Sherrod Brown

Sherrod Brown
U.S. Senate, Ohio
Incumbent
Tenure
2007-Present
Term ends
January 3, 2019
Years in position 18
Party	Democratic
Predecessor	Mike DeWine (R)
Report an officeholder change
Compensation
Base salary	$174,000/year
Elections and appointments
Last election	November 6, 2012
First elected	November 7, 2006
Election date	November 6, 2018
Campaign $	$37,108,744
Term limits	N/A
Prior offices
U.S. House of Representatives
1993-2006
Ohio Secretary of State
1982-1990
Ohio House of Representatives
1975-1982
Education
Bachelor's	Russian Studies, Yale University, 1974
Master's	Education, Ohio State University, 1981
Personal
Date of birth	November 9, 1952
Place of birth	Mansfield, OH
Net worth	(2012) $639,003.50
Religion	Lutheran
Websites
Office website
Campaign website
Sherrod Brown campaign logo

Sherrod Brown (b. November 9, 1952, in Mansfield, OH) is a Democratic member of the U.S. Senate from Ohio. Brown was first elected to the Senate in 2006 and is currently serving his second term, having won re-election on November 6, 2012. He ran unopposed in the Democratic primary on March 6, 2012, and defeated Josh Mandel (R), John Fockler Jr. (L) and Joseph DeMare (G) in the November 6, 2012, general election.

Brown is set to run for re-election in Ohio in November 2018.

Prior to his election to the Senate, Brown served two terms as the Ohio Secretary of State.

As of a 2014 analysis of multiple outside rankings, Brown is one of the most reliable Democratic votes, meaning he can be considered a safe vote for the Democratic Party in Congress.

Career

Below is an abbreviated outline of Brown's academic, professional and political career:

• 2007-Present: U.S Senator from Ohio
• 1993-2007: Served as Democrat to U.S. Congress from Ohio
• 1983-1991: Served as Ohio Secretary of State
• 1979-1981: Worked as a member of the faculty, Ohio State University, Mansfield, Ohio
• 1975-1982: Served as member of the Ohio House of Representatives
• 1981: Graduated from Ohio State University, Ohio
• 1974: Graduated from Yale University, New Haven, Conn.

Committee assignments

U.S. Senate

2015-2016

Brown serves on the following committees:

• Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee
  • Subcommittee on Commodities, Risk Management and Trade
  • Subcommittee on Rural Development and Energy
  • Subcommittee on Nutrition, Specialty Crops and Agricultural Research
• Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, Ranking Member
• Finance Committee
  • Subcommittee on Health Care
  • Subcommittee on Social Security, Pensions, and Family Policy, Ranking Member
• Veterans' Affairs Committee

2013-2014

Brown served on the following committees:

• Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry
  • Subcommittee on Nutrition, Specialty Crops, Food and Agricultural Research
  • Subcommittee on Jobs, Rural Economic Growth and Energy Innovation
  • Subcommittee on Commodities, Markets, Trade and Risk Management
• Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
  • Subcommittee on National Security and International Trade and Finance
  • Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Protection Members Chairman
  • Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation and Community Development
• Ethics
• Veterans' Affairs
• Committee on Finance
  • The Subcommittee on Social Security, Pensions and Family Policy Chairman
  • The Subcommittee on Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Growth
  • The Subcommittee on International Trade, Customs, and Global Competitiveness

2011-2012

Brown served on the following Senate committees:

• Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry
  • Subcommittee on Nutrition and Food Assistance, Sustainable and Organic Agriculture, and General Legislation
  • Subcommittee on Energy, Science and Technology
  • Subcommittee on Hunger, Nutrition, and Family Farms
• Appropriations
  • Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs
  • Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies
  • Subcommittee on Legislative Branch
  • Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies
  • Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies
• Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
  • Subcommittee on Economic Policy
  • Subcommittee on Securities, Insurance, and Investment
  • Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation, and Community Development
• Ethics
• Veterans' Affairs

Key votes

114th Congress

The first session of the 114th Congress enacted into law six out of the 2,616 introduced bills (0.2 percent). Comparatively, the 113th Congress had 1.3 percent of introduced bills enacted into law in the first session. In the second session, the 114th Congress enacted 133 out of 3,159 introduced bills (4.2 percent). Comparatively, the 113th Congress had 7.0 percent of introduced bills enacted into law in the second session. The Senate confirmed 18,117 out of 21,815 executive nominations received (83 percent). For more information pertaining to Brown's voting record in the 114th Congress, please see the below sections.

Economic and fiscal

Trade Act of 2015

See also: The Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, 2015

On May 22, 2015, the Senate passed HR 1314, which was used as a legislative vehicle for trade legislation with the titles "Trade Act of 2015" and the "Bipartisan Congressional Trade Priorities and Accountability Act of 2015," by a vote of 62-37. The bill proposed giving the president trade promotion authority (TPA). TPA, also known as fast track authority, allows the president to negotiate trade deals that cannot be amended by Congress. Congress casts a simple up or down vote on a trade agreement, and the legislation only requires a simple majority for approval. The bill also included a statement of trade priorities and provisions for trade adjustment assistance. Brown voted with 30 other Democratic senators against the bill.
Trade promotion authority
On June 24, 2015, by a vote of 60-38, the Senate approved trade promotion authority (TPA) as part of HR 2146 - Defending Public Safety Employees' Retirement Act. Brown was one of 31 Democrats to vote against the bill. After, Senate Republican leadership honored a pledge to support trade adjustment assistance (TAA) by passing the measure as part of HR 1295 - Trade Preferences Extension Act of 2015 by voice vote. The House passed HR 1295 the following day, on June 25, 2015, and both TPA and TAA were signed into law on June 29, 2015.

2016 Budget proposal

On May 5, 2015, the Senate voted to approve SConRes11, a congressional budget proposal for fiscal year 2016, by a vote of 51-48. The non-binding resolution will be used to create 12 appropriations bills to fund the government before funding runs out on October 1, 2015. The vote marked the first time since 2009 that Congress approved a joint budget resolution. All 44 Democrats, including Brown, voted against the resolution.

Defense spending authorization

On November 10, 2015, the Senate passed S 1356 - the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2016 by a vote of 91-3. The second version of the $607 billion national defense bill included "$5 billion in cuts to match what was approved in the budget" and language preventing the closure of the Guantanamo Bay military prison. Brown voted with 41 Democrats, 48 Republicans and one independent in favor of the bill. On November 5, 2015, the House passed the bill by a vote of 370-58, and President Barack Obama signed it into law on November 25, 2015.

On June 18, 2015, the Senate passed HR 1735 - National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2016 by a vote of 71-25. The bill "authorizes FY2016 appropriations and sets forth policies for Department of Defense (DOD) programs and activities, including military personnel strengths. It does not provide budget authority, which is provided in subsequent appropriations legislation." Brown voted with 21 Democrats, two Republicans and one Independent against the bill. The House passed the bill on May 15, 2015. President Barack Obama vetoed the bill on October 22, 2015.

2015 budget

On October 30, 2015, the Senate passed HR 1314 - Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 by a vote of 64-35. The bill increased military and domestic spending levels and suspended the debt ceiling until March 2017. Brown voted with 43 Democrats, 18 Republicans and two independents in favor of the bill. It passed the House on October 28, 2015. President Barack Obama signed it into law on November 2, 2015.

Foreign Affairs

Iran nuclear deal

See also: Iran nuclear agreement, 2015

On May 7, 2015, the Senate voted to approve HR 1191 - A bill to provide for congressional review and oversight of agreements relating to Iran's nuclear program, and for other purposes, by a vote of 98-1. The bill required President Barack Obama to submit the details of the nuclear deal with Iran for congressional review. Congress had 60 days to review the deal and vote to approve, disapprove or take no action on the deal. During the review period, sanctions on Iran could not be lifted. All 43 Democratic senators who voted, including Brown, approved the bill.

Hire More Heroes Act of 2015
On September 10, 2015, the Senate voted to filibuster the measure to disapprove of the Iran nuclear deal by a vote of 58-42. Sixty votes were needed to proceed to HJ Res 61 - the Hire More Heroes Act of 2015, the legislative vehicle the Senate was expected to use to disapprove of the Iran nuclear deal. Brown voted with 39 Democrats and two Independents against proceeding to the measure of disapproval.

Hire More Heroes Act of 2015 follow up votes
On September 15, 2015, the Senate voted for a second time to filibuster the measure to disapprove of the Iran nuclear deal by a vote of 56-42. Sixty votes were needed to proceed to HJ Res 61 - the Hire More Heroes Act of 2015, the legislative vehicle the Senate was expected to use to disapprove of the Iran nuclear deal. Brown voted with 39 Democrats and two Independents against proceeding to the measure of disapproval. The legislation was voted on for a third time on September 17, and it failed for a third time by a vote of 56-42.

Hire More Heroes Act of 2015 fourth vote
On September 17, 2015, the Senate voted to filibuster a vote on S.Amdt.2656 to S.Amdt.2640 by a vote of 53-45. The amendment proposed prohibiting "the President from waiving, suspending, reducing, providing relief from, or otherwise limiting the application of sanctions pursuant to an agreement related to the nuclear program of Iran." Brown voted with 42 Democrats and two Independents against proceeding to the amendment.

Domestic

USA FREEDOM Act of 2015

On June 2, 2015, the Senate passed HR 2048 - the Uniting and Strengthening America by Fulfilling Rights and Ensuring Effective Discipline Over Monitoring Act of 2015 or the USA FREEDOM Act of 2015 by a vote of 67-32. The legislation revised HR 3199 - the USA PATRIOT Improvement and Reauthorization Act of 2005 by terminating the bulk collection of metadata under Sec. 215 of the act, requiring increased reporting from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court and requiring the use of "a specific selection term as the basis for national security letters that request information from wire or electronic communication service providers, financial institutions, or consumer reporting agencies." Brown voted with 42 Democrats, 23 Republicans and one Independent to approve the legislation. It became law on June 2, 2015.

Cyber security

On October 27, 2015, the Senate passed S 754 - the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act of 2015 by a vote of 74-21. The bill proposed procedures that would allow federal agencies and private entities to share information about cyber threats. Brown voted with 13 Democrats, six Republicans and one independent against the bill.

Immigration

On October 20, 2015, the Senate voted against proceeding to a vote on S 2146 - the Stop Sanctuary Policies and Protect Americans Act by a vote of 54-45. The bill proposed withholding federal funding from "sanctuary jurisdictions" that violate the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 and other federal immigration laws. In addition, the bill proposed increasing "penalties for individuals who illegally reenter the United States after being removed" and providing "liability protection for State and local law enforcement who cooperate with Federal law enforcement." Brown voted with 41 Democrats, one Republican and two Independents against proceeding to the bill.

113th Congress

The second session of the 113th Congress enacted into law 224 out of the 3215 introduced bills (7 percent). Comparatively, the 112th Congress had 4.2 percent of introduced bills enacted into law in the second session. The Senate confirmed 13,949 out of 18,323 executive nominations received (76.1 percent). For more information pertaining to Brown's voting record in the 113th Congress, please see the below sections.

National security

John Brennan CIA nomination

Brown voted for the confirmation of John Brennan as Director of the Central Intelligence Agency. The nomination was confirmed by the Senate on March 7, 2013, with a vote of 63 - 34. Most Democrats supported the nomination, while Republicans were somewhat divided with roughly one-third supporting the nomination.

Economy

No Budget, No Pay Act of 2013

Brown voted for H.R.325 -- No Budget, No Pay Act of 2013. The bill passed the Senate on January 31, 2013, with a vote of 64 - 34. The purpose of the bill was to temporarily suspend the debt ceiling and withhold the pay of members of Congress until a budget could be passed. The vote largely followed party lines with Democrats overwhelmingly supporting it and many Republicans in opposition to the bill.

Government shutdown

See also: United States budget debate, 2013

During the shutdown in October 2013, the Senate rejected, down party lines, every House-originated bill that stripped the budget of funding for the Affordable Care Act. A deal was reached late on October 16, 2013, just hours before the debt ceiling deadline. The bill to reopen the government, H.R. 2775, lifted the $16.7 trillion debt limit and funded the government through January 15, 2014. Federal employees also received retroactive pay for the shutdown period. The only concession made by Senate Democrats was to require income verification for Obamacare subsidies. The final vote on H.R. 2775 was 81-18, with all 18 votes against the bill from Republican members. Brown voted with the Democratic Party for the bill.

Brown donated his salary to the Honor Flight Network while the government was shutdown.

Immigration

Mexico-U.S. border

Brown voted against Amendment 1197 -- Requires the Completion of the Fence Along the United States-Mexico Border. The amendment was rejected by the Senate on June 18, 2013, with a vote of 39 - 54. The purpose of the amendment was to require the completion of 350 miles of fence described in the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 before registered provisional immigrant status may be granted. It would also require 700 miles of fence be completed before the status of registered provisional immigrants may be changed to permanent resident status. The vote followed party lines.

Social issues

Violence Against Women (2013)

Brown voted for S.47 -- Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013. The bill was passed by the Senate on February 12, 2013, with a vote of 78 - 22. The purpose of the bill was to combat violence against women, from domestic violence to international trafficking in persons. All 22 dissenting votes were cast by Republicans.

Previous congressional sessions

Fiscal Cliff

Brown voted for the fiscal cliff compromise bill, which made permanent most of the Bush tax cuts originally passed in 2001 and 2003 while also raising tax rates on the highest income levels. The bill was passed in the Senate by an 89 - 8 vote on January 1, 2013.

Issues

On The Issues Vote Match

Sherrod Brown's Vote Match results from On The Issues.

See also: On The Issues Vote Match

On The Issues conducts a VoteMatch analysis of elected officials based on 20 issue areas. Rather than relying on incumbents to complete the quiz themselves, the VoteMatch analysis is conducted using voting records, statements to the media, debate transcripts, or citations from books authored by or about the candidate.

On The Issues organization logo

The table below contains the results of analysis compiled by staff at On The Issues.

On The Issues Vote Quiz
Economic Issues		Social Issues
Issue	Stance	Issue	Stance
Legally require hiring women & minorities	Strongly Favors	Abortion is a woman's unrestricted right	Strongly Favors
Expand Obamacare	Strongly Favors	Comfortable with same-sex marriage	Strongly Favors
Vouchers for school choice	Strongly Opposes	Keep God in the public sphere	Opposes
Absolute right to gun ownership	Strongly Opposes	No "rights" to clean air and water	Strongly Opposes
Higher taxes on the wealthy	Strongly Favors	Stricter punishment reduces crime	Strongly Opposes
Support & expand free trade	Strongly Opposes	Pathway to citizenship for illegal aliens	Favors
More enforcement of the right to vote	Favors	Maintain U.S. sovereignty from UN	Strongly Opposes
Prioritize green energy	Strongly Favors	Expand the military	Opposes
Stimulus better than market-led recovery	Strongly Favors	Stay out of Iran	Favors
Privatize Social Security	Strongly Opposes	Never legalize marijuana	Strongly Opposes
Note: Information last updated: May 20, 2015. If you notice the rating has changed, email us.

2016 presidential endorsement

✓ Brown endorsed Hillary Clinton for the Democrat primary in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

See also: Endorsements for Hillary Clinton

Campaign themes

2012

Brown's campaign website listed the following issues:

• Jobs

Excerpt: "Sherrod believes Ohio and our nation’s economic strength and national security are drawn from a strong manufacturing base."

• Energy

Excerpt: "Sherrod has led the fight for our nation’s energy policy to focus on decreasing our dependence on foreign oil and creating manufacturing jobs in Ohio. Sherrod has long recognized that a smart energy policy is also smart jobs policy and that Ohio is leading the nation."

• Fiscal Responsibility

Excerpt: "Sherrod supports a five-year freeze on spending subject to the annual appropriations process, which will save $400 billion. He also supports health care reform, which will save $143 billion in the first decade, and another $ 1 trillion in the next according to the Congressional Budget Office."

• Standing Up for Seniors

Excerpt: "Throughout his career, Sherrod has fought to protect Social Security and Medicare from privatization and other short-sighted attempts to undermine the guaranteed benefits retirees earned and deserve."

• A Family Doctor for Every Family

Excerpt: "Since first taking office, promoting quality health care for every American has been one of Sherrod’s top priorities."

• Agriculture and Ohio’s Rural Economy

Excerpt: "As Ohio’s first Senator to serve on the Senate Agriculture Committee in more than forty years, Sherrod is fighting to support the state’s farmers and its number one industry–agriculture."

Political positions

WWII Memorial

A group of World War II veterans, associated with the Mississippi Gulf Coast Honor Flight, wanting to pay their respects at the WWII Memorial were met with signs and barriers upon their arrival. They refused to let their trip be affected by the government shutdown and made their way through the barriers. Many congressional members from both parties spoke their approval of the move, including Sen. Sherrod Brown and Rep. Michele Bachmann, who was in attendance. Rep. Steve King and Rep. Steve Palazzo aided the veterans by distracting park police and helping move the gates.

Elections

2012

See also: United States Senate elections in Ohio, 2012

Brown won re-election to the U.S. Senate in 2012. He was unopposed in the Democratic primary and defeated Josh Mandel (R), John Fockler Jr. (L) and Joseph DeMare (G) in the November 6 general election.

U.S. Senate, Ohio General Election, 2012

Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Sherrod Brown Incumbent	50.7%	2,762,690
	Republican	Josh Mandel	44.7%	2,435,712
	Independent	Scott Rupert	4.6%	250,616
Total Votes				5,449,018
Source: Ohio Secretary of State "Official Election Results, 2012 General Election"

Outside spending

Brown's bid for re-election against Republican challenger Josh Mandel received significant outside attention and spending. Early on, conservatives identified Brown's seat as a potential flip in their quest to turn the Senate back over to Republican control because Brown was a staunch progressive in a swing state. As a result, right-leaning groups, led by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, spent more than $11.5 million on anti-Brown ad campaigns. The conservative group Crossroads GPS spent $6.7 million on ad space during the last five weeks of the campaign.

Ads

On July 24, 2012, Brown released a 30-second ad titled, "Both From Ohio."

Full history

To view the full congressional electoral history for Sherrod Brown, click [show] to expand the section.
2006 On November 7, 2006, Brown won election to the United States Senate. He defeated Mike DeWine (R) and Richard Duncan (Write-in) in the general election. U.S. Senate, Ohio General Election, 2006 Party Candidate Vote % Votes      Democrat Sherrod Brown 56.2% 2,257,369      Republican Mike DeWine 43.8% 1,761,037      Write–in Richard Duncan 0% 830 Total Votes 4,019,236

Campaign donors

Fundraising events

The below chart from Find The Best tracks the fundraising events Brown attends.

Comprehensive donor history

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The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may not represent all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer, and campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.

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Sherrod Brown campaign contribution history
Year	Office	Result	Contributions
2012	U.S. Senate		$24,840,222
2006	U.S. Senate		$8,937,004
2004	U.S. House of Representatives (Ohio District 13)		$1,047,900
2002	U.S. House of Representatives (Ohio District 13)		$1,157,747
2000	U.S. House of Representatives (Ohio District 13)		$1,125,871
Grand total raised			$37,108,744
Source: [ Follow the Money]

2012

Brown won election to the U.S. Senate in 2012. During that election cycle, Brown's campaign committee raised a total of $24,840,422 and spent $24,576,366. This is more than the average $10.2 million spent by Senate winners in 2012.

Cost per vote

Brown spent $8.90 per vote received in 2012.

U.S. Senate, Ohio, 2012 - Sherrod Brown Campaign Contributions
Total Raised	$24,840,422
Total Spent	$24,576,366
Total Raised by Election Runner-up	$18,912,557
Total Spent by Election Runner-up	$18,868,809
Top contributors to Sherrod Brown's campaign committee
Ohio State University	$94,270
JStreetPAC	$80,830
Cleveland Clinic	$76,137
Forest City Enterprises	$59,884
Kohrman, Jackson & Krantz	$59,000
Top 5 industries that contributed to campaign committee
Lawyers/Law Firms	$1,781,895
Retired	$1,115,836
Health Professionals	$633,752
Real Estate	$517,168
Education	$491,880

To view the breakdown of campaign funding by type click [show] to expand the section.
Breakdown of the source of Brown's campaign funds before the 2012 election.

2006

Brown won election to the U.S. Senate in 2006. During that election cycle, Brown's campaign committee raised a total of $8,045,279 and spent $4,141,162.

U.S. Senate, Ohio, 2006 - Sherrod Brown Campaign Contributions
Total Raised	$8937004
Total Spent	$10752665
Total Raised by General Election Opponent	$14922228
Total Spent by General Election Opponent	$15542673
Top contributors to Sherrod Brown's campaign committee
Council for a Livable World	$48569
Goldman Sachs	$46800
Human Rights Campaign	$37172
Forest City Enterprises	$30650
Squire, Sanders & Dempsey	$28750
Top 5 industries that contributed to campaign committee
Lawyers/Law Firms	$1071716
Health Professionals	$473807
Retired	$467511
Securities & Investment	$255805
Leadership PACs	$252105

Polls

2012 Election

October 2012

Sherrod Brown vs. Josh Mandel
Poll	Sherrod Brown	Josh Mandel	Undecided	Other	Margin of Error	Sample Size
Survey USA (October 12-15, 2012)	43%	38%	13%	5%	+/-4	613
Rasmussen Reports (October 7, 2012)	46%	46%	6%	2%	+/-4.5	500
Note: A "0%" finding means the candidate was not a part of the poll. The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org

November 2011 - September 2012

Sherrod Brown vs. Josh Mandel
Poll	Sherrod Brown	Josh Mandel	Undecided	Other	Margin of Error	Sample Size
Quinnipiac University (September 26, 2012)	50%	40%	9%	0%	+/-2.9	1,162
Rasmussen Reports (September 15, 2012)	49%	41%	7%	3%	+/-4.5	500
University of Cincinnati (August 16-21, 2012)	48%	47%	1%	5%	+/-3.4	847
Quinnipiac University (August 15-21, 2012)	48%	41%	10%	1%	+/-2.8	1,253
Rasmussen Reports (August 13, 2012)	44%	44%	9%	3%	+/-4.5	500
Quinnipiac University (July 24-30, 2012)	51%	39%	0%	0%	+/-3	1,193
Rasmussen Reports (July 18, 2012)	46%	42%	8%	4%	+/-4.5	500
Quinnipiac University (October 17-23, 2011)	49%	34%	14%	1%	+/-2.4	1,668
Public Policy Polling (November 4-6, 2011)	49%	34%	17%	0%	+/-3.1	1,022
Note: A "0%" finding means the candidate was not a part of the poll. The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org

A Rasmussen Reports poll, conducted August 13, 2012, showed Brown running even with Republican challenger Josh Mandel.

A Quinnipiac University poll, conducted July 24-30, 2012, showed Brown leading Republican challenger Josh Mandel by double digits.

A Rasmussen Reports poll, conducted July 18, 2012, showed Brown with a slight lead over Republican challenger Josh Mandel (R).

Personal Gain Index

See also: Personal Gain Index (U.S. Congress)

The Personal Gain Index (U.S. Congress) is a two-part measurement that illustrates the extent to which members of the U.S. Congress have prospered during their tenure as public servants.
It consists of two different metrics:

• Changes in Net Worth
• The Donation Concentration Metric

PGI: Change in net worth

See also: Changes in Net Worth of U.S. Senators and Representatives (Personal Gain Index) and Net worth of United States Senators and Representatives

Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org, Brown's net worth as of 2012 was estimated between $383,007 to $895,000. That averages to $639,003.50, which is lower than the average net worth of Democratic Senate members in 2012 of $13,566,333.90. Brown ranked as the 77th most wealthy senator in 2012. Between 2004 and 2012, Brown's calculated net worth increased by an average of 9 percent per year. Between 2004 and 2012, the average annual percentage increase for a member of Congress was 15.4 percent.

Sherrod Brown Yearly Net Worth
Year	Average Net Worth
2004	$376,183
2012	$639,003
Growth from 2004 to 2012:	70%
Average annual growth:	9%
Comparatively, the American citizen experienced a median yearly decline in net worth of -0.94%.

The data used to calculate changes in net worth may include changes resulting from assets gained through marriage, inheritance, changes in family estates and/or trusts, changes in family business ownership, and many other variables unrelated to a member's behavior in Congress.

PGI: Donation Concentration Metric

See also: The Donation Concentration Metric (U.S. Congress Personal Gain Index)

Filings required by the Federal Election Commission report on the industries that give to each candidate. Using campaign filings and information calculated by OpenSecrets.org, Ballotpedia calculated the percentage of donations by industry received by each incumbent over the course of his or her career (or 1989 and later, if elected prior to 1988). Brown received the most donations from individuals and PACs employed by the Lawyers/Law Firms industry.

From 1991-2014, 22.92 percent of Brown's career contributions came from the top five industries as listed below.

Sherrod Brown Campaign Contributions
Total Raised	$42,542,690
Total Spent	$41,324,862
Top five industries that contributed to campaign committee
Lawyers/Law Firms	$3,690,638
Health Professionals	$2,342,525
Retired	$1,836,390
Real Estate	$983,919
Education	$896,132
% total in top industry	8.68%
% total in top two industries	14.18%
% total in top five industries	22.92%

Analysis

Ideology and leadership

See also: GovTrack's Political Spectrum & Legislative Leadership ranking'

Based on an analysis of bill sponsorship by GovTrack, Brown was a "far-left Democratic leader" as of July 2014. Brown was rated as a "far-left Democrat" in June 2013.

Like-minded colleagues

The website OpenCongress tracks the voting records of each member to determine with whom he or she votes most and least often. The results include a member from each party.

Brown most often votes with:

• Tammy Baldwin
• Susan Collins

Brown least often votes with:

• Joe Manchin
• Jim Risch

Lifetime voting record

See also: Lifetime voting records of United States Senators and Representatives

According to the website GovTrack, Brown missed 38 of 2,765 roll call votes from January 2007 to September 2015. This amounts to 1.4 percent, which is better than the median of 1.6 percent among current senators as of September 2015.

Congressional staff salaries

See also: Staff salaries of United States Senators and Representatives

The website Legistorm compiles staff salary information for members of Congress. Brown paid his congressional staff a total of $,3027,608 in 2011. He ranked 10th on the list of the highest paid Democratic senatorial staff salaries and ranked 12th overall of the highest paid senatorial staff salaries in 2011. Overall, Ohio ranked 8th in average salary for senatorial staff. The average U.S. Senate congressional staff was paid $2,529,141.70 in fiscal year 2011.

National Journal vote ratings

See also: National Journal vote ratings

Each year National Journal publishes an analysis of how liberally or conservatively each member of Congress voted in the previous year. Click the link above for the full ratings of all members of Congress.

2013

Brown ranked 13th in the liberal rankings in 2013.

2012

Brown ranked seventh in the liberal rankings in 2012.

2011

Brown ranked fifth in the liberal rankings in 2011.

Voting with party

The website OpenCongress tracks how often members of Congress vote with the majority of the chamber caucus.

2014

Brown voted with the Democratic Party 95.6 percent of the time, which ranked 24th among the 53 Senate Democratic members as of July 2014.

2013

Brown voted with the Democratic Party 95.5 percent of the time, which ranked 24th among the 52 Senate Democratic members as of June 2013.

Personal

Brown and his wife, Connie Schultz, have three daughters and a son.

Recent news

This section displays the most recent stories in a Google news search for the term Sherrod + Brown + Ohio + Senate

All stories may not be relevant to this page due to the nature of the search engine.

Sherrod Brown News Feed

See also

• United States Senate

External links

Suggest a link

 

• Social media:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
• Biographies:
  • U.S. Congress
  • NNDB
  • Wikipedia
• Political profiles:
  • GovTrack
  • CongressMerge
  • OpenCongress
  • Project Vote Smart
  • Roll Call
• Fact-checking:
  • PolitiFact
• Financial (federal level):
  • FEC contributions
  • OpenSecrets.org
• Interest group ratings:
  • Project Vote Smart
• Issue positions:
  • On The Issues
  • Project Vote Smart
• Legislation:
  • Congress.gov
• Public statements:
  • Project Vote Smart
• Voting record:
  • Project Vote Smart
  • Washington Post
• Works by or about:
  • WorldCat
• Media appearances:
  • C-SPAN
  • IMDb
• Media coverage:
  • Bloomberg
  • Washington Post

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• Column archive at Huffington Post
• Collected news and commentary at the Cleveland Plain Dealer

References

Political offices
Preceded by Mike DeWine	U.S. Senate - Ohio 2007-Present	Succeeded by -

[show]

Ohio's current delegation to the United States Congress

Senators

Jon Husted (R)

Bernie Moreno (R)

Representatives

District 1

Greg Landsman (D)

District 2

David Taylor (R)

District 3

Joyce Beatty (D)

District 4

Jim Jordan (R)

District 5

Bob Latta (R)

District 6

Michael Rulli (R)

District 7

Max Miller (R)

District 8

Warren Davidson (R)

District 9

Marcy Kaptur (D)

District 10

Michael Turner (R)

District 11

Shontel Brown (D)

District 12

Troy Balderson (R)

District 13

Emilia Sykes (D)

District 14

David Joyce (R)

District 15

Mike Carey (R)

Republican Party (12)

Democratic Party (5)