This is a classification of United States Senators by seniority during the 111th Congress, from January 3, 2009 to January 3, 2011. It is a historical listing and contains people who have not served the entire two-year Congress, such as Joe Biden and Hillary Rodham Clinton.
Order of service is based on the commencement of the senator's first term. Following this is former service as a U.S. senator (only giving the senator seniority within his or her new incoming class), service as Vice President of the United States, a U.S. Representative, a Cabinet secretary, a state governor. Others are separated by his or her state's population.
Senators who were sworn in during the middle of the two-year Congress are listed at the end of the list with no number. However, Roland Burris and Al Franken are listed as numbers 99 and 100. Burris was appointed at the end of the previous Congress, but was blocked from taking his seat until January 12, 2009, and Franken won the United States Senate election in Minnesota, 2008, but was unable to take his seat until July 7, 2009 due to an election contest.
John Kerry was the most senior junior senator from the opening of the 111th Congress until the death of Ted Kennedy in August 2009, whereupon Tom Harkin took on the distinction. Jim Webb was the most junior senior senator until Mark Udall, a freshman, became Colorado's senior senator upon Ken Salazar's resignation in late January 2009 to become Interior Secretary.
| Rank | Name | Seniority date | Other factors |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Robert Byrd (D-WV) | January 3, 1959 | |
| 2 | Ted Kennedy (D-MA) | November 7, 1962 | |
| 3 | Daniel Inouye (D-HI) | January 3, 1963 | |
| 4 | Joe Biden (D-DE) | January 3, 1973 | |
| 5 | Patrick Leahy (D-VT) | January 3, 1975 | |
| 6 | Richard Lugar (R-IN) | January 3, 1977 | Indiana 11th in population (1970) |
| 7 | Orrin Hatch (R-UT) | Utah 36th in population (1970) | |
| 8 | Max Baucus (D-MT) | December 15, 1978 | |
| 9 | Thad Cochran (R-MS) | December 27, 1978 | |
| 10 | Carl Levin (D-MI) | January 3, 1979 | |
| 11 | Chris Dodd (D-CT) | January 3, 1981 | Former U.S. representative (6 years); Connecticut 24th in population (1970) |
| 12 | Chuck Grassley (R-IA) | Former U.S. representative (6 years); Iowa 25th in population (1970) | |
| 13 | Arlen Specter (R-PA)(D-PA) | ||
| 14 | Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) | January 3, 1983 | |
| 15 | John Kerry (D-MA) | January 2, 1985 | |
| 16 | Tom Harkin (D-IA) | January 3, 1985 | Former U.S. representative |
| 17 | Mitch McConnell (R-KY) | ||
| 18 | Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) | January 15, 1985 | |
| 19 | Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) | January 3, 1987 | Former U.S. representative (10 years) |
| 20 | Richard Shelby (R-AL) | Former U.S. representative (8 years) | |
| 21 | John McCain (R-AZ) | Former U.S. representative (4 years); Arizona 29th in population (1980) | |
| 22 | Harry Reid (D-NV) | Former U.S. representative (4 years); Nevada 43rd in population (1980) | |
| 23 | Kit Bond (R-MO) | Former governor | |
| 24 | Kent Conrad (D-ND) | ||
| 25 | Herb Kohl (D-WI) | January 3, 1989 | Wisconsin 16th in population (1980) |
| 26 | Joe Lieberman (ID-CT) | Connecticut 25th in population (1980) | |
| 27 | Daniel Akaka (D-HI) | May 16, 1990 | |
| 28 | Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) | November 10, 1992 | |
| 29 | Byron Dorgan (D-ND) | December 15, 1992 | |
| 30 | Barbara Boxer (D-CA) | January 3, 1993 | Former U.S. representative (10 years) |
| 31 | Judd Gregg (R-NH) | Former U.S. representative (8 years) | |
| 32 | Russ Feingold (D-WI) | Wisconsin 16th in population (1990) | |
| 33 | Patty Murray (D-WA) | Washington 18th in population (1990) | |
| 34 | Bob Bennett (R-UT) | Utah 35th in population (1990) | |
| 35 | Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX) | June 14, 1993 | |
| 36 | Jim Inhofe (R-OK) | November 17, 1994 | |
| 37 | Olympia Snowe (R-ME) | January 3, 1995 | Former U.S. representative (16 years) |
| 38 | Jon Kyl (R-AZ) | Former U.S. representative (8 years) | |
| 39 | Ron Wyden (D-OR) | February 6, 1996 | |
| 40 | Sam Brownback (R-KS) | November 7, 1996 | |
| 41 | Pat Roberts (R-KS) | January 3, 1997 | Former U.S. representative (16 years) |
| 42 | Richard Durbin (D-IL) | Former U.S. representative (14 years) | |
| 43 | Tim Johnson (D-SD) | Former U.S. representative (10 years) | |
| 44 | Jack Reed (D-RI) | Former U.S. representative (6 years) | |
| 45 | Mary Landrieu (D-LA) | Louisiana 21st in population (1990) | |
| 46 | Jeff Sessions (R-AL) | Alabama 22nd in population (1990) | |
| 47 | Susan Collins (R-ME) | Maine 38th in population (1990) | |
| 48 | Mike Enzi (R-WY) | Wyoming 50th in population (1990) | |
| 49 | Chuck Schumer (D-NY) | January 3, 1999 | Former U.S. representative (18 years) |
| 50 | Jim Bunning (R-KY) | Former U.S. representative (12 years) | |
| 51 | Mike Crapo (R-ID) | Former U.S. representative (6 years) | |
| 52 | Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) | Former U.S. representative (4 years) | |
| 53 | George Voinovich (R-OH) | Former governor; Ohio 7th in population (1990) | |
| 54 | Evan Bayh (D-IN) | Former governor; Indiana 15th in population (1990) | |
| 55 | Bill Nelson (D-FL) | January 3, 2001 | Former U.S. representative (12 years) |
| 56 | Tom Carper (D-DE) | Former U.S. representative (10 years) | |
| 57 | Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) | Former U.S. representative (4 years); Michigan 8th in population (1990) | |
| 58 | John Ensign (R-NV) | Former U.S. representative (4 years); Nevada 39th in population (1990) | |
| 59 | Maria Cantwell (D-WA) | Former U.S. representative (2 years) | |
| 60 | Ben Nelson (D-NE) | Former governor | |
| 61 | Hillary Clinton (D-NY) | ||
| 62 | Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) | December 20, 2002 | |
| 63 | Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) | January 3, 2003 | Previous Senate service |
| 64 | Saxby Chambliss (R-GA) | Former U.S. representative (8 years); Georgia 10th in population (2000) | |
| 65 | Lindsey Graham (R-SC) | Former U.S. representative (8 years); South Carolina 26th in population (2000) | |
| 66 | Lamar Alexander (R-TN) | Former Cabinet member | |
| 67 | John Cornyn (R-TX) | Texas 2nd in population (2000) | |
| 68 | Mark Pryor (D-AR) | Arkansas 33nd in population (2000) | |
| 69 | Richard Burr (R-NC) | January 3, 2005 | Former U.S. representative (10 years) |
| 70 | Jim DeMint (R-SC) | Former U.S. representative (6 years); South Carolina 26th in population (2000) | |
| 71 | Tom Coburn (R-OK) | Former U.S. representative (6 years); Oklahoma 27th in population (2000) | |
| 72 | John Thune (R-SD) | Former U.S. representative (6 years); South Dakota 46th in population (2000) | |
| 73 | Johnny Isakson (R-GA) | Former U.S. representative (5 years, 10 months) | |
| 74 | David Vitter (R-LA) | Former U.S. representative (5 years, 7 months) | |
| 75 | Mel Martinez (R-FL) | Former Cabinet member | |
| 76 | Ken Salazar (D-CO) | ||
| 77 | Bob Menendez (D-NJ) | January 18, 2006 | |
| 78 | Ben Cardin (D-MD) | January 3, 2007 | Former U.S. representative (20 years) |
| 79 | Bernie Sanders (I-VT) | Former U.S. representative (16 years) | |
| 80 | Sherrod Brown (D-OH) | Former U.S. representative (14 years) | |
| 81 | Bob Casey, Jr. (D-PA) | Pennsylvania 6th in population (2000) | |
| 82 | Jim Webb (D-VA) | Virginia 12th in population (2000) | |
| 83 | Bob Corker (R-TN) | Tennessee 16th in population (2000) | |
| 84 | Claire McCaskill (D-MO) | Missouri 17th in population (2000) | |
| 85 | Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) | Minnesota 21st in population (2000) | |
| 86 | Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) | Rhode Island 43rd in population (2000) | |
| 87 | Jon Tester (D-MT) | Montana 44th in population (2000) | |
| 88 | John Barrasso (R-WY) | June 25, 2007 | |
| 89 | Roger Wicker (R-MS) | December 31, 2007 | |
| 90 | Mark Udall (D-CO) | January 3, 2009 | Former U.S. representative (10 years); Colorado 24th in population (2000) |
| 91 | Tom Udall (D-NM) | Former U.S. representative (10 years); New Mexico 36th in population (2000) | |
| 92 | Mike Johanns (R-NE) | Former Cabinet member | |
| 93 | Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) | Former governor (6 years) | |
| 94 | Mark Warner (D-VA) | Former governor (4 years) | |
| 95 | Jim Risch (R-ID) | Former governor (7 months) | |
| 96 | Kay Hagan (D-NC) | North Carolina 11th in population (2000) | |
| 97 | Jeff Merkley (D-OR) | Oregon 28th in population (2000) | |
| 98 | Mark Begich (D-AK) | Alaska 48th in population (2000) | |
| 99 | Roland Burris (D-IL) | January 12, 2009 | |
| Ted Kaufman (D-DE) | January 15, 2009 | ||
| Michael Bennet (D-CO) | January 21, 2009 | ||
| Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) | January 26, 2009 | ||
| 100 | Al Franken (D-MN) | July 7, 2009 | |
| George LeMieux (R-FL) | September 10, 2009 | ||
| Paul G. Kirk (D-MA) | September 24, 2009 | ||
| Scott Brown (R-MA) | February 4, 2010 | ||
| Carte Goodwin (D-WV) | July 16, 2010 | ||
| Joe Manchin (D-WV) | November 15, 2010 | Former Governor | |
| Chris Coons (D-DE) | |||
| Mark Kirk (R-IL) | November 29, 2010 |
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