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Texas, House of Representatives, District 65

Texas House of Representatives District 65
Current incumbentMichelle Beckley Democratic Party
Population165,724
Race51.9% White, 34.5% Black/Hispanic, 13.6% Other
Ethnicity78.6% Not Hispanic, 21.4% Hispanic
Voting age75.4% age 18 and over

Texas' sixty-fifth state house district is represented by Democratic Representative Michelle Beckley.

As of the 2010 census, a total of 165,742 civilians reside within Texas' sixty-fifth 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 65

Michelle Beckley (D) defeated incumbent Ron Simmons (R) in the general election for Texas House of Representatives District 65 on November 6, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes

Michelle Beckley (D)
51.2
29,972

Ron Simmons (R)
48.8
28,614

Total votes: 58,586
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Texas House of Representatives District 65

Michelle Beckley advanced from the Democratic primary for Texas House of Representatives District 65 on March 6, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes

Michelle Beckley (D)
100
5,687

Total votes: 5,687
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Texas House of Representatives District 65

Incumbent Ron Simmons defeated Kevin Simmons in the Republican primary for Texas House of Representatives District 65 on March 6, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes

Ron Simmons (R)
83.3
6,608

Kevin Simmons (R)
16.7
1,325

Total votes: 7,933

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.

Incumbent Ron Simmons defeated Alex Mendoza in the Texas House of Representatives District 65 general election.

Texas House of Representatives, District 65 General Election, 2016

Party Candidate Vote % Votes
Republican Green check mark transparent.png Ron Simmons Incumbent 56.26% 34,418
Democratic Alex Mendoza 43.74% 26,759
Total Votes 61,177
Source: Texas Secretary of State

Alex Mendoza ran unopposed in the Texas House of Representatives District 65 Democratic Primary.

Texas House of Representatives, District 65 Democratic Primary, 2016

Party Candidate
Democratic Green check mark transparent.png Alex Mendoza (unopposed)

Incumbent Ron Simmons defeated Ben Kissling in the Texas House of Representatives District 65 Republican Primary.

Texas House of Representatives, District 65 Republican Primary, 2016

Party Candidate Vote % Votes
Republican Green check mark transparent.png Ron Simmons Incumbent 83.23% 11,526
Republican Ben Kissling 16.77% 2,323
Total Votes 13,849

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. Incumbent Ron Simmons was unopposed in the Republican primary. Alex Mendoza was unopposed in the Democratic primary. Simmons defeated Mendoza in the general election.

Texas House of Representatives, District 65 General Election, 2014

Party Candidate Vote % Votes
Republican Green check mark transparent.pngRon Simmons Incumbent 64.3% 18,812
Democratic Alex Mendoza 35.7% 10,440
Total Votes 29,252

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. Ron Simmons (R) defeated Gary E. Brown (D) and Alex Mendoza (G) in the general election. Simmons defeated David Loerwald and Mike Hennefer in the Republican primary election. Brown was unopposed in the Democratic primary election.

Texas House of Representatives, District 65, General Election, 2012

Party Candidate Vote % Votes
Republican Green check mark transparent.pngRon Simmons 59.1% 31,386
Democratic Gary Brown 38.6% 20,481
Green Alex Mendoza 2.3% 1,224
Total Votes 53,091

Texas House of Representatives District 65 Republican Primary, 2012

Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngRon Simmons 61.6% 4,844
David Loerwald 22.3% 1,754
Mike Hennefer 16% 1,260
Total Votes 7,858

Campaign contributions

From 2002 to 2014, candidates for Texas House of Representatives District 65 raised a total of $2,481,289. Candidates who raised money in contributions earned $165,419 on average. All figures come from Follow the Money.

Campaign contributions, Texas House of Representatives District 65

Year Amount Candidates Average
2014 $156,033 2 $78,017
2012 $441,905 4 $110,476
2010 $526,179 2 $263,090
2008 $331,983 1 $331,983
2006 $329,936 2 $164,968
2004 $410,713 1 $410,713
2002 $206,983 2 $103,492
2000 $77,557 1 $77,557
Total $2,481,289 15 $165,419