Former member of Congress · last served 113th Congress

John D. Rockefeller IV

DEMOCRAT U.S. Senator · West VirginiaSenate 1985–2015

Jay Rockefeller was a Democratic U.S. senator from West Virginia, first elected to Congress in 1985, who voted with most Democrats on 95% of the 112th Congress’s yes/no votes and sponsored 2 bills that became law (113th–113th Congress).

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49Bills & resolutions sponsored113th–113th Congress (excludes amendments)

2Passed a chamberof 42 substantive bills (excludes resolutions and ceremonial bills)

2Became law2 substantive + 0 ceremonial · 113th–113th Congress

11Broke with partyof 229 yes/no votes, 112th (4.8%)

22Missed votesof 251 roll calls, 112th (8.8%)

—Pork: own shareFY2024 earmarks: not in office

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

YeaOn Passage of the Bill — American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012
Jan 1, 2013 · Bill Passed
YeaOn the Nomination — Nomination vote
Dec 30, 2012 · Nomination Confirmed
YeaOn the Nomination — Nomination vote
Dec 30, 2012 · Nomination Confirmed
YeaOn Passage of the Bill — Disaster Relief Appropriations Act, 2013
Dec 28, 2012 · Bill Passed
NayOn the Amendment — Disaster Relief Appropriations Act, 2013
Dec 28, 2012 · Amendment Rejected

5 most recent bills

S. 2338 United States Anti-Doping Agency Reauthorization Act
Dec 18, 2014 · Became Public Law No: 113-280.
S. 1353 Cybersecurity Enhancement Act of 2014
Dec 18, 2014 · Became Public Law No: 113-274.
S. 2799 Satellite Television Access and Viewer Rights Act
Dec 12, 2014 · By Senator Rockefeller from Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation filed written report. Report No. 113-322.
S. 2777 Surface Transportation Board Reauthorization Act of 2014
Dec 12, 2014 · By Senator Rockefeller from Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation filed written report. Report No. 113-321.
S. 2022 Forensic Science and Standards Act of 2014
Dec 12, 2014 · By Senator Rockefeller from Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation filed written report. Report No. 113-320.

Top bills sponsored

Laws first, then bills that passed a chamber, were reported from committee, or drew the most cosponsors.

Elections Sen. Rockefeller, has won

Sen. Rockefeller, has won 5 U.S. Senate elections (1984, 1990, 1996, 2002, 2008). Of the contested races, margins ran from 4.1 to 53.3 points.

Democratic winRepublican winseat changed partyunopposed

Elections won5 in the data (1976–2024); losses are not listed

Closest win: 4.1 points1984, WV Senate

Won an open seat or took one from the other party1 of 5 elections (open seat or changed party)

Seat history, West Virginia Senate (class 2)Winners in regular elections, most recent three: Jennings Randolph (D) 1978 → John D. Rockefeller, IV (D) 1984–2008 → Shelley Moore Capito (R) 2014–2020. The seat is next on the ballot in 2026.

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 West Virginia done while Sen. Rockefeller served?

2005 to 2014 in West Virginia: typical household income was about the same after inflation, the share of people below the poverty line was about the same, and the share of workers looking for a job was about the same.

Typical household income · after inflation

West Virginia: $54.0K in 2005 → $54.6K in 2014

West Virginia about the sameU.S. down 4%

Share of people below the poverty line

West Virginia: 18.0% in 2005 → 18.3% in 2014

West Virginia about the sameU.S. up 2.2 points

Share of workers looking for a job

West Virginia: 7.2% in 2005 → 6.9% in 2014

West Virginia about the sameU.S. up 0.3 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. Oxblood = state, grey = U.S.

While they served, not because of them. This shows what happened in West Virginia during Rockefeller’s time representing it (1985 to 2015). It does not say what the member did or caused. It is not a score, and PORKER never ranks members on it.

Survey years start at 2005. The yearly estimates for West Virginia begin in 2005, so 1985 to 2004 are not shown. No 2020 yearly estimate exists.

See the full 20-year record →Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 1-year estimates (tables B19013, B17001, B23001) and BLS CPI-U-RS for inflation, retrieved October 18, 2026. “About the same” means the change is inside the 90% margins of error. Who held the seat: Congress.gov member service records, year level.

Official records on bills this member sponsored

113th Congress. What Congress.gov lists for the 49 bills sponsored.

Record	Bills	Source
Bills sponsored	49	Source: Congress.gov member record, PORKER copy of October 26, 2026 ↗ See them →
With a CBO cost estimate listed	9	See the 9 →
With a committee report listed	9	See the 9 →
With a Congress.gov note	1	See the 1 →

Evidence

How counted: Bills where this member is the lead (first-listed) sponsor in the 113th 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.

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Data as of Oct 26, 2026 · latest recorded Senate vote Sep 30, 2026 · Sources: Congress.gov, Senate.gov, House Clerk, Appropriations Committee earmark tables. PORKER is non-partisan.