Claiborne was a member of the State house of delegates (1783–1788), served as colonel in command of the Brunswick County Militia in 1789, sheriff of Brunswick County (1789–1792), and a member of the state senate (1790–1792). He was elected to the Third Congress and reelected as a Republican to the Fourth and Fifth Congresses. His bid for reelection in 1798 was unsuccessful, but he was again elected as a Republican to the Seventh and Eighth Congresses. He died on his estate in Brunswick County in 1812.
He was the father of United States Congressman Thomas Claiborne (1780–1856).