Born & Raised in Columbia City
Senator Jim Banks was born and raised in Columbia City, Indiana. He is the son of a factory worker and a nursing home cook.
Jim was the first in his family to go to college and graduated from Indiana University where he met his wife, Amanda. He later earned a Master of Business Administration from Grace College.
Afghanistan Veteran
Senator Banks is a U.S. Navy veteran.
In 2014 and 2015, Senator Banks took a leave of absence from the Indiana State Senate to deploy to Afghanistan during Operations Enduring Freedom and Freedom’s Sentinel.
Serving Indiana
Before being elected to the United States Senate in 2024, Banks served in the United States House of Representatives and in the Indiana State Senate. While serving in the Indiana State Senate from 2010 to 2016, he chaired the Senate Veteran Affairs and the Military Committee.
Banks was elected to the U.S. House in 2016 where he served four terms representing Indiana’s third Congressional district. In the 117th Congress, Congressman Banks served as Chairman of the Republican Study Committee—the largest conservative caucus in the House.
Before coming to Washington, Banks served as president of the Columbia City Rotary Club, chairman of the Whitley County Republican Party, and a member of the Whitley County Council and Northeast Indiana Workforce Development Board.
Father and Husband
Jim and his wife Amanda are the parents to three daughters, Lillian, Elizabeth, and Joann.
