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    The 26 Current House Representatives Born Outside the US

    Press RoomBy No Comments8 Mins Read

    Similar to the US Senate, members of the House of Representatives do not need to be natural-born citizens in order to take office.

    In fact, the only members of government who do are the president and vice president.

    The House of Representatives, one of the two chambers of Congress alongside the Senate, has 435 voting members. They represent congressional districts allocated among the states based on population and serve two-year terms with no term limits.

    To qualify as a US House representative, a person must be:

    • At least 25 years old
    • A US citizen for at least seven years.
    • Live in the state they want to represent at the time of the election.

    Many current House members were US citizens at birth despite being born in another country — for instance, because they were born to American parents working in government positions abroad.

    Here are the 26 active House representatives born outside the US.

    Becca Balint (D)


    A woman in a suit.

    Balint is known as Vermont’s first openly LGBTQ+ member of Congress, with a focus on abortion rights and LGBTQ+ issues.

    Alex Wong/Getty Images

    State: Vermont

    District: At Large

    Place of birth: Germany

    Balint has served in Congress since 2023. She was born in Germany while her father was serving in the US armed forces, making her a US citizen at birth.

    Donald S. Beyer Jr. (D)


    A man in a suit.

    Beyer is a former Virginia lieutenant governor and ambassador who focuses heavily on climate policy, technology, and economic issues.

    Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call

    State: Virginia

    District: 08

    Place of birth: Free Territory of Trieste (now Italy)

    Beyer has served in Congress since 2015. He was born to a US Army officer, making him a citizen at birth.

    Salud O. Carbajal (D)


    A man in a suit.

    Carbajal is known for work on veterans’ affairs, environmental protection, and immigration.

    Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

    State: California

    District: 24

    Place of birth: Mexico

    Carbajal has served in Congress since 2017. He emigrated from Mexico at age 5 and became a naturalized citizen in 1990.

    Sean Casten (D)


    A man in a suit.

    Casten is a former clean-energy executive and House advocate for climate action and renewable-energy policy.

    Bloomberg/Getty Images

    State: Illinois

    District: 06

    Place of birth: Ireland

    Casten has served in Congress since 2019. He was born to American parents, making him a US citizen at birth.

    Juan Ciscomani (R)


    A man in a suit.

    Ciscomani is known for border security, immigration enforcement, and veterans’ issues.

    Finn Gomez/Getty Images

    State: Arizona

    District: 06

    Place of birth: Mexico

    Ciscomani has served in Congress since 2023. He moved to Arizona when he was 11 and became a naturalized citizen in 2006.

    Andrew S. Clyde (R)


    A man in a suit.

    Clyde is known for his fiscal policies and is an advocate for gun rights.

    Michael A. McCoy/Getty Images

    State: Georgia

    District: 09

    Place of birth: Canada

    Clyde has served in Congress since 2021. He was born to American parents, making him a US citizen at birth.

    Dan Crenshaw (R)


    A man in a suit.

    Crenshaw is a former Navy SEAL and focuses on national security, foreign policy, and veterans’ issues.

    Samuel Corum/Getty Images

    State: Texas

    District: 02

    Place of birth: Scotland

    Crenshaw has served in Congress since 2019. He was born to American parents, making him a US citizen at birth.

    Sharice Davids (D)


    A woman in a suit.

    Davids is one of the first Native American women elected to Congress and is known for advocating for tribal communities, infrastructure, and abortion rights.

    Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

    State: Kansas

    District: 03

    Place of birth: Germany

    Davids has served in Congress since 2019. She was born in Germany to a mother who served 20 years in the US Army, making her a US citizen at birth.

    Diana DeGette (D)


    A woman in a suit.

    DeGette is known for her work on reproductive rights and public health.

    RJ Sangosti/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images

    State: Colorado

    District: 01

    Place of birth: Japan

    DeGette has served in Congress since 1997. She was born in Japan while her father served in the US armed forces, making her a US citizen at birth.

    Adriano Espaillat (D)


    A man in a suit.

    Espaillat is the first Dominican American elected to Congress and is known for immigration advocacy.

    Bloomberg/Getty Images

    State: New York

    District: 13

    Place of birth: Dominican Republic

    Espaillat has served in Congress since 2017. He came to the US as a child and became a naturalized US citizen in the early 1980s. Espaillat is the first formerly undocumented member of Congress.

    Jesús G. “Chuy” García (D)


    A man in a suit.

    García is the first Mexican immigrant from the Midwest elected to Congress.

    Michael Brochstein/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

    State: Illinois

    District: 04

    Place of birth: Mexico

    García has served in Congress since 2019. He emigrated to Illinois in 1965 and became a US citizen in 1977.

    Robert Garcia (D)


    A man in a suit.

    Garcia is the former mayor of Long Beach and is known for advocating for LGBTQ+ rights and gun-safety measures.

    Bloomberg/Getty Images

    State: California

    District: 42

    Place of birth: Peru

    Garcia has served in Congress since 2023. He emigrated to the US when he was a young child and became a naturalized citizen in his early 20s.

    Carlos A. Gimenez (R)


    A man in a suit.

    Gimenez is the former mayor of Miami-Dade County and a Republican known for his work on border security and crime.

    Alex Wong/Getty Images

    State: Florida

    District: 28

    Place of birth: Cuba

    Gimenez has served in Congress since 2021. His family emigrated to Miami in 1960, and he became a US citizen in 1976.

    James A. Himes (D)


    A man in a suit.

    Himes is the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee and is known for his work on national security, intelligence oversight, and financial policy.

    Alex Wong/Getty Images

    State: Connecticut

    District: 04

    Place of birth: Peru

    Himes has served in Congress since 2009. He was born to American parents, making him a US citizen at birth.

    Pramila Jayapal (D)


    A woman in a suit.

    Jayapal is the former congressional Progressive Caucus chair known for Medicare for All, immigration reform, and economic-inequality issues.

    Alex Wong/Getty Images

    State: Washington

    District: 07

    Place of birth: India

    Jayapal has served in Congress since 2017. She emigrated from India at age 16 in 1982 and became a naturalized citizen in 2000.

    Young Kim (R)


    A woman in a suit.

    Kim is known for her focus on foreign affairs, particularly on US policy toward China and North Korea.

    Alex Wong/Getty Images

    State: California

    District: 40

    Place of birth: South Korea

    Kim has served in Congress since 2021. She emigrated to the US at age 12 and later became a naturalized US citizen.

    Raja Krishnamoorthi (D)


    A man in a suit.

    Krishnamoorthi is known for work on economic policy, consumer protection, and US competition with China.

    Tom Brenner/Getty Images

    State: Illinois

    District: 08

    Place of birth: India

    Krishnamoorthi has served in Congress since 2017. The exact year of his naturalization is not in the public record, but he moved to the US with his family as a child.

    Ted Lieu (D)


    A man in a suit.

    Lieu is a House Democratic leader and former Air Force officer known for national security work and battling misinformation.

    Heather Diehl/Getty Images

    State: California

    District: 36

    Place of birth: Taiwan

    Lieu has served in Congress since 2015. The exact year of his naturalization is not in the public record, but he moved to the US with his family as a child.

    Ilhan Omar (D)


    A woman in a suit speaks.

    Omar is known for immigration advocacy and support for social welfare programs.

    Brandon Bell/Getty Images

    State: Minnesota

    District: 05

    Place of birth: Somalia

    Omar has served in Congress since 2019. She was naturalized in 2000, five years after arriving in the US from Kenya, where her family had lived in a refugee camp after fleeing Somalia.

    David Rouzer (R)


    A man in a suit.

    Rouzer is known for agricultural policy, transportation infrastructure, and conservative fiscal views.

    Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call

    State: North Carolina

    District: 07

    Place of birth: Germany

    Rouzer has served in Congress since 2015. He was born at Landstuhl Army Medical Center in Germany, where his father was stationed, making him a US citizen at birth.

    Raul Ruiz (D)


    A man in a suit.

    Ruiz is an emergency-room physician known for public-health policy and environmental justice.

    Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

    State: California

    District: 25

    Place of birth: Mexico

    Ruiz has served in Congress since 2013. He was born in Mexico and raised in Coachella, California, after his aunt and uncle adopted him as a baby. He is a naturalized US citizen.

    Victoria Spartz (R)


    A woman in a suit.

    Spartz is known for her concerns about federal spending.

    Win McNamee/Getty Images

    State: Indiana

    District: 05

    Place of birth: Ukraine

    Spartz has served in Congress since 2021. She arrived in the US in 2000 and became a US citizen in 2006.

    Marilyn Strickland (D)


    A woman in a suit.

    Strickland is the first Black and Korean American woman in Congress and is known for work on labor, military issues, and economic development.

    Alex Wong/Getty Images

    State: Washington

    District: 10

    Place of birth: South Korea

    Strickland has served in Congress since 2021. She was born to an American serviceman father and Korean mother, making her a US citizen at birth.

    Shri Thanedar (D)


    A man in a suit.

    Thanedar is a Michigan Democrat and former businessman who has focused on small-business issues, consumer protection, and economic opportunity.

    Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images

    State: Michigan

    District: 13

    Place of birth: India

    Thanedar has served in Congress since 2023. He was naturalized in 1988 after emigrating from India a decade earlier.

    Norma J. Torres (D)


    A woman in a suit.

    Torres is the first Guatemalan American woman in Congress and is known for her work on immigration policy, Central American affairs, and transportation safety.

    Will Lester/MediaNews Group/Inland Valley Daily Bulletin via Getty Images

    State: California

    District: 35

    Place of birth: Guatemala

    Torres has served in Congress since 2015. She emigrated to the US as a young child in the early 1970s and became a naturalized citizen in 1992.

    Eugene Simon Vindman (D)


    A man in a suit.

    Vindman (back center) is a former Army officer who focuses on veterans’ issues, national security, and protecting democracy.

    Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

    State: Virginia

    District: 07

    Place of birth: Ukraine

    Vindman has served in Congress since 2025. The exact year of his naturalization is not in the public record, but he moved to the US with his family as a child.

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