Chris Smith (New Jersey politician)

Christopher Henry Smith (born March 4, 1953) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for New Jersey's 4th congressional district since 1981. Though it has taken various forms, his district has always been situated in central New Jersey. Currently, the district contains parts of Ocean and Monmouth counties. Smith is a member of the Republican Party, having switched from the Democratic Party in 1978. As of 2025, Smith is tied with Hal Rogers for being the longest currently serving member of the House of Representatives.

Smith is the dean of New Jersey's congressional delegation since 2003, he previously shared the deanship with fellow representative Marge Roukema until the latter's retirement, and the longest-serving member of Congress in New Jersey's history. He has focused much of his career on promoting human rights abroad, including authoring the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act of 2000 and several follow-on laws. From 1993 to 2019, he was the top House Republican on the United States Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe. He has used his leadership positions, including chairmanships, to author multiple pieces of legislation focused on human rights and conduct aggressive oversight of human rights abuses, actions that have earned him scorn from affected nations.