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Texas, House of Representatives, District 4

Texas House of Representatives District 4
Current incumbentKeith Bell Republican Party
Population168,429
Race73.9% White, 24.1% Black/Hispanic, 2.0% Other
Ethnicity85.2% Not Hispanic, 14.8% Hispanic
Voting age73.4% age 18 and over

Texas' fourth state house district is represented by Republican Representative Keith Bell.

As of the 2010 census, a total of 168,429 civilians reside within Texas' fourth state house district. Texas state representatives represent an average of 167,637 residents. After the 2000 Census, each member represented 139,012 residents.

About the office

Members of the Texas House of Representatives serve two-year terms and are not subject to term limits. Texas legislators assume office at the beginning of the legislative session (January).

Qualifications

To be eligible to serve in the Texas House of Representatives, a candidate must be:

  • A U.S. citizen
  • 21 years old before the general election
  • A two-year resident of Texas before the general election
  • A district resident for 1 year prior to the general election

Salaries

State legislators
SalaryPer diem
$7,200/year$190/day. Set by the ethics commission.

Pension

When calculating a legislators' pension, their normal salary is artificially inflated to $125,000. This goes back to 1981, when lawmakers linked their salaries to those of state judges. Since then, they raised judges' salaries while removing the caps on their own pensions, pushing the maximum benefit up to 100% of a judge's salary.

In 2011, this resulted in an average state employee pension of $17,526 annually. The maximum pension a legislator can earn is $125,000, of which Rep. Tom Craddick (R) will be the first to qualify for when he retires. .

Vacancies

If there is a vacancy in the house, the Governor must call a special election to fill the vacant seat. A Governor's proclamation to a special election must be delivered to local elections authorities representing the vacant seat no later than 36 days before the scheduled election.

The Secretary of State can declare a candidate duly elected in a special election if there is no opposition.

Elections

2020

Elections for the office of Texas House of Representatives will take place in 2020. The general election will be held on November 3, 2020. A primary is scheduled for March 3, 2020, and a primary runoff is scheduled for May 26, 2020. The filing deadline was December 9, 2019.

2018

General election
General election for Texas House of Representatives District 4

Keith Bell (R) defeated Eston Williams (D) and D. Allen Miller (L) in the general election for Texas House of Representatives District 4 on November 6, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes

Keith Bell (R)
74.1
44,669

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Eston Williams (D)
24.2
14,581

D. Allen Miller (L)
1.7
1,029

Total votes: 60,279
Primary runoff election
Republican primary runoff for Texas House of Representatives District 4

Keith Bell defeated Stuart Spitzer in the Republican primary runoff for Texas House of Representatives District 4 on May 22, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes

Keith Bell (R)
58.9
7,892

Stuart Spitzer (R)
41.1
5,508

Total votes: 13,400
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Texas House of Representatives District 4

Eston Williams advanced from the Democratic primary for Texas House of Representatives District 4 on March 6, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Eston Williams (D)
100
3,229

Total votes: 3,229
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Texas House of Representatives District 4

Stuart Spitzer and Keith Bell advanced to a runoff. They defeated Ashley McKee and Earl Brunner in the Republican primary for Texas House of Representatives District 4 on March 6, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes

Stuart Spitzer (R)
45.8
9,376

Keith Bell (R)
26.2
5,367

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Ashley McKee (R)
25.7
5,269

Earl Brunner (R)
2.3
474

Total votes: 20,486

2016

Elections for the Texas House of Representatives took place in 2016. The primary election was held on March 1, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was December 14, 2015.

Lance Gooden ran unopposed in the Texas House of Representatives District 4 general election.

Texas House of Representatives, District 4 General Election, 2016

Party Candidate Vote % Votes
Republican Green check mark transparent.png Lance Gooden (unopposed) 100.00% 52,089
Total Votes 52,089
Source: Texas Secretary of State
Lance Gooden defeated incumbent Stuart Spitzer in the Texas House of Representatives District 4 Republican Primary.

Texas House of Representatives, District 4 Republican Primary, 2016

Party Candidate Vote % Votes
Republican Green check mark transparent.png Lance Gooden 51.79% 14,561
Republican Stuart Spitzer Incumbent 48.21% 13,554
Total Votes 28,115

2014

Elections for all 150 seats in the Texas House of Representatives took place in 2014. A primary election took place on March 4, 2014. Those candidates who did not receive 50 percent or more of the vote in their party primary on March 4 faced an additional May 27 primary runoff. The general election was held on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in these elections was December 9, 2013. Stuart Spitzer defeated incumbent Lance Gooden in the Republican primary. Spitzer defeated Frederick Stralow (L) in the general election.

Texas House of Representatives, District 4 General Election, 2014

Party Candidate Vote % Votes
Republican Green check mark transparent.pngStuart Spitzer 89.1% 26,660
Libertarian Rick Stralow 10.9% 3,253
Total Votes 29,913

2012

Elections for the office of Texas House of Representatives consisted of a primary election on May 29, 2012, and a general election on November 6, 2012. Lance Gooden (R) was unchallenged in the general election. Gooden defeated Stuart Spitzer in the Republican primary election.

Texas House of Representatives District 4 Republican Primary, 2012

Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngLance Gooden Incumbent 54.4% 8,159
Stuart Spitzer 45.6% 6,827
Total Votes 14,986

Campaign contributions

From 2002 to 2012, candidates for Texas House of Representatives District raised a total of $2,928,825. Candidates who raised money in contributions earned $195,255 on average. All figures come from Follow the Money.

Campaign contributions, Texas House of Representatives District

Year Amount Candidates Average
2012 $607,647 2 $303,824
2010 $457,824 2 $228,912
2008 $661,842 3 $220,614
2006 $542,312 3 $180,771
2004 $38,326 1 $38,326
2002 $440,440 2 $220,220
2000 $180,434 2 $90,217
Total $2,928,825 15 $195,255