Erin Suzanne Houchin ( HOW-chin; née Mount; born September 24, 1976) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for Indiana's 9th congressional district since 2023. A member of the Republican Party, she represented the 47th district in the Indiana Senate from 2014 to 2022.
Contents
Early life and career
Houchin was born in Indiana on September 24, 1976, and attended Scottsburg Senior High School. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in psychology from Indiana University Bloomington and a Master of Arts in political management from George Washington University.
Houchin worked as a field manager for U.S. Senator Dan Coats. She was first elected to the Indiana Senate in 2014, defeating incumbent Richard D. Young.
She ran for the United States House of Representatives for Indiana's 9th congressional district in 2016, losing the Republican primary election to Trey Hollingsworth.
U.S House of Representatives
2022 election
On January 13, 2022, a day after Hollingsworth announced he would not run for reelection, Houchin announced that she was running to succeed him in the 2022 elections. On January 29, 2022, Houchin announced that she was resigning from the state senate on February 4 to focus on her bid for Congress. She won the Republican primary and the November 8 general election.
Committee assignments
For the 118th Congress:
Committee on Education and the Workforce
Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions
Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Development
Committee on Financial Services
Subcommittee on Capital Markets
Subcommittee on Digital Assets, Financial Technology and Inclusion
Subcommittee on Housing and Insurance
Committee on Rules
Subcommittee on Rules and the Organization of the House
Caucus memberships
Republican Main Street Partnership
Congressional Western Caucus
Congressional Caucus on Foster Youth (co-chair)
Following the November 2024 elections, Houchin won the internal House Republican Conference elections for secretary (the sixth-highest ranking post in the conference), defeating Mariannette Miller-Meeks of Iowa.
Political positions
In 2023, Houchin voted in favor of an amendment that would have halted all United States military aid intended to support Ukraine in its defense against the Russian invasion. The amendment failed on a vote of 358–70, with a majority of Republicans (149) and all Democrats (209) voting against it.
Personal life
Houchin's husband, Dustin, is a prosecutor for Washington County, Indiana. They have three children and lived in Salem, Indiana, as of 2014. Dustin ran for a judgeship on the Washington County Superior Court in 2022. Houchin is Protestant and attends Mount Tabor Christian church, a Restorationist church.