020, after Trump repeated his claims of fraud on Twitter, Kinzinger tweeted that it was time for Trump to delete his Twitter account. He also criticized the Texas Republican Party and called for the firing of its chairman, Allen West, when the party floated the idea of secession, after the Supreme Court rejected Texas v. Pennsylvania, a bid by the state of Texas to overturn the presidential election outcome.

On January 7, 2021, the day after the storming of the U.S. Capitol by a violent pro-Trump mob, Kinzinger became the first Republican member of the House to call for Trump's removal from office via the 25th Amendment. In a video message, he said that Trump had "abdicated his duty to protect the American people and the people's house" and that Trump's behavior made clear that he had become "unmoored" from both his duties as president and "reality itself". Kinzinger urged Vice President Mike Pence and the Cabinet to invoke the 25th Amendment, saying that Trump was "unfit" and "unwell". Five days later, he announced that he would vote in favor of Trump's second impeachment, saying there was "no doubt" that Trump "broke his oath of office and incited this insurrection." Kinzinger also accused Trump of using the power of his office to launch a direct attack on Congress. He asked, "If these actions – the Article II branch inciting a deadly insurrection against the Article I branch – are not worthy of impeachment, then what is an impeachable offense?" On January 13, he joined nine other Republicans in voting for impeachment. In response, some Republicans vowed to support a primary challenge to Kinzinger. Kinzinger received a letter from 11 members of his family asserting he had joined "the devil's army" for publicly turning against Trump. Kinzinger said the family members suffer from "brainwashing" from conservative churches that led them astray.

On May 19, 2021, Kinzinger was one of 35 Republicans to join all Democrats in voting to approve legislation to establish the formation of a January 6 commission to investigate the storming of the U.S. Capitol. He was also one of two Republicans to join all Democrats in voting for a January 6 House select committee, along with Liz Cheney. Kinzinger's involvement with the January 6 proceedings resulted in his staff receiving threats against his family and colleagues. On October 21, 2021, Kinzinger was one of nine House Republicans to vote to hold Trump ally Steve Bannon in contempt of Congress for defying a subpoena from the January 6 Committee.

Country First movement

In early 2021, a few weeks after the January 6 Capitol attack, Kinzinger launched the Country First PAC, as a means to reform the Republican Party and distance itself from far-right conspiracies, including QAnon. In the first quarter of 2021, the PAC raised over $1.1 million to fight Donald Trump's growing influence over the Republican Party.

In the 2022 midterm elections, Country First supported candidates running against 2020 election deniers that were endorsed by Trump. The PAC put a special focus on pro-democracy candidates running in secretary of state races, as who ever won these elections would have oversight of 2024 presidential election administration. Through Country First, Kinzinger endorsed Democrats, Republicans, and independents. The endorsements included Evan McMullin, Brad Raffensperger, Katie Hobbs, Josh Shapiro, and Lisa Murkowski.

In the 2023 special election to fill a vacancy in the Wisconsin Senate, Country First ran negative advertisements to prevent the victory of Trumpist Janel Brandtjen in the Republican primary, which she ultimately did not win.

In March 2023, individuals wearing straitjackets were seen walking through the United States Capitol building. They were part of Country First's campaign against political extremism, entitled "Break Free".

Prior to the 2024 Republican Party presidential primaries, Country First sent out an email asking donors to give to Chris Christie's presidential campaign to ensure the candidate's appearance on the primary debate stage. Country First itself also donated to Christie's campaign. Kinzinger endorsed President Joe Biden for re-election before shifting his support to Biden's running mate and Vice President Kamala Harris following Biden's withdrawal from the election.

In the 2026 election cycle, Kinzinger and Country First endorsed James Talarico for U.S. Senator in Texas.

January 6th Committee

Kinzinger was one of the 10 Republicans who voted to impeach Trump for incitement of insurrection in his second impeachment. He also voted to create, and was subsequently appointed to serve on, the select committee to investigate the 2021 United States Capitol attack.

On 2022, during the January 6th panel, Kinzinger criticized 5 Republican lawmakers including Matt Gaetz and Scott Perry, saying: "The only reason I know to ask for a pardon is because you think you've committed a crime."

On January 20, 2025, President Joe Biden announced a preemptive pardon for the January 6th Committee members including Kinzinger from potential future prosecution by the incoming Trump administration.

Electoral history

Personal life

The Wisconsin Red Cross named Kinzinger its 2006 "Hero of the Year" for wrestling a knife-wielding man to the ground and disarming him. The man had cut the throat of a woman on a street in downtown Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Recalling the event in an interview, Kinzinger said, "The whole time it was, to me, kind of a done deal that I was going to get stabbed in the process, but I knew that this wasn't something I could wake up to ... every day with that memory that I watched her die." The woman survived. For this act Kinzinger also received the United States Air Force Airman's Medal and the National Guard's Valley Forge Cross for Heroism.

Kinzinger was ranked 5th on The Hill's 2011 annual "50 Most Beautiful People" list, which ranks anyone who regularly works on Capitol Hill.

Kinzinger was engaged to Air Force Captain Riki Meyers, a fellow pilot, in 2011; they broke their engagement in 2012. Kinzinger became engaged to Sofia Boza-Holman, a former aide to John Boehner and aide to Vice President Mike Pence, in June 2019. They married on February 16, 2020. Their son, Christian Adam Kinzinger, was born in January 2022. According to his book, they have relocated from Illinois to Houston, Texas.

Shooting incident

In October 2024, Kinzinger was involved in an incident at a shooting range in Missouri during an event with then US Senate Candidate Lucas Kunce. Kinzinger and Kunce both shot AR-15s at steel targets from a very close distance. While Kunce was shooting, a bullet fragment accidentally hit a TV reporter. Kinzinger and Kunce performed first aid on the reporter, who was then sent to the hospital with a minor wound to his arm. The local sheriff's office determined the incident was an accident and no charges were filed.

Kinzinger was criticized by gun safety experts including Steve Hendrick, who operates Shield Firearms Training in Kansas City. Hendrick was not present at the event, but after reviewing photos he said that a range of 10 yards would have been too close to shoot steel with an AR-15.

Books

Kinzinger, Adam; D'Antonio, Michael (2023). Renegade: Defending Democracy and Liberty in Our Divided Country. New York City: The Open Field/Penguin Life. ISBN 9780593654163. OCLC 1388322897.