Larry Smith (Texas)
Larry Smith (Republican Party) ran for election to the Texas House of Representatives to represent District 54. Smith lost in the Republican primary on March 6, 2018.
Smith ran in one of 48 contested Texas state legislative Republican primaries in 2018. To read more about the conflict between Republican factions in the primaries, including who the factions were, which races were competitive and who key influencers lined up behind, click here.
Smith was a 2016 Republican candidate for District 54 of the Texas House of Representatives. Smith was also a 2014 Republican candidate who sought election to the U.S. House to represent the 34th Congressional District of Texas.[1] Smith was defeated in the general election on November 4, 2014.
Biography
Larry Smith was born in Detroit, Michigan. He served in the U.S. Army.[2]
Campaign themes
2016
Smith's campaign website highlighted the following issues:
| “ |
Pro-life: I am unapologetically and unequivocally Pro-Life and absolutely believe that life begins at conception. Our Declaration of Independence states "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." Our unborn children have the right to live and simply must be protected. Education: If we want our children to have a better life with more opportunity than we had for ourselves we should start with education. Throwing an ever-greater amount of money at education has not worked and will not work because federal bureaucracy has too much influence in the classroom. Parent, teachers, and local communities know what is best for our children not bureaucrats and special interest groups with their own agenda. Education serves the student best when it is organized at the local level. Economy: Small businesses are the backbone and the engine that powers that economy. A burdensome regulatory climate will reduce the entrepreneurial spirit needed to keep our economy moving forward and creating jobs. As long as Texas stays a "Red State" that economic engine will keep running strong and the "American Dream" will still be alive. Health Care: Quality health care should be readily available, affordable, and between a patient and their doctor. Health care plans should be flexible, portable, and cover pre-existing conditions. While our health care system could have benefitted from the right type of reform, the "Affordable Care Act" (ACA) generally known as "ObamaCare" certainly wasn't it. Unfortunately, the impossible promises of ObamaCare made by the president to get elected, to get ObamaCare passed, and finally to get re-elected will never come true because they are based on coercion and not free market principles. The only way to insure high quality health care is through competition and the only way to insure competition is with a free market health care system. Veterans: The men and women of the United States Armed Forces are the greatest fighting force in the history of the mankind. It is only through the strength of those forces that there is even the possibility of peace in the world. Our veterans, service members, and their families deserve our respect and support and should have access to quality health care, a quality education, and quality retirement benefits. As an Iraq War Army Combat Veteran and Captain in the U. S. Army, no one will safeguard the care and financial security of our Veterans more tenacious and effectively than I will. That is my promise to my brothers in arms.[3] |
” |
| —Larry Smith[4] | ||
Elections
2018
General election
General election for Texas House of Representatives District 54
Brad Buckley defeated Kathy Richerson in the general election for Texas House of Representatives District 54 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Brad Buckley (R) | 53.8 | 26,037 | |
Kathy Richerson (D)  | 46.2 | 22,357 | ||
| Total votes: 48,394 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Robert Walden (L)
Republican primary runoff election
Republican primary runoff for Texas House of Representatives District 54
Brad Buckley defeated incumbent Scott Cosper in the Republican primary runoff for Texas House of Representatives District 54 on May 22, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Brad Buckley | 58.3 | 4,445 | |
 | Scott Cosper | 41.7 | 3,185 | |
| Total votes: 7,630 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Texas House of Representatives District 54
Kathy Richerson advanced from the Democratic primary for Texas House of Representatives District 54 on March 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Kathy Richerson | 100.0 | 3,838 | |
| Total votes: 3,838 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for Texas House of Representatives District 54
Incumbent Scott Cosper and Brad Buckley advanced to a runoff. They defeated Larry Smith in the Republican primary for Texas House of Representatives District 54 on March 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Scott Cosper | 44.6 | 4,472 |
| ✔ | Brad Buckley | 41.6 | 4,173 | |
 | Larry Smith | 13.9 | 1,390 | |
| Total votes: 10,035 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Overview of 2018 Republican primaries
The 2018 Texas state legislative Republican primaries featured conflict between two factions. One group was opposed to House Speaker Joe Straus (R) and his preferred policies on issues like education financing and property taxes. The anti-Straus wing included members of the Texas Freedom Caucus and organizations such as Empower Texans and Texas Right to Life. The other group was supportive of Straus and his policy priorities. The pro-Straus wing included incumbent legislators allied with Straus and organizations such as the Associated Republicans of Texas and the Texas Association of Business. To learn more about these factions and the conflict between them, visit our page on factional conflict among Texas Republicans.
The primaries occurred on March 6, 2018, with runoffs on May 22, 2018. There were 48 contested state legislative Republican primaries, outnumbering contested primaries in 2016 (43) and 2014 (44). To see our full coverage of the state legislative Republican primaries, including who key influencers were backing and what the primaries meant for the 2019 House speaker's race, visit our primary coverage page.
The charts below outline the March 6 primary races for the state Senate and the state House. They show how the factions performed on election night.
| Texas Senate Republicans | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Before March 6 primaries | After March 6 primaries | |
| Pro-Straus | 2 | 1 | |
| Anti-Straus | 1 | 3 | |
| Unknown | 3 | 3 | |
| Open seats | 1 | - | |
| Runoffs | - | - | |
| Too close to call | - | - | |
| Total | 7 | 7 | |
| Texas House Republicans | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Before March 6 primaries | After March 6 primaries | |
| Pro-Straus | 20 | 20 | |
| Anti-Straus | 4 | 9 | |
| Unknown | 2 | 5 | |
| Open seats | 15 | - | |
| Runoffs | - | 7 | |
| Too close to call | - | - | |
| Total | 41 | 41 | |
Primary we watched
This primary was one of 48 we tracked for the March 6 elections.
Did the incumbent file to run for re-election?
| Yes. |
What made this a race to watch?
| Brad Buckley and Larry Smith challenged state Rep. Scott Cosper in his primary. All candidates in this race signed the form committing to vote for the Republican caucus' choice for speaker on the House floor. See our coverage of the primary runoff in this race here. Endorsements for Cosper |
Campaign finance
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.[7] Incumbent Jimmie Don Aycock (R) did not seek re-election.
Scott Cosper defeated Sandra Blankenship in the Texas House of Representatives District 54 general election.[8]
| Texas House of Representatives, District 54 General Election, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  Scott Cosper |
54.84% | 28,894 | |
| Democratic | Sandra Blankenship | 45.16% | 23,794 | |
| Total Votes | 52,688 | |||
| Source: Texas Secretary of State | ||||
Scott Cosper defeated Austin Ruiz in the Texas House of Representatives, District 54 Republican primary runoff.[9]
| Texas House of Representatives, District 54 Republican Primary Runoff, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | Scott Cosper |
50.40% | 2,494 | |
| Republican | Austin Ruiz | 49.60% | 2,454 | |
| Total Votes | 4,948 | |||
Sandra Blankenship defeated Lan Carter in the Texas House of Representatives District 54 Democratic Primary.[10][9]
| Texas House of Representatives, District 54 Democratic Primary, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Sandra Blankenship |
71.53% | 3,922 | |
| Democratic | Lan Carter | 28.47% | 1,561 | |
| Total Votes | 5,483 | |||
Scott Cosper and Austin Ruiz defeated Larry Smith in the Texas House of Representatives District 54 Republican Primary.[10][9]
| Texas House of Representatives, District 54 Republican Primary, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | Scott Cosper |
41.73% | 5,970 | |
| Republican | Austin Ruiz |
36.84% | 5,270 | |
| Republican | Larry Smith | 21.43% | 3,065 | |
| Total Votes | 14,305 | |||
2014
Smith ran in the 2014 election for the U.S. House to represent Texas' 34th District. Smith won the Republican nomination in the primary on March 4, 2014, with no opposition. He was defeated by incumbent Filemon Vela (D) in the general election on November 4, 2014.[11]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Filemon Vela Incumbent |
59.5% | 47,503 | |
| Republican | Larry Smith | 38.6% | 30,811 | |
| Libertarian | Ryan Rowley | 2% | 1,563 | |
| Total Votes | 79,877 | |||
| Source: Texas Secretary of State | ||||
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Smith is married and has three children.[12]
See also
- State legislative elections, 2018
- Texas House of Representatives elections, 2018
- State legislative special elections, 2018
- Texas House of Representatives District 54
- Texas House of Representatives elections, 2016
- Texas House of Representatives
- Texas State Legislature
- United States House of Representatives
- Texas' 34th Congressional District elections, 2014
- Texas' 34th Congressional District
External links
- Search Google News for this topic
- Campaign website
- Campaign Facebook page
- Campaign Twitter page
- Texas Legislature website
Footnotes
- ↑ Official campaign Facebook page, accessed January 22, 2014
- ↑ Larry Smith, Candidate for Texas House District 54, “About Larry Smith,” accessed January 31, 2018
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Vote Larry Smith, "Issues," accessed February 24, 2016
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedBLASTj25 - ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedNFIB - ↑ Texas Secretary of State, "Important 2016 Election Dates," accessed December 14, 2015
- ↑ Texas Secretary of State, "2016 General Election," accessed December 2, 2016
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Texas Secretary of State, "1992 - Current Election History results," accessed August 22, 2016
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Texas Secretary of State, "2016 March Primary Election Candidate Filings by County," accessed August 22, 2016
- ↑ The Huffington Post, "Election 2014," November 4, 2014
- ↑ Campaign website, "About," accessed July 31, 2014
