An engineer from Tulsa. A career builder. A senator on the clock.
Alan Armstrong spent thirty-five years building the energy infrastructure this country runs on. He has eight months in the Senate to make sure the next thirty-five are easier to build than the last.
At A Glance
Born
July 11, 1962 (age 63), McLennan County, Texas
Raised
Bartlesville, Oklahoma · Sooner High School
Lives
Tulsa, Oklahoma (since 1986)
Education
B.S. Civil Engineering, University of Oklahoma, 1985 · 2014 OU College of Engineering Distinguished Graduate
Family
Wife, Shelly; four children
Sworn in
March 24, 2026
Term ends
January 3, 2027
Office
330 Hart Senate Office Building
Biography
Senator Armstrong grew up in Tulsa, went to OU, and went to work.
Alan Armstrong is the fourth generation of an Oklahoma oil-and-gas family — raised in Bartlesville, a graduate of the University of Oklahoma, and a Tulsan since 1986, when he joined Williams Companies as an entry-level engineer. He led Williams as President and CEO from 2011 through 2025, and as Executive Chairman through March of 2026. For nearly four decades, his job was to build things: pipelines, gathering systems, and the midstream infrastructure that, by the end of his run, moved roughly one-third of all the natural gas flowing across the United States each day.
In March of 2026, Gov. Kevin Stitt appointed Armstrong to fill Oklahoma’s Senate seat through the balance of the 119th Congress, and he was sworn in the same afternoon by President Pro Tempore Chuck Grassley. He has said from day one that this is a finite job with a defined mission and a January 2027 expiration date — he is not running in November.
“My short time in the Senate will be tightly focused on meaningful permitting reform to get Americans access to whatever affordable energy solutions they choose. Infrastructure is foundational to growing our economy, ensuring American energy independence, and driving innovative solutions that Oklahomans have always delivered.”
— SEN. ALAN ARMSTRONG · MARCH 24, 2026
The Long Build
Thirty-five years building the infrastructure America depends on.
Alan Armstrong didn’t spend his career climbing the political ladder. He spent it building pipelines, power systems, and energy infrastructure that keep America running. From the loading dock to the boardroom, he learned firsthand what it takes to build major projects, create jobs, and strengthen American energy security.
1985
Graduates the University of Oklahoma
Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering, Norman. Returns home to Tulsa and takes an engineering job at Williams Companies.
1986
Joins Williams as an Engineer
Works on operations and project engineering for the gas pipeline business. The first of forty years he will spend at the same company.
1995–1999
Operations and Commercial Leadership
Director of Commercial Operations on the Gulf Coast midstream business. Then Vice President of Retail Energy Services, and Vice President of Commercial Development.
1999–2002
Vice President, Gathering & Processing
Runs the upstream segment of Williams’ midstream business — the gathering systems and processing plants that connect producers to the long-haul pipeline grid.
2011
Becomes President and CEO of Williams Companies
Takes the top job at the company he has worked at his entire adult life. Williams is Oklahoma’s largest publicly traded company and one of the largest natural-gas pipeline operators in North America.
2011–2025
Co-Founds Natural Allies for a Clean Energy Future
During his time leading Williams, he co-founds Natural Allies for a Clean Energy Future — an industry-led coalition that argues natural gas is the bridge fuel of a lower-emissions American grid, and one of the reasons he can credibly talk to Democrats about energy infrastructure.
2014
OU College of Engineering Distinguished Graduate
The University of Oklahoma names him a Distinguished Graduate of its College of Engineering — recognition reserved for alumni whose careers have brought significant honor to the college.
August 2022
Appointed to the National Infrastructure Advisory Council
President Biden appoints Armstrong to NIAC, the council that advises the President on the security and resilience of America’s critical infrastructure. A cross-aisle credential that previews the bipartisan posture he would later bring to the Senate.
July 2025
Steps Up to Executive Chairman
Hands off the CEO role after fourteen years — capped by twelve consecutive years of earnings growth — to focus on long-range strategy and the company’s transition. Joins the board of Constellation Energy, effective January 1, 2026.
March 2026
Appointed to the United States Senate
Gov. Kevin Stitt appoints Armstrong to fill the seat vacated by Sen. Markwayne Mullin upon his confirmation as Secretary of Homeland Security. Sworn in the same day by President Pro Tempore Chuck Grassley.
Roots and Roles
Boardrooms, classrooms, and four generations in Oklahoma.
Alongside his work at Williams, Armstrong took on industry-leadership roles that shaped how he thinks about American energy policy today — chairing the National Petroleum Council, co-founding Natural Allies for a Clean Energy Future, and serving on boards from Constellation Energy to BOK Financial. In 2022, President Biden appointed him to the National Infrastructure Advisory Council — a Republican CEO tapped by a Democratic president on the basis of subject-matter expertise rather than partisanship, and a preview of the bipartisan posture he now brings to the Senate.
Alan and Shelly Armstrong live in Tulsa with their four children. The family’s heritage in Oklahoma’s oil and gas industry runs four generations deep — both of Alan’s grandfathers, one grandmother, an uncle, and both of his parents worked at Phillips Petroleum.
Outside the office, he has spent most of his adult life giving back through education and community work — from volunteering at Junior Achievement when he joined Williams in 1986, to serving as Board Chair of Junior Achievement USA, to trustee service on the University of Oklahoma Foundation, the Gilcrease Museum board, and The Williams Foundation, which he led through more than $57 million in community investment over five years.
COMMITTEE ASSIGNMENTS · 119TH CONGRESS
Health, Education, Labor & Pensions (HELP)
Subcommittee on Employment and Workplace Safety
Subcommittee on Primary Health and Retirement Security
Indian Affairs
Standing committee. Oklahoma is home to thirty-nine federally recognized tribes — a portfolio the Senator takes seriously.
Board Service and Industry Leadership
- Williams CompaniesPresident & CEO, 2011–2025 · Executive Chairman of the Board, July 2025–March 2026
- Constellation EnergyBoard of Directors, January 2026–March 2026
- BOK Financial CorporationBoard of Directors
- National Petroleum CouncilChair · federal advisory committee to the U.S. Secretary of Energy
- National Infrastructure Advisory CouncilMember, appointed by President Biden in 2022 — advises the President on the security and resilience of U.S. critical infrastructure
- American Petroleum InstituteBoard of Directors
- Energy Infrastructure CouncilBoard of Directors
- Natural Allies for a Clean Energy FutureCo-founder and former Board Chair
- 2026 Platts Global Energy AwardHonoree — what the industry calls its highest individual recognition
Why He Said Yes
A finite job. A focused mission. A clear date on the calendar.
When Sen. Markwayne Mullin was confirmed as Secretary of Homeland Security in March of 2026, Gov. Stitt asked Armstrong to take the seat — not as a politician, but as a subject-matter expert on the one issue everyone in Washington agrees has to move: federal permitting reform. He has said from the day of the announcement that the eight months are for actual work, not for a re-election campaign, and he has held that line since.
The clock is the point. So is the mission.
Learn More
More about the Senator’s work.
Nationwide Energy & Permitting Reform
The Senator’s national priority: make it easier to build the energy projects America needs to compete, grow, and stay secure.
Media Center
What the office is saying, day to day. Bills introduced, hearings attended, statements on Oklahoma news.
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