James Wadsworth Symington (/ˈsaɪmɪŋtən/ SY-ming-tən; born September 28, 1927) is an American lawyer and politician from Missouri who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives for four terms from 1969 to 1977.

He is the great-grandson of James W. Wadsworth (member of the United States House of Representatives from New York) and grandson of James W. Wadsworth Jr. (member of the United States House of Representatives from New York) and great-grandson of John Hay.

In 1945, he graduated from Deerfield Academy in Massachusetts and enlisted in the United States Marine Corps at the age of 17.

Symington earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from Yale University in 1950 where he sang as a member of The Whiffenpoofs and the Glee Club.

[3] He served in this role until 1960, when he returned to private practice in Washington, D.C., where he served in a series of roles in government from 1961 to 1968: deputy director, Food for Peace (1961–1962); administrative assistant to United States Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy (1962–1963); director, President's Committee on Juvenile Delinquency (1965–1966); consultant, President's Commission on Law Enforcement and Administration of Justice (1965–1966); and Chief of Protocol of the United States (1966–1968).

In the 1976 United States Senate election in Missouri, he chose not to seek his seat for a fifth term; rather, he made an unsuccessful bid for the Democratic nomination to fill the United States Senate seat vacated by his father, who retired after serving four terms.