Democratic Whips (1899 to present)
About this object A ten-term Member of the House, Oscar Underwood of Alabama served as the first Democratic Whip in 1899.
The first Democratic Whip was appointed in 1899 when Democratic Leader James D. Richardson of Tennessee chose Oscar Underwood of Alabama. Incomplete documentation from 1909 to 1921, however, have left no official record of the Democratic Whip during most of those years.
For much of its history, the Democratic Whip has been appointed by the Democratic Leader. Beginning with Tony Coelho of California in 1986, the party Whip has been elected by the organizing caucus of Democratic Representatives-elect just prior to the start of a new Congress. If the position becomes vacant during a Congress, a new Whip is elected at a subsequent meeting. When Democrats are in the majority, the Whip is the third highest position in the caucus, behind the Majority Leader and the Speaker.
When in the minority, the Whip is the second highest position behind the Minority Leader. Of the 25 members who have served as Democratic Whip, five later became House Speaker, eight became Democratic Leader, and two moved over to the Senate. The Democratic Whip organization has also grown over time as the legislative agenda became busier and the issues of national governance grew more complex. By the opening of the 107th Congress (2001–2003), six deputy whips represented and were responsible for various groupings among the Democrats.
Information on the current activities of the Democratic Whip is available at the House Democratic Whip's website.
Chart sorts alphabetically within each Congress.
| Congress and Years | Name | State or Territory |
|---|---|---|
| 56th (1899–1901) | UNDERWOOD, Oscar Wilder | AL |
| 57th (1901–1903) | LLOYD, James Tilghman | MO |
| 58th (1903–1905) | LLOYD, James Tilghman | MO |
| 59th (1905–1907) | LLOYD, James Tilghman | MO |
| 60th (1907–1909) | BELL, Thomas Montgomery 1 | GA |
| 60th (1907–1909) | LLOYD, James Tilghman 2 | MO |
| 61st (1909–1911) | BELL, Thomas Montgomery | GA |
| 62nd (1911–1913) | BELL, Thomas Montgomery | GA |
| 63rd (1913–1915) | BELL, Thomas Montgomery | GA |
| 64th (1915–1917) | BELL, Thomas Montgomery | GA |
| 65th (1917–1919) | BELL, Thomas Montgomery | GA |
| 66th (1919–1921) | KITCHIN, Claude | NC |
| 67th (1921–1923) | OLDFIELD, William Allan | AR |
| 68th (1923–1925) | OLDFIELD, William Allan | AR |
| 69th (1925–1927) | OLDFIELD, William Allan | AR |
| 70th (1927–1929) | OLDFIELD, William Allan 3 | AR |
| 70th (1927–1929) | MCDUFFIE, John 4 | AL |
| 71st (1929–1931) | MCDUFFIE, John | AL |
| 72nd (1931–1933) | MCDUFFIE, John | AL |
| 73rd (1933–1935) | GREENWOOD, Arthur Herbert | IN |
| 74th (1935–1937) | BOLAND, Patrick Joseph | PA |
| 75th (1937–1939) | BOLAND, Patrick Joseph | PA |
| 76th (1939–1941) | BOLAND, Patrick Joseph | PA |
| 77th (1941–1943) | BOLAND, Patrick Joseph 5 | PA |
| 77th (1941–1943) | RAMSPECK, Robert C. Word 6 | GA |
| 78th (1943–1945) | RAMSPECK, Robert C. Word | GA |
| 79th (1945–1947) | RAMSPECK, Robert C. Word 7 | GA |
| 79th (1945–1947) | SPARKMAN, John Jackson 8 | AL |
| 80th (1947–1949) | MCCORMACK, John William | MA |
| 81st (1949–1951) | PRIEST, James Percy | TN |
| 82nd (1951–1953) | PRIEST, James Percy | TN |
| 83rd (1953–1955) | MCCORMACK, John William | MA |
| 84th (1955–1957) | ALBERT, Carl Bert | OK |
| 85th (1957–1959) | ALBERT, Carl Bert | OK |
| 86th (1959–1961) | ALBERT, Carl Bert | OK |
| 87th (1961–1963) | ALBERT, Carl Bert 9 | OK |
| 87th (1961–1963) | BOGGS, Thomas Hale, Sr. 10 | LA |
| 88th (1963–1965) | BOGGS, Thomas Hale, Sr. | LA |
| 89th (1965–1967) | BOGGS, Thomas Hale, Sr. | LA |
| 90th (1967–1969) | BOGGS, Thomas Hale, Sr. | LA |
| 91st (1969–1971) | BOGGS, Thomas Hale, Sr. | LA |
| 92nd (1971–1973) | O'NEILL, Thomas Philip (Tip), Jr. | MA |
| 93rd (1973–1975) | MCFALL, John Joseph | CA |
| 94th (1975–1977) | MCFALL, John Joseph | CA |
| 95th (1977–1979) | BRADEMAS, John | IN |
| 96th (1979–1981) | BRADEMAS, John | IN |
| 97th (1981–1983) | FOLEY, Thomas Stephen | WA |
| 98th (1983–1985) | FOLEY, Thomas Stephen | WA |
| 99th (1985–1987) | FOLEY, Thomas Stephen | WA |
| 100th (1987–1989) | COELHO, Tony | CA |
| 101st (1989–1991) | COELHO, Tony 11 | CA |
| 101st (1989–1991) | GRAY, William Herbert, III 12 | PA |
| 102nd (1991–1993) | GRAY, William Herbert, III 13 | PA |
| 102nd (1991–1993) | BONIOR, David Edward 14 | MI |
| 103rd (1993–1995) | BONIOR, David Edward | MI |
| 104th (1995–1997) | BONIOR, David Edward | MI |
| 105th (1997–1999) | BONIOR, David Edward | MI |
| 106th (1999–2001) | BONIOR, David Edward | MI |
| 107th (2001–2003) | BONIOR, David Edward 15 | MI |
| 107th (2001–2003) | PELOSI, Nancy 16 | CA |
| 108th (2003–2005) | HOYER, Steny Hamilton | MD |
| 109th (2005–2007) | HOYER, Steny Hamilton | MD |
| 110th (2007–2009) | CLYBURN, James Enos | SC |
| 111th (2009–2011) | CLYBURN, James Enos | SC |
| 112th (2011–2013) | HOYER, Steny Hamilton | MD |
| 113th (2013–2015) | HOYER, Steny Hamilton | MD |
| 114th (2015–2017) | HOYER, Steny Hamilton | MD |
| 115th (2017–2019) | HOYER, Steny Hamilton | MD |
| 116th (2019–2021) | CLYBURN, James Enos | SC |
| 117th (2021–2023) | CLYBURN, James Enos | SC |
| 118th (2023–2025) | CLARK, Katherine M. | MA |
Footnotes
1Appointed Democratic Whip in February 1908 to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Democratic Whip James Tilghman Lloyd.
2Resigned as Democratic Whip in February 1908.
3Died in office, November 19, 1928.
4Elected Democratic Whip on March 3, 1929, to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Democratic Whip William Allan Oldfield.
5Died in office, May 18, 1942.
6Appointed Democratic Whip on June 8, 1942, to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Democratic Whip Patrick Joseph Boland.
7Resigned from the House of Representatives on December 31, 1945.
8Appointed Democratic Whip on November 27, 1945, to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Democratic Whip Robert C. Word Ramspeck.
9Elected Majority Leader on January 10, 1962, to fill the vacancy created when Majority Leader John McCormack was elected Speaker.
10Elected Democratic Whip on January 10, 1962, to fill the vacancy created when Democratic Whip Carl Albert was elected Majority Leader.
11Resigned as Democratic Whip on June 14, 1989.
12Elected Democratic Whip on June 14, 1989.
13Resigned from the House of Representatives on September 11, 1991.
14Elected Democratic Whip on July 11, 1991, but did not assume office until September 11, 1991.
15Resigned from the House of Representatives on January 15, 2002.
16Elected Democratic Whip on October 10, 2001, but did not assume office until January 15, 2002.