Drew Springer Jr.

Last updated
Drew Alan Springer Jr.
Texas House of Representatives District 68
Assumed office
January 8, 2013
Preceded by Rick Hardcastle
Personal details
Born (1966-10-27) October 27, 1966 (age 53)
NationalityAmerican
Political party Republican
Spouse(s)Lydia Walterscheid Springer (m. 1992)
Children3
Residence Muenster, Texas
Alma mater University of North Texas
Occupation Businessman

Drew Alan Springer Jr. (born October 27, 1966) [1] is a Republican member of the Texas House of Representatives from District 68 in North Texas and the eastern South Plains. [2] The district, the second largest in the state in terms of square miles, includes a wide swath of twenty-two counties. [3] [4] If District 68 was a state it would be roughly twice the size of Maryland in land area.

Contents

Background

Springer graduated in 1985 from Weatherford High School in Weatherford, Texas. He then studied accounting at the University of North Texas. He and his wife, Lydia, who married in 1991, have three children. They reside in Muenster, Texas. [5] A businessman, Springer is a former controller of a railcar company. He thereafter was a manager of three companies with a total of more than 1,000 employees. In 2005, he joined his father in business in the financial services industry. [5]

Political career

Springer was first elected in 2012 when the incumbent Republican, Rick Hardcastle of Vernon, [6] stepped down after fourteen years in office [3] because of multiple sclerosis. [7] Springer was appointed to the Agriculture and Livestock and the Land and Resource Management committees. [4]

It initially appeared that Springer had lost the 2012 Republican primary election in a heavily rural district, when his chief opponent, Trent McKnight, finished with 49 percent of the vote. [3] [8] However, in the runoff election on July 31, with backing from two eliminated candidates in the primary, Springer topped McKnight, 8,434 (56.4 percent) to 6,521 (43.6 percent). [9] Springer was unopposed in the 2012 general election in his heavily Republican district.

Springer noted that McKnight is a former Democrat who had never voted in a Republican primary election until his own race in 2012. The winner in eighteen of the twenty-two counties, McKnight blamed his loss on a high turnout in Cooke County, where there was also a competitive election for sheriff, and low participation in the counties in which McKnight led in the primary, despite the high-profile U.S. Senate primary between David Dewhurst and Ted Cruz. In addition to Cooke, Springer won in neighboring Montague as well as Garza and Floyd counties. [10]

In 2013, Springer joined the large Republican majority in the Texas House in enacting H.B. 2 to restrict abortion. Springer co-sponsored the legislation. [11] The legislation was subsequently struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court in Whole Woman's Health v. Hellerstedt . [12]

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References

  1. ↑ "Drew Alan Springer". texastribune.org. Retrieved July 18, 2013.
  2. ↑ "State Rep. Springer announces district tour July 30". Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, July 16, 2013. Retrieved July 18, 2013.
  3. 1 2 3 "Doug McDonough, "Drew Springer wins Texas House District 68 nomination," August 1, 2012". myplainview.com. Retrieved July 18, 2013.
  4. 1 2 "Drew Springer Jr". lrl.state.tx.us. Retrieved July 18, 2013.
  5. 1 2 "Weatherford grad takes his seat as state legislator, February 1, 2013". Weatherford Democrat. Retrieved July 18, 2013.
  6. ↑ "Rick Hardcastle". lrl.state.tx.us. Retrieved July 18, 2013.
  7. ↑ "Stem cells for Texas Representative Rick Hardcastle". YouTube . Retrieved September 22, 2013.
  8. ↑ "Republican primary election returns, May 29, 2012". elections.sos.state.tx.us. Archived from the original on January 9, 2014. Retrieved July 18, 2013.
  9. ↑ "Texas Republican runoff primary returns, July 31, 2012". elections.sos.state.tx.us. Archived from the original on January 9, 2014. Retrieved July 18, 2013.
  10. ↑ Enrique Rangel (August 1, 2012). "Springer takes office in Tuesday surprise". Amarillo.com. Retrieved July 18, 2013.
  11. ↑
  12. ↑ Adam Liptak, Supreme Court Strikes Down Texas Abortion Restrictions, New York Times (June 28, 2016).
Texas House of Representatives
Preceded by
Rick Hardcastle 		State Representative for District 68
(Childress, Collingsworth, Cooke, Cottle, Crosby, Dickens, Fisher, Floyd, Garza, Hall, Hardeman, Haskell, Jack, Kent, King, Montague, Motley, Stonewall, Throckmorton, Wheeler, Wilbarger, and Young counties in North Texas)
2013–		Succeeded by
Incumbent
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