Dean Heller

Dean Arthur Heller (born May 10, 1960) is the senior United States Senator from Nevada and a member of the Republican Party. He was elected in Nevada to that state's open U.S. Senate seat in 2012. He has held the seat since being appointed in 2011 by Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval after the resignation of John Ensign. Heller resigned as a member of the United States House of Representatives, where he had served from 2007-11 to assume office in the Senate. Prior to that he served as Secretary of State of Nevada (1995–2007) and a member of the Nevada Assembly (1990–94). He became the dean of Nevada's Congressional Delegation when his Senate colleague Harry Reid retired in 2017.