Rating Group: Children's Defense Fund

1998 Positions

State Office Name Party Rating
AK U.S. House-At-Large Don Young R 63%
AL U.S. Senate-Sr Richard Shelby R 33%
AL U.S. Senate-Jr Jeff Sessions III R 0%
AL U.S. House-4 Robert Aderholt R 63%
AL U.S. House-6 Spencer Bachus R 38%
AZ U.S. Senate-Sr John McCain III R 44%
AZ U.S. House-5 Matthew Salmon R 38%
AZ U.S. House-7 Ed Pastor D 100%
CA U.S. Senate-Sr Dianne Feinstein D 100%
CA U.S. Senate-Jr Barbara Boxer D 100%
CA U.S. House-11 George Miller D 88%
CA U.S. House-12 Nancy Pelosi D 88%
CA U.S. House-13 Barbara Lee D 83%
CA U.S. House-18 Anna Eshoo D 100%
CA U.S. House-19 Zoe Lofgren D 100%
CA U.S. House-20 Sam Farr D 100%
CA U.S. House-24 Lois Capps D 100%
CA U.S. House-25 Buck McKeon R 63%
CA U.S. House-30 Brad Sherman D 100%
CA U.S. House-33 Henry Waxman D 88%
CA U.S. House-34 Xavier Becerra D 100%
CA U.S. House-39 Ed Royce R 25%
CA U.S. House-40 Lucille Roybal-Allard D 75%
CA U.S. House-42 Ken Calvert R 75%
CA U.S. House-43 Maxine Waters D 88%
CA U.S. House-46 Loretta Sanchez D 100%
CA U.S. House-48 Dana Rohrabacher R 38%
CA Mayor-At-Large Bob Filner D 75%
CO U.S. House-1 Diana DeGette D 88%
CO State Board of Education-4 Robert Schaffer R 50%
CT U.S. House-3 Rosa DeLauro D 88%
FL U.S. House-5 Corrine Brown D 88%
FL U.S. House-7 John Mica R 50%
FL U.S. House-13 Bill Young R 50%
FL U.S. House-20 Alcee Hastings, Sr. D 75%
FL U.S. House-27 Ileana Ros-Lehtinen R 38%
FL Justice of the Supreme Court Charles Canady Other 63%
GA U.S. Senate-Sr Saxby Chambliss R 63%
GA U.S. House-1 Jack Kingston R 63%
GA U.S. House-2 Sanford Bishop, Jr. D 100%
GA U.S. House-5 John Lewis D 50%
GA Governor Nathan Deal R 25%
HI Governor Neil Abercrombie D 100%
IA U.S. Senate-Sr Chuck Grassley R 33%
IA U.S. Senate-Jr Tom Harkin D 100%
IA U.S. House-3 Tom Latham R 63%
ID U.S. Senate-Sr Mike Crapo R 50%
IL U.S. Senate-Sr Dick Durbin D 100%
IL U.S. House-1 Bobby Rush D 88%
IL U.S. House-4 Luis Gutierrez D 88%
IL U.S. House-7 Danny Davis D 100%
IL U.S. House-15 John Shimkus R 63%
IN U.S. House-1 Pete Visclosky D 100%
KS U.S. Senate-Sr Pat Roberts R 22%
KS U.S. Senate-Jr Jerry Moran R 63%
KS Governor Sam Brownback R 22%
KY U.S. Senate-Sr Mitch McConnell R 33%
KY U.S. House-1 Ed Whitfield R 50%
KY U.S. House-5 Hal Rogers R 75%
LA U.S. Senate-Sr Mary Landrieu D 100%
MA U.S. House-1 Richard Neal D 88%
MA U.S. House-2 Jim McGovern D 100%
MA U.S. House-5 Ed Markey D 100%
MA U.S. House-6 John Tierney D 100%
MD U.S. Senate-Sr Barbara Mikulski D 89%
MD U.S. Senate-Jr Ben Cardin D 88%
MD U.S. House-5 Steny Hoyer D 100%
MD U.S. House-7 Elijah Cummings D 100%
ME U.S. Senate-Sr Susan Collins R 56%
MI U.S. Senate-Sr Carl Levin D 89%
MI U.S. Senate-Jr Debbie Stabenow D 88%
MI U.S. House-4 Dave Camp R 63%
MI U.S. House-6 Fred Upton R 63%
MI U.S. House-9 Sandy Levin D 88%
MI U.S. House-12 John Dingell D 63%
MI U.S. House-13 John Conyers, Jr. D 88%
MN U.S. House-7 Collin Peterson DFL 88%
MO U.S. Senate-Jr Roy Blunt R 50%
MS U.S. Senate-Sr Thad Cochran R 44%
MS U.S. Senate-Jr Roger Wicker R 75%
MS U.S. House-2 Bennie Thompson D 88%
MT U.S. Senate-Sr Max Baucus D 89%
NA Vice President Joe Biden, Jr. D 100%
NA U.S. Secretary of Defense Charles Hagel R 22%
NA U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry D 100%
NC U.S. Senate-Sr Richard Burr R 38%
NC U.S. House-3 Walter Jones, Jr. R 50%
NC U.S. House-4 David Price D 88%
NC U.S. House-6 Howard Coble R 25%
NC U.S. House-7 Mike McIntyre D 75%
NC U.S. House-12 Mel Watt D 88%
NJ U.S. Senate-Sr Bob Menendez D 75%
NJ U.S. House-1 Rob Andrews D 88%
NJ U.S. House-2 Frank LoBiondo R 88%
NJ U.S. House-4 Chris Smith R 75%
NJ U.S. House-6 Frank Pallone, Jr. D 100%
NJ U.S. House-9 Bill Pascrell, Jr. D 88%
NJ U.S. House-11 Rodney Frelinghuysen R 50%
NV U.S. Senate-Sr Harry Reid D 89%
NY U.S. Senate-Sr Chuck Schumer D 75%
NY U.S. House-2 Pete King R 50%
NY U.S. House-4 Carolyn McCarthy D 88%
NY U.S. House-5 Gregory Meeks D 88%
NY U.S. House-7 Nydia Velázquez D 88%
NY U.S. House-10 Jerry Nadler D 88%
NY U.S. House-12 Carolyn Maloney D 75%
NY U.S. House-13 Charlie Rangel D 75%
NY U.S. House-15 José Serrano D 100%
NY U.S. House-16 Eliot Engel D 75%
NY U.S. House-17 Nita Lowey D 75%
NY U.S. House-25 Louise Slaughter D 100%
OH U.S. Senate-Sr Sherrod Brown D 100%
OH U.S. Senate-Jr Rob Portman R 50%
OH U.S. House-1 Steve Chabot R 38%
OH U.S. House-8 John Boehner R 63%
OH U.S. House-9 Marcy Kaptur D 88%
OH Governor John Kasich R 63%
OH State Senate-28 Thomas Sawyer D 100%
OH Attorney General Michael DeWine R 33%
OK U.S. Senate-Sr Jim Inhofe R 0%
OK U.S. Senate-Jr Thomas Coburn R 25%
OK U.S. House-3 Frank Lucas R 63%
OR U.S. Senate-Sr Ron Wyden D 100%
OR U.S. House-3 Earl Blumenauer D 75%
OR U.S. House-4 Peter DeFazio D 88%
PA U.S. House-1 Bob Brady D 100%
PA U.S. House-2 Chaka Fattah, Sr. D 88%
PA U.S. House-14 Mike Doyle, Jr. D 88%
PA U.S. House-16 Joe Pitts R 63%
RI U.S. Senate-Sr Jack Reed D 100%
SC U.S. Senate-Sr Lindsey Graham R 50%
SC U.S. House-1 Mark Sanford, Jr. R 25%
SC U.S. House-6 Jim Clyburn D 100%
SD U.S. Senate-Sr Timothy Johnson D 100%
SD U.S. Senate-Jr John Thune R 63%
TN U.S. House-2 John Duncan, Jr. R 50%
TX U.S. House-3 Sam Johnson R 38%
TX U.S. House-4 Ralph Hall R 88%
TX U.S. House-6 Joe Barton R 38%
TX U.S. House-8 Kevin Brady R 38%
TX U.S. House-12 Kay Granger R 63%
TX U.S. House-13 Mac Thornberry R 63%
TX U.S. House-15 Rubén Hinojosa, Sr. D 100%
TX U.S. House-18 Sheila Jackson Lee D 100%
TX U.S. House-21 Lamar Smith R 75%
TX U.S. House-29 Gene Green D 88%
TX U.S. House-30 Eddie Johnson D 100%
TX U.S. House-32 Pete Sessions R 50%
TX U.S. House-35 Lloyd Doggett D 75%
UT U.S. Senate-Sr Orrin Hatch R 56%
VA U.S. House-3 Bobby Scott D 100%
VA U.S. House-6 Bob Goodlatte R 50%
VA U.S. House-8 Jim Moran, Jr. D 88%
VA U.S. House-10 Frank Wolf R 50%
VT U.S. Senate-Sr Patrick Leahy D 100%
VT U.S. Senate-Jr Bernie Sanders I 100%
WA U.S. Senate-Sr Patty Murray D 100%
WA U.S. House-4 Doc Hastings R 63%
WA U.S. House-7 Jim McDermott D 75%
WA U.S. House-9 Adam Smith D 75%
WI U.S. House-3 Ron Kind D 88%
WI U.S. House-5 Jim Sensenbrenner, Jr. R 25%
WI U.S. House-6 Tom Petri R 50%
WI Mayor-At-Large Tom Barrett D 75%
WV U.S. Senate-Sr Jay Rockefeller IV D 100%
WV U.S. House-3 Nick Rahall II D 100%
WY U.S. Senate-Sr Mike Enzi R 11%
Edmond Spencer Abraham Other 44%
Gary Ackerman Other 75%
Daniel Akaka, Sr. Other 100%
Wayne Allard Other 22%
Thomas Allen Other 100%
Bill Archer Other 50%
Richard Armey Other 63%
John Ashcroft Other 11%
Richard Hugh Baker Other 50%
John Baldacci Other 100%
Cass Ballenger Other 50%
James Barcia Other 88%
Robert Barr, Jr. Other 25%
Bill Barrett Other 63%
Roscoe Bartlett Other 50%
Charlie Bass Other 50%
Herbert Bateman Other 50%
Bob Bennett Other 56%
Kenneth Bentsen, Jr. Other 88%
Douglas Bereuter Other 63%
Howard Berman Other 100%
Marion Berry Other 88%
Brian Bilbray Other 63%
Michael Bilirakis Other 38%
Jeff Bingaman Other 100%
Rod Blagojevich Other 75%
Thomas Bliley, Jr. Other 50%
Sherwood Boehlert Other 75%
Kit Bond Other 56%
Henry Bonilla Other 63%
David Edward Bonior Other 100%
Mary Bono Mack Other 67%
Robert Borski, Jr. Other 75%
Leonard Boswell Other 88%
Rick Boucher Other 75%
Allen Boyd, Jr. Other 75%
John Breaux Other 100%
George Brown, Jr. Other 100%
Richard Bryan Other 100%
Ed Bryant Other 63%
Jim Bunning Other 63%
Conrad Burns Other 44%
Dan Burton Other 63%
Steve Buyer Other 63%
Robert Byrd Other 89%
Herbert Callahan Other 63%
Ben Campbell Other 67%
Thomas Campbell Other 75%
Chris Cannon Other 50%
Julia Carson Other 88%
Mike Castle Other 50%
John Chafee Other 67%
Helen Chenoweth-Hage Other 63%
William Clay, Sr. Other 88%
Eva Clayton Other 88%
Joseph Maxwell Cleland Other 100%
Robert Clement Other 100%
Michael Collins Other 25%
Larry Combest Other 63%
Gary Condit Other 88%
Kent Conrad Other 100%
Merrill Cook Other 38%
John Cooksey Other 63%
Jerry Costello Other 75%
Paul Coverdell Other 44%
Christopher Cox Other 63%
William Coyne Other 100%
Larry Craig Other 33%
Robert Cramer Other 88%
Philip Crane Other 25%
Barbara Cubin Other 63%
Randall Cunningham Other 63%
Patsy Ann Danner Other 63%
Thomas Daschle Other 100%
James Davis Other 100%
Thomas Davis III Other 88%
Bill Delahunt Other 100%
Thomas DeLay Other 38%
Peter Deutsch Other 88%
Lincoln Diaz-Balart Other 63%
Jay Dickey Other 75%
Norm Dicks Other 100%
Julian Dixon Other 88%
Chris Dodd Other 100%
Pete Domenici, Jr. Other 44%
Calvin Dooley Other 100%
John Doolittle Other 25%
Byron Dorgan Other 100%
David Dreier Other 50%
Jennifer Dunn Other 63%
Chet Edwards Other 100%
Vern Ehlers Other 63%
Bob Ehrlich, Jr. Other 50%
Jo Ann Emerson Other 75%
Philip English Other 75%
Bob Etheridge Other 88%
Lane Evans Other 75%
Terry Everett Other 63%
Thomas Ewing Other 63%
Russ Feingold Other 78%
Mark Foley Other 63%
Michael Patrick Forbes Other 75%
Harold Ford, Jr. Other 75%
Vito Fossella, Jr. Other 63%
Tillie Fowler Other 63%
Barney Frank Other 88%
Robert Franks Other 75%
William Frist Other 22%
Jonas Frost III Other 88%
Elton Gallegly Other 63%
John Ganske Other 50%
Sam Gejdenson Other 88%
George Gekas Other 63%
Richard Andrew Gephardt Other 75%
Jim Gibbons Other 63%
Wayne Gilchrest Other 75%
Paul Gillmor Other 75%
Benjamin Gilman Other 100%
Newt Gingrich Other 13%
Virgil Goode, Jr. Other 38%
William Goodling Other 63%
Bart Gordon Other 88%
Slade Gorton Other 33%
Porter Goss Other 38%
Daniel Graham Other 89%
William Phillip Gramm Other 11%
Rodney Grams Other 11%
James Greenwood Other 63%
Judd Gregg Other 22%
Gilbert Gutknecht Other 63%
Tony Hall Other 100%
James Hansen Other 38%
J. Dennis Hastert Other 63%
J.D. Hayworth, Jr. Other 63%
Joel Hefley Other 38%
Jesse Helms Other 0%
Wally Herger, Jr. Other 50%
Rick Hill Other 63%
Van Hilleary Other 50%
Earl Hilliard, Jr. Other 88%
Maurice Hinchey Other 100%
David Lee Hobson Other 63%
Pete Hoekstra Other 50%
Thomas Holden Other 63%
Ernest Hollings Other 78%
Darlene Hooley Other 75%
Stephen Horn Other 63%
John Nathan Hostettler Other 38%
Amory Houghton, Jr. Other 75%
Kenny Hulshof Other 75%
Duncan Hunter Other 50%
Asa Hutchinson Other 75%
Y. Tim Hutchinson Other 22%
Kay Hutchison Other 56%
Henry Hyde Other 50%
Daniel Inouye Other 89%
Ernest Istook, Jr. Other 25%
Jesse Jackson, Jr. Other 100%
William Jefferson Other 63%
James Merrill Jeffords Other 78%
William Lewis Jenkins Other 63%
Christopher John Other 63%
Nancy Johnson Other 75%
Paul Kanjorski Other 75%
Sue Kelly Other 75%
Edward Kennedy, Sr. Other 100%
Patrick Kennedy Other 100%
Bob Kerrey Other 89%
Dale Kildee Other 100%
Carolyn Kilpatrick Other 50%
Gerald Kleczka Other 88%
Ronald Klink Other 50%
Joseph Knollenberg Other 63%
Herb Kohl Other 89%
James Kolbe Other 63%
Dennis Kucinich Other 88%
Jon Kyl Other 11%
John LaFalce Other 88%
Ray LaHood Other 50%
Nicholas Lampson Other 100%
Tom Lantos Other 100%
Stephen Largent Other 38%
Steve LaTourette Other 75%
Frank Lautenberg Other 100%
Rick Lazio Other 75%
James Leach Other 88%
Jerry Lewis Other 63%
Ron Lewis Other 63%
Joe Lieberman Other 100%
John Linder Other 63%
William Lipinski Other 75%
Robert Livingston Other 63%
Trent Lott, Sr. Other 22%
Dick Lugar Other 11%
William Luther Other 75%
Connie Mack Other 22%
James Maloney Other 63%
Don Manzullo Other 25%
Matthew Martinez Other 75%
Frank Mascara Other 88%
Robert Matsui Other 100%
Karen McCarthy Other 75%
Bill McCollum Other 63%
James McCrery III Other 63%
John McHugh Other 88%
Scott McInnis Other 63%
David McIntosh Other 38%
Cynthia Ann McKinney Other 100%
Michael McNulty Other 88%
Martin Meehan Other 88%
Carrie Meek Other 88%
Jack Metcalf Other 63%
Juanita Millender-McDonald Other 63%
Dan Miller Other 25%
David Minge Other 75%
Patsy Takemoto Mink Other 100%
John Moakley Other 63%
Alan Mollohan Other 75%
Constance Morella Other 100%
Patrick Moynihan Other 89%
Frank Murkowski Other 33%
Jack Murtha Other 88%
Sue Myrick Other 50%
George Nethercutt, Jr. Other 63%
Robert William Ney Other 63%
Don Nickles Other 0%
Anne Northup Other 63%
Charles Norwood, Jr. Other 50%
James Nussle Other 75%
Jim Oberstar Other 88%
Dave Obey Other 100%
John Olver Other 100%
Solomon Ortiz, Sr. Other 75%
Major Owens Other 75%
Michael Oxley Other 63%
Ronald Packard Other 63%
Ron Paul Other 0%
Donald Payne Other 88%
Edward Pease Other 75%
John Peterson Other 63%
Charles Pickering, Jr. Other 50%
Owen Pickett Other 100%
Richard Pombo Other 63%
Earl Pomeroy Other 75%
John Edward Porter Other 63%
Deborah Pryce Other 25%
Jack Quinn Other 75%
George Radanovich Other 50%
James Ramstad Other 88%
Ralph Regula Other 63%
Silvestre Reyes Other 75%
Bob Riley Other 63%
Lynn Nancy Rivers Other 75%
Charles Robb Other 100%
Ciro Rodriguez Other 100%
Timothy Roemer Other 88%
James Rogan Other 63%
William Roth, Jr. Other 44%
Steve Rothman Other 75%
Marge Roukema Other 38%
Jim Ryun Other 50%
Martin Olav Sabo Other 100%
Max Sandlin, Jr. Other 100%
Rick Santorum Other 22%
Paul Sarbanes Other 100%
Jim Saxton Other 38%
Joe Scarborough Other 25%
John Shadegg Other 50%
E. Clay Shaw, Jr. Other 75%
Christopher Shays Other 63%
E.G. Shuster Other 63%
Norman Sisisky Other 100%
Joseph Skeen Other 75%
Ike Skelton Other 100%
Gordon Smith Other 44%
Nick Smith Other 50%
Bob Smith Other 11%
Olympia Snowe Other 67%
Vic Snyder Other 88%
Mark Souder Other 75%
Arlen Specter Other 78%
Floyd Spence Other 63%
John Spratt, Jr. Other 75%
Pete Stark Other 88%
Cliff Stearns Other 25%
Charles Stenholm Other 100%
Ted Stevens Other 56%
Ted Strickland Other 88%
Bob Stump Other 25%
Bart Stupak Other 63%
John Sununu Other 50%
James Talent Other 50%
John Tanner Other 75%
Ellen Tauscher Other 88%
William Tauzin Other 50%
Charles Taylor Other 50%
Gene Taylor Other 50%
Craig Thomas Other 22%
William Thomas Other 50%
Fred Thompson Other 22%
Karen Thurman Other 75%
Strom Thurmond Other 22%
Todd Tiahrt Other 38%
Robert Torricelli Other 100%
Ed Towns Other 63%
James Traficant, Jr. Other 88%
James Turner Other 100%
Bruce Vento Other 100%
James Walsh Other 63%
Zach Wamp Other 50%
John Warner Other 67%
Wesley Watkins Other 63%
Julius Caesar Watts, Jr. Other 63%
David Weldon Other 38%
W. Curtis Weldon Other 63%
Gerald Weller Other 75%
Paul Wellstone Other 89%
Robert Wexler Other 75%
Bob Weygand Other 100%
Heather Wilson Other 60%
Bob Wise, Jr. Other 88%
Lynn Woolsey Other 100%
Albert Wynn Other 100%

How to Interpret these Evaluations

Keep in mind that ratings done by special interest groups often do not represent a non-partisan stance. In addition, some groups select votes that tend to favor members of one political party over another, rather than choosing votes based solely on issues concerns. Nevertheless, they can be invaluable in showing where an incumbent has stood on a series of votes in the past one or two years, especially when ratings by groups on all sides of an issue are compared. Website links, if available, and descriptions of the organizations offering performance evaluations are accessible by clicking on the name of the group.

Most performance evaluations are displayed in a percentage format. However, some organizations present their ratings in the form of a letter grade or endorsement based on voting records, interviews, survey results and/or sources of campaign funding. For consistency and ease in understanding, Project Vote Smart converts all scores into a percentage when possible. Please visit the group's website or call 1-888-VOTESMART for more specific information.