Former member of Congress · last served 117th Congress
Jim Cooper
James Cooper was a Democratic U.S. representative from Tennessee, first elected to Congress in 1983, who voted with most Democrats on 84% of the 112th Congress’s yes/no votes and sponsored 1 bill that became law (113th–117th Congress).
How we count: “Broke with party” is a yes/no roll call where the member voted against most of their own party on that vote (party as recorded; even splits not counted). “Pork: own share” splits each earmark shared by several members evenly among them.
5 most recent votes
- NayOn Motion to Concur in the Senate Amendments — American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012Jan 1, 2013 · Passed
- YeaOn Agreeing to the Resolution — Providing for consideration of the Senate amendments to the bill (H.R. 8) to extend certain tax relief provisions enacted in 2001 and…Jan 1, 2013 · Passed
- YeaOn Motion to Suspend the Rules and Concur in the Senate Amendment — Drywall Safety Act of 2012Jan 1, 2013 · Passed
- YeaOn Motion to Suspend the Rules and Concur in the Senate Amendment — To provide for the conveyance of certain property from the United States to the Maniilaq Association located in Kotzebue, Alaska.Jan 1, 2013 · Passed
- YeaOn Motion to Suspend the Rules and Pass — Congressional Pay Freeze and Fiscal Responsibility ActJan 1, 2013 · Passed
5 most recent bills
- H.R. 5271 To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 2245 Rosa L Parks Boulevard in Nashville, Tennessee, as the "Thelma Harper Post…Dec 27, 2022 · Became Public Law No: 117-277.
- H.Res. 588 Honoring the bravery and legacy of the Clinton 12.Nov 1, 2022 · Referred to the Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties.
- H.Res. 1178 Expressing support for the designation of the week of June 27 through July 3, 2022, as "National Tire Safety Week" in the United States, and supporting the…Jun 16, 2022 · Referred to the Subcommittee on Highways and Transit.
- H.R. 5729 GIFTS ActOct 26, 2021 · Referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Reform.
- H.R. 5111 To amend section 6103 of title 5, United States Code, to establish Rosa Parks Day as a Federal holiday, and for other purposes.Aug 27, 2021 · Referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Reform.
Top bills sponsored
- H.R. 971 (101st) Telephone Operator Consumer Services Improvement Act of 1990Became law
- H.R. 928 (110th) Inspector General Reform Act of 2008Became law
- H.R. 5667 (101st) To amend the Water Resources Development Act of 1974 to establish a deadline for the transfer of jurisdiction of the Big South Fork National River and…Became law
- H.Res. 243 (109th) Recognizing the Coast Guard, the Coast Guard Auxiliary, and the National Safe Boating Council for their efforts to promote National Safe Boating Week.Passed a chamber
- H.Con.Res. 282 (108th) Honoring the life of Johnny Cash.Passed a chamber
- H.Res. 1375 (111th) Recognizing the 90th anniversary of the 19th Amendment.Passed a chamber
- H.Con.Res. 121 (110th) Recognizing the benefits and importance of school-based music education, and for other purposes.Passed a chamber
- H.Con.Res. 45 (109th) Recognizing the benefits and importance of school-based music education, and for other purposes.Passed a chamber
Laws first, then bills that passed a chamber, were reported from committee, or drew the most cosponsors.
Elections Rep. Cooper has won
Rep. Cooper has won 16 U.S. House elections (1982–2020). Of the contested races, margins ran from 14.2 to 100.0 points.
Full election history for this seat →
Source: MIT Election Data and Science Lab, U.S. House V15 / U.S. Senate V8 (CC0), retrieved 2026-10-18; winners matched to member records by seat and term. Results run through the 2024 elections; nothing from 2026 is shown until it is certified. A margin is a fact about one election, never a score of how well a member represents anyone, and PORKER does not rank members by it.
How has Tennessee’s 5th district done while Rep. Cooper served?
2012 to 2021 in TN-5: typical household income was up 24% after inflation, the share of people below the poverty line was down 4.2 points, and the share of workers looking for a job was down 4.6 points.
Each mini chart has its own scale, fitted to its lines (it does not start at zero), so compare the numbers, not the heights. Teal = district, oxblood = state, grey = U.S.
While they served, not because of them. This shows what happened in Tennessee’s 5th district during Cooper’s time representing it (2003 to 2023). It does not say what the member did or caused. It is not a score, and PORKER never ranks members on it.
Only one set of district lines is shown. TN-5 was redrawn in 2012 and again in 2022, and a redrawn district is a different place. So this card shows only the longest stretch on the same lines during the term, 2012 to 2021 (no 2020 yearly estimate), not the full 2003 to 2023.
Official records on bills this member sponsored
117th Congress. What Congress.gov lists for the 10 bills sponsored.
| Record | Bills | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Bills sponsored | 10 | Source: Congress.gov member record, PORKER copy of October 26, 2026 ↗ See them → |
| With a sponsor’s constitutional-authority statement | 8 | See the 8 → |
| With a CBO cost estimate listed | 1 | See the 1 → |
| With a committee report listed | 0 | None listed |
Evidence
- How counted
- Bills where this member is the lead (first-listed) sponsor in the 117th Congress, read from the stored Congress.gov bill records
- Fields
- cboCostEstimates, committeeReports, constitutionalAuthorityStatementText, notes
- PORKER copy refreshed
- October 26, 2026 (nightly)
Read this first. These are counts of records Congress.gov lists. Many bills never get a CBO estimate or a report, so a zero is not a mark against a member. We never show this as a score.
Data as of Oct 26, 2026 · latest recorded House vote Sep 16, 2026 · Sources: Congress.gov, Senate.gov, House Clerk, Appropriations Committee earmark tables. PORKER is non-partisan.