Richard Burr, born November 30, 1955, in Charlottesville, Virginia, is a former American Republican politician from North Carolina.[3][4] Raised in Winston-Salem, he worked as a sales manager at Carswell Distributing Company before entering politics, inspired by his father, a pastor.[1] Burr first ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. House in 1992 but won North Carolina's 5th congressional district seat in 1994, serving until 2005 with strong reelection margins over 62% each time.[3][1] In 2004, he successfully ran for the U.S. Senate seat vacated by John Edwards, taking office in 2005 and winning reelection in 2010 and 2016.[3] As North Carolina's senior senator, Burr chaired the Senate Intelligence Committee, focusing on national security and intelligence matters.[3] He emphasized conservative principles, advocating free-market solutions for issues like education—particularly low high school graduation rates—and entitlement reforms.[1] Burr supported President Trump early on but broke ranks notably during Trump's second impeachment trial in 2021, voting to convict him of inciting the January 6 Capitol riot, citing Trump's responsibility for promoting unfounded election fraud claims.[2][3] This drew censure from the North Carolina Republican Party.[3] In 2016, after reelection, Burr announced he would not seek a fourth term. He retired from the Senate in January 2023, succeeded by Ted Budd.[3] As of 2026, Burr remains a retired figure, with no current elected roles, though his impeachment vote retains partisan relevance.[2][3]