Sen. Jim Inhofe was a U.S. senator from Oklahoma for nearly three decades who served in public office in one form or another for nearly 60 years overall.
- Died: July 9, 2024 (Who else died on July 9?)
- Details of death: Died of complications from a stroke at the age of 89.
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Sen. Jim Inhofe’s legacy
Jim Inhofe was in public office almost his entire adult life. Born in Des Moines, Iowa, but raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma, he earned his economics degree from the University of Tulsa. He spent two years in the U.S. Army before going to work for his father’s insurance company, which he eventually took over. He took his first major step into public service in late 1966, when he won a seat on the Oklahoma House of Representatives.
Inhofe parlayed that position into a seat on the state senate, then, in 1978, he was elected mayor of Tulsa, a seat he filled until 1984. Several years later, he made the leap to Congress, serving from 1987 to 1994, then rose to the United States Senate in ’94, where he served for decades until last year.
Inhofe was a staunch conservative who called climate change a hoax, supported a ban on same-sex marriage and, in 2008, announced his campaign would not hire gay staffers. He was a former chair of the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works and the Armed Services Committee.
Two years into his fifth term, Inhofe retired from office in January 2023, when he revealed that he was suffering from long COVID, which impacted his ability to work.
Tributes to Sen. Jim Inhofe
Full obituary: The New York Times
