James Mountain Inhofe (/ˈɪnhɒf/ INN-hoff; born November 17, 1934) is an American politician serving as the senior United States senator from Oklahoma, a seat he was first elected to in 1994. A member of the Republican Party, he chaired the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works (EPW) from 2003 to 2007 and again from 2015 to 2017. Inhofe served as the U.S. representative for Oklahoma's 1st congressional district from 1987 to 1994 and as mayor of Tulsa from 1978 to 1984.