Hawley, Josh, 1979-

Joshua David Hawley (born December 31, 1979) is an American politician, lawyer, and former professor who has served as the junior United States senator from Missouri since 2019. A member of the Republican Party, Hawley served as the 42nd attorney general of Missouri from 2017 to 2019, before defeating two-term incumbent Democratic senator Claire McCaskill in the 2018 election. As Missouri attorney general, Hawley initiated several high-profile lawsuits and investigations, including a lawsuit against the Affordable Care Act, an investigation into Missouri governor Eric Greitens, and a lawsuit and investigation into companies associated with the opioid epidemic. In the Senate, Hawley became widely known for his criticism of Big Tech, as well as for his criticism of the Chinese government and his support for an independent Hong Kong. In December 2020, Hawley provoked a political backlash when he became the first senator to announce plans to object to the certification of Joe Biden's victory in the 2020 United States presidential election. Hawley led Senate efforts to overturn the Electoral College vote count and rallied supporters of the Stop the Steal conspiracy theory that motivated an attack on the U.S. Capitol, with figures across the political spectrum calling on him to resign or be expelled from the Senate.