Gregory Joseph Pence (born November 14, 1956) is an American businessman and politician who served as the

U.S. representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

for

Indiana's 6th congressional district Indiana's 6th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Indiana. The district takes in a portion of eastern and central Indiana as of the 2020 census, including Columbus, Indiana, Columbus and Richmond, Indiana, Ric ...

from 2019 to 2025. The district serves much of east-central Indiana, including Pence's hometown of

Columbus Columbus is a Latinized version of the Italian surname "''Colombo''". It most commonly refers to: * Christopher Columbus (1451–1506), the Italian explorer * Columbus, Ohio, the capital city of the U.S. state of Ohio * Columbus, Georgia, a city i ...

, as well as

Greenfield Greenfield or Greenfields may refer to: Places Canada * Greenfield, Edmonton, Alberta, a neighbourhood * Greenfield, Colchester County, Nova Scotia * Greenfield, Hants County, Nova Scotia * Greenfield, Kings County, Nova Scotia * Greenfield, Q ...

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, a city in the United States * Richmond, London, a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town ...

, Shelbyville, and the southern third of

Indianapolis Indianapolis ( ), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Indiana, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana, Marion ...

. A member of the Republican Party, he is the older brother of former

U.S. vice president The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest ranking office in the executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks first in the presidential line of succession. Th ...

Mike Pence Michael Richard Pence (born June 7, 1959) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 48th vice president of the United States from 2017 to 2021 under President Donald Trump. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Repub ...

, who represented the district from 2001 to 2013. In January 2024, Pence announced that he would not be running for re-election to the

119th United States Congress The 119th United States Congress is the current term of the United States Congress, legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It convened on ...

Early life

Born in

Columbus, Indiana Columbus () is a city in and the county seat of Bartholomew County, Indiana, United States. The population was 50,474 at the 2020 census. The city is known for its architectural significance, having commissioned noted works of modern architect ...

, on November 14, 1956, Pence is the oldest of six children born to his parents, Ann Jane "Nancy" (née Cawley) and Edward Joseph Pence Jr., who ran a group of gas stations. He was raised in the Catholic faith. According to his mother, Pence and his three brothers rode wagons in a 1964 campaign parade for Republican presidential nominee

Barry Goldwater Barry Morris Goldwater (January 2, 1909 – May 29, 1998) was an American politician and major general in the United States Air Force, Air Force Reserve who served as a United States senator from 1953 to 1965 and 1969 to 1987, and was the Re ...

. Pence earned a

B.A. A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree ...

theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

and

philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

and a

Master of Business Administration A Master of Business Administration (MBA) is a professional degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration; elective courses may allow further study in a particular ...

in 1983 from

Loyola University Chicago Loyola University Chicago (Loyola or LUC) is a Private university, private Society of Jesus, Jesuit research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1870 by the Society of Jesus, Loyola is one of the largest Catholic Church, ...

. He earned a commission in the

Marines Marines (or naval infantry) are military personnel generally trained to operate on both land and sea, with a particular focus on amphibious warfare. Historically, the main tasks undertaken by marines have included Raid (military), raiding ashor ...

in 1981 after receiving his undergraduate degree and served for five and a half years, rising to the rank of first lieutenant. In 1983, his battalion was stationed in

Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

, and shipped out shortly before the bombings.

Business career

Pence owns and operates antique malls in

southern Indiana Southern Indiana is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the southern third of the U.S. state of Indiana and borders the states of Illinois to the west, Kentucky to the south, and Ohio to the east. Spanning the state's southe ...

. After being honorably discharged from the Marine Corps, Pence joined Kiel Brothers Oil Company in 1988, after his father died, and served as its president from 1998 to 2004. After his departure, the company filed for

Chapter 11 bankruptcy Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code ( Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, w ...

protection in 2004. Through the company, he also ran a chain of gas stations and convenience stores. According to some reports, the cleanup from the defunct business sites has cost Indiana at least $21 million. Pence also worked for

Marathon Oil Marathon Oil Corporation was an American company engaged in hydrocarbon exploration. In November 2024, it was acquired by ConocoPhillips and absorbed into the company. Marathon was founded in Lima, Ohio, as the Ohio Oil Company. In 1899, the ...

and

Unocal Union Oil Company of California, and its holding company Unocal Corporation, together known as Unocal was a major petroleum explorer and marketer in the late 19th century, through the 20th century, and into the early 21st century. It was headqu ...

. In 1999, he was elected to the board of directors of Home Federal Bancorp and its subsidiary Home Federal Savings Bank.

U.S. House of Representatives

58th Presidential Inaugural Ceremony 170120-D-BP749-0836

Elections

2018

Pence was the finance chairman in U.S. Representative

Luke Messer Allen Lucas Messer (born February 27, 1969) is an American politician and lobbyist who represented Indiana's 6th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 2013 to 2019. He is a member of the Republican Party. Bor ...

's 2018 campaign for the U.S. Senate. In October 2017, Pence launched his own campaign for the position Messer was leaving. On May 8, 2018, Pence won the Republican nomination for the U.S. House seat his brother

Mike Mike may refer to: Animals * Mike (cat), cat and guardian of the British Museum * Mike the Headless Chicken, chicken that lived for 18 months after his head had been cut off * Mike (chimpanzee), a chimpanzee featured in several books and documen ...

had held for 12 years. With Pence raising and spending about $1 million as of mid-April and his closest Republican challenger loaning himself about three quarters of that amount, it made the "race the most expensive in the state." Pence faced Democrat Jeannine Lake in the November general election and won by a margin of over 30%.

2020

Pence defeated Lake in a rematch in the November 3 general election with 68.6% of the vote.

Tenure

In December 2020, Pence was one of 126 Republican members of the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

to sign an

amicus brief An amicus curiae (; ) is an individual or organization that is not a party to a legal case, but that is permitted to assist a court by offering information, expertise, or insight that has a bearing on the issues in the case. Whether an ''amic ...

in support of '' Texas v. Pennsylvania'', a lawsuit filed at the

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...

contesting the results of the 2020 presidential election, in which

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

defeated incumbent

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

. In January 2021 in the aftermath of the insurrection at the Capitol and despite the rioters' chants of "Hang Mike Pence," Greg Pence voted to side with Trump and reject the Pennsylvania votes which swung the election to Biden. In May 2021, Pence voted against a House bill establishing a

January 6 commission The National Commission to Investigate the January 6 Attack on the United States Capitol Complex, known colloquially as the January 6 commission, was an unsuccessful proposal to create a commission that would have investigated the January 6 Uni ...

, accusing Speaker

Nancy Pelosi Nancy Patricia Pelosi ( ; ; born March 26, 1940) is an American politician who was the List of Speakers of the United States House of Representatives, 52nd speaker of the United States House of Representatives, serving from 2007 to 2011 an ...

and Democrats of partisan plans to use the commission to carry out the "political execution of Donald Trump". The bill passed. In August 2022, Pence criticized President

for forgiving up to $10,000 of student loan debt for eligible borrowers. Pence was criticized for hypocrisy because he had $79,441 of debt from his

PPP loan The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) is a $953-billion business loan program established by the United States federal government during the Trump administration in 2020 through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) ...

forgiven.

Committee assignments

For the

118th Congress The 118th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It convened in Washington, D.C., on January ...

: *

Committee on Energy and Commerce A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly or other form of organization. A committee may not itself be considered to be a form of assembly or a decision-making body. Usually, an assembly o ...

** Subcommittee on Energy, Climate, and Grid Security ** Subcommittee on Environment, Manufacturing, and Critical Materials ** Subcommittee on Health

Electoral history

Personal life

Pence and his wife, Denise, own two antique malls. They have four children and ten grandchildren. Pence is a practicing Catholic and attends St. Bartholomew Catholic Church in Columbus. Denise Pence was an Indiana delegate at the

2016 Republican National Convention The 2016 Republican National Convention, in which delegates of the United States Republican Party (United States), Republican Party chose the party's nominees for President of the United States, president and Vice President of the United Sta ...

and

2020 Republican National Convention The 2020 Republican National Convention in which delegates of the United States Republican Party selected the party's nominees for president and vice president in the 2020 United States presidential election, was held from August 24 to 27, 2 ...

and cast her vote for

and Mike Pence to be the party's nominees. She was also a delegate at the

2024 Republican National Convention The 2024 Republican National Convention was an event in which delegates of the Republican Party (United States), United States Republican Party selected the party's nominees for President of the United States, president and Vice President of ...

, where she cast her vote for Trump and

JD Vance James David Vance (born James Donald Bowman, August2, 1984) is an American politician, author, attorney, and Marine Corps veteran who is the 50th vice president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republic ...

to be the nominees. Pence and his family were in attendance at Trump's inauguration, seated several rows behind him. Their oldest daughter, Nicole, was a TV anchor in Indianapolis and their son,

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

, worked on Trump's 2020 campaign as a senior advisor and is married to

Kellyanne Conway Kellyanne Elizabeth Conway (née Fitzpatrick; born January 20, 1967) is an American political consultant and pollster who served as Senior Counselor to the President in the first presidency of Donald Trump for three years from 2017 and 2020. ...

's cousin Giovanna Coia.

References

External links

Congressman Greg Pence
official U.S. House website
Campaign site
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pence, Greg 1956 births 21st-century Indiana politicians 21st-century members of the United States House of Representatives American businesspeople in the oil industry American Roman Catholics Catholics from Indiana Indiana Republicans Living people Loyola University Chicago alumni Military personnel from Indiana Pence family People from Columbus, Indiana Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Indiana United States Marine Corps officers