Patrick Timothy McHenry (born October 22, 1975) is an American politician who served as the U.S. representative for North Carolina's 10th congressional district from 2005 to 2025, which includes the communities of Hickory and Mooresville.

[5] McHenry acted as Speaker pro tempore of the House for 22 days following the removal of Kevin McCarthy via a motion to vacate.

He grew up in suburban Gastonia, the son of the owner of the Dixie Lawn Care Company,[8] and attended Ashbrook High School.

[17] A resident of Denver, North Carolina, McHenry represented the state's 109th House district, including constituents in Gaston County, for the 2003–04 session.

[6] McHenry was the subject of discussion in April 2008, regarding a video posted on his congressional campaign website that featured him in the Green Zone in Baghdad, pointing out landmarks and destruction after missile attacks.

[21] Lance Sigmon, McHenry's opponent, later called a press conference to demand an investigation of the video's effect on Green Zone troops.

[26][full citation needed] On May 24, 2011, Elizabeth Warren, appointed by President Obama to oversee the development of the new U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), attended a House subcommittee meeting chaired by McHenry, who invited her because he felt she had given misleading testimony during another hearing.

Earlier that day, McHenry had appeared on CNBC and accused Warren of lying to Congress about her involvement in government inquiries into mortgage servicing.

As Warren and some in the audience reacted with surprise, Representative Elijah Cummings interjected, "Mr. Chairman, I'm trying to be cordial here, but you just accused the lady of lying.

[32] McHenry supported a 2020 rule change by the Trump administration whereby payday lenders would no longer have to check whether prospective borrowers can afford to repay high-interest loans.

[33] McHenry did not join the majority of Republican members of Congress who sided with the Trump campaign's attempts to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election.

[34][35][36] On October 3, 2023, McHenry was appointed as Speaker pro tempore of the United States House of Representatives, after a successful motion to vacate led to the removal of Kevin McCarthy from the speakership.

[40] In 2004, after one term in the North Carolina General Assembly, McHenry ran for Congress in the 10th congressional district when nine-term incumbent Cass Ballenger retired.

McHenry faced a heavily contested primary and bested his closest opponent, Catawba County sheriff David Huffman, in a runoff by only 85 votes.

In 2008, McHenry defeated Lance Sigmon in the Republican primary with 67% of the vote and faced Democrat Daniel Johnson in the general election.

[44] McHenry defeated Republicans Vance Patterson, Scott Keadle, and David Michael Boldon with 63.09% of the vote to win the primary.