Leonard John Lance[1] (born June 25, 1952) is an American politician and attorney who served as the U.S. representative for New Jersey's 7th congressional district, from 2009 to 2019.

[13] In 1996, Lance sought the Republican nomination to replace Rep. Dick Zimmer, who was retiring from the House of Representatives to run for the United States Senate.

Lance ran to represent New Jersey's 12th congressional district, which at that time included his residence in Clinton Township.

Lance finished third in the primary behind Franklin Township Mayor Michael Pappas and New Jersey Senator John O. Bennett III.

[16] In the general election, Lance faced New Jersey Assemblywoman Linda Stender of Scotch Plains, as well as three independent and third-party candidates.

Along with Erik Paulsen of Minnesota and Joseph Cao of Louisiana, Lance was one of three non-incumbent Republicans to be elected in a district won by President Barack Obama.

[21] In 2010, Lance was challenged in the Republican primary by businessman David Larsen of Oldwick, IT consultant Alonzo Hosford of Milford, and real estate appraiser Bruce Baker of Westfield.

[38] Lance lost to Democrat and former Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor Tom Malinowski in the November 2018 general election.

[51] In 2017, Lance declined to endorse Roy Moore, the Trump-endorsed Republican candidate in the U.S. Senate special election in Alabama.

[55][56] Lance criticized Trump's 2017 executive order that curtailed the immigration of people from seven countries in the Middle East, calling it "rushed and poorly implemented.

"[57] Lance was supportive of Trump's nomination of Neil Gorsuch to the United States Supreme Court[58] and his Mexico City Policy.

[61] Lance supported TransCanada's Keystone XL Pipeline, voting for the 2014 bill to authorize its construction.

[62] However, Lance opposed the PennEast Pipeline, which would cross New Jersey, citing its impact on property owners, public lands, and preservation efforts.

"[78] In 2009, Lance was one of only eight Republicans in the House who voted in favor of the American Clean Energy and Security Act, a bill that included am emissions cap-and-trade provision to address global warming.

[84][86] According to a 2016 analysis by political nonprofit Vote Smart, Lance generally opposed gun control legislation.

[88] In 2016, Lance disagreed with members of Congress who staged a sit-in to force a vote on gun control.

Lance voted to send the American Health Care Act of 2017, the Republican Party's replacement plan for Obamacare, out of committee.

[98][99] In 2013, Lance re-introduced the Modernizing Our Drug and Diagnostic Evaluation and Regulatory Network Cures (MODDERN) Act, a bipartisan bill intended to encourage new innovative treatments for a variety of diseases and ailments.

This bill would benefit patients with a variety of ailments including but not limited to: degenerative conditions, cancer, and autoimmune diseases.

[98] In 2014, Lance introduced the Excellence in Mental Health Act, which was signed into law by President Barack Obama later that same year.

[100][101] Lance opposes amnesty and supports requiring employers to use the e-verify background check system.

[102] In June 2018, Lance became the lead Republican sponsor of the Reunite Children with their Parents Act, which was introduced by Democrat Brendan Boyle.

The legislation seeks to "force President Donald Trump's administration to reunify the families split apart under his immigration policy."

[103] Lance was one of the 107 members of Congress who signed a letter of support towards the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) efforts to repeal net neutrality.

[104] In March 2017, Lance voted to reverse an FCC privacy rule that prevented internet service providers from selling their customers' browsing data.

[105][45] Explaining his vote, Lance said that the regulation created a "false sense of privacy" by treating internet service providers differently.

[113] Lance married his wife, Heidi A. Rohrbach, previously a VP at JPMorgan Chase and currently serving as Hunterdon County Surrogate, in August 1996.

Lance is a former trustee of the Newark Museum, of Centenary College in Hackettstown and of McCarter Theatre in Princeton.