Wesley Hunt
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Texas's 38th district
Assumed office
January 3, 2023
Preceded byConstituency established
Personal details
Born
Wesley Parish Hunt

(1981-11-13) November 13, 1981 (age 42)
Houston, Texas, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
SpouseEmily Hunt
Children3
EducationUnited States Military Academy (BS)
Cornell University (MBA, MPA, MA)
WebsiteHouse website
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch/service United States Army
RankCaptain

Wesley Parish Hunt (born November 13, 1981)[1] is an American politician and veteran serving as the U.S. representative for Texas's 38th congressional district since 2023. He is a member of the Republican Party.

Early life and education

Hunt was born and raised in Houston to a military family. After graduating from St. John's School, he attended the United States Military Academy, where he received a Bachelor of Science in leadership and management with mechanical engineering in 2004.[2] His West Point class of 2004 classmates include U.S. representatives John James and Pat Ryan.[3] Hunt flew Apache helicopters in the military.[4]

After being honorably discharged, he attended Cornell University and obtained a Master of Business Administration, Master of Public Administration,[5] and a Master of Industrial and Labor Relations.[6]

U.S. House of Representatives

Elections

2020

See also: 2020 United States House of Representatives elections in Texas § District 7

Hunt ran for Texas's 7th congressional district in the 2020 elections. In a field of six candidates, Hunt won the Republican primary election with 61% of the vote.[7] He lost the general election to incumbent Democrat Lizzie Fletcher.[8] Hunt conceded to Fletcher a day after the election.[8]

2022

See also: 2022 United States House of Representatives elections in Texas § District 38

A day after redistricted maps were revealed, Hunt announced his intention to run in the new, solidly Republican 38th district.[9] Andrew Schneider of Houston Public Media wrote that "state GOP lawmakers carved out a new district, Texas' 38th, specifically with [Hunt] in mind." Hunt faced nine opponents in the primary election and received over 55% of the vote.[10] He was endorsed by Republican Main Street Partnership PAC[11] He defeated the Democratic nominee, Duncan Klussmann, in the November 8 general election, 63% to 35%.[12]

Tenure

In January 2023, at the beginning of the 118th U.S. Congress, Hunt supported Kevin McCarthy for Speaker of the United States House of Representatives.[13] Hunt is on the House Judiciary,[14] Natural Resources[15] and Small Business[15] Committees. On the Small Business Committee he chairs the Rural Development, Energy, and Supply Chains[16]

Hunt has endorsed Donald Trump's campaign in the 2024 presidential election.[17]

Syria

In 2023, Hunt was among 47 Republicans to vote in favor of H.Con.Res. 21, which directed President Joe Biden to remove U.S. troops from Syria within 180 days.[18][19]

Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023

Hunt was among the 71 Republicans who voted against final passage of the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 in the House.[20]

Personal life

Around the time of his arrival in Congress, Hunt's wife, Emily, gave birth to a son, Willie, who was born prematurely and needed time in the neonatal intensive care unit, forcing Hunt to leave the Speaker of the House election on its fourth day, missing the 12th and 13th ballots before returning the same day.[13]

Hunt is a Baptist. He attended Champion Forest Baptist Church, which he has said shaped his beliefs.[21]

Electoral history

2020

Texas's 7th congressional district Republican primary, 2020[22]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Wesley Hunt 28,060 61.0
Republican Cindy Siegel 12,497 27.2
Republican Maria Espinoza 2,716 5.9
Republican Kyle Preston 1,363 3.0
Republican Jim Noteware 937 2.0
Republican Laique Rehman 424 0.9
Total votes 45,997 100.0
Texas's 7th congressional district, 2020[23]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Lizzie Fletcher (incumbent) 159,529 50.8
Republican Wesley Hunt 149,054 47.4
Libertarian Shawn Kelly 5,542 1.8
Total votes 314,125 100.0
Democratic hold

2022

Texas's 38th congressional district Republican primary, 2022[24]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Wesley Hunt 35,291 55.3%
Republican Mark Ramsey 19,352 30.3%
Republican David Hogan 3,125 4.9%
Republican Ronald Lopez 2,048 3.2%
Republican Brett Guillroy 1,416 2.2%
Republican Jerry Ford, Sr. 997 1.6%
Republican Richard Welch 633 1.0%
Republican Alex Cross 460 0.7%
Republican Damien Mockus 249 0.4%
Republican Philip Covarrubias 228 0.4%
Total votes 63,799 100.0%
Texas’s 38th congressional district, 2022
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Wesley Hunt 162,992 63.00
Democratic Duncan Klussmann 91,768 35.47
Independent Joel Dejean 3,953 1.53
Total votes 258,713 100
Republican win (new seat)

See also

References

  1. ^ "Candidate Conversation - Wesley Hunt (R)". Inside Elections. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
  2. ^ "Meet Wesley". Wesley Hunt. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
  3. ^ "Bipartisan band of brothers: The West Point grads coming to Congress". POLITICO. November 26, 2022. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
  4. ^ "Wesley Hunt's Advice for the Republican Party: Update Your Look - The New York Times". The New York Times. May 19, 2022. Retrieved November 12, 2022.
  5. ^ "Seven Cornellians Set to Serve in 118th Congress". November 30, 2001.
  6. ^ "Cornell Alumnus Wesley Hunt Campaigns for Upcoming Texas Congressional Election". November 30, 2001.
  7. ^ "Wesley Hunt Wins GOP Congressional Primary in Rout, Will Face Rep. Fletcher in November". The Texan. March 4, 2020.
  8. ^ a b Carter, Lisa (November 3, 2020). "Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher wins reelection for Texas' District 7; Wesley Hunt concedes". KHOU. Retrieved March 28, 2022.
  9. ^ Svitek, Patrick (September 28, 2021). "Proposed new congressional seat in Houston gets prominent GOP candidate". Texas Tribune. Retrieved March 28, 2022.
  10. ^ Schneider, Andrew (March 2, 2022). "Wesley Hunt wins the GOP nomination in Houston's newest congressional district". Houston Public Media. Retrieved March 28, 2022.
  11. ^ "Candidates". RMSP PAC. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
  12. ^ "Republican Wesley Hunt wins election to U.S. House in Texas' 38th Congressional District". ABC13 Houston. November 9, 2022.
  13. ^ a b Sforza, Lauren (January 6, 2023). "Incoming Texas Republican returning to Texas after son born prematurely". The Hill. Retrieved January 7, 2023.
  14. ^ "H Res. 70". Retrieved February 2, 2023.
  15. ^ a b "H Res. 80". Retrieved February 2, 2023.
  16. ^ "House Committee on Small Business - Subcommittees". Retrieved February 2, 2023.
  17. ^ Svitek, Patrick (January 11, 2023). "As Donald Trump mounts his 2024 presidential bid, his support among Texas officials is waning". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved February 18, 2023.
  18. ^ "H.Con.Res. 21: Directing the President, pursuant to section 5(c) of … -- House Vote #136 -- Mar 8, 2023". GovTrack.us. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  19. ^ "House Votes Down Bill Directing Removal of Troops From Syria". US News & World Report. March 8, 2023. Retrieved April 6, 2023.
  20. ^ Gans, Jared (May 31, 2023). "Republicans and Democrats who bucked party leaders by voting no". The Hill. Retrieved June 6, 2023.
  21. ^ "Opinion | A Newly Elected Black Republican Has a Message for His Party's Leaders". The New York Times. November 10, 2022. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  22. ^ "2020 March 3rd Republican Primary". Texas Secretary of State. Retrieved March 28, 2022.
  23. ^ "2020 November 3rd General Election" (PDF). Texas Secretary of State. Retrieved March 28, 2022.
  24. ^ "Official Canvass Report: 2022 March 1st Republican Primary" (PDF). Texas Secretary of State. Retrieved March 28, 2022.

External links

U.S. House of Representatives Preceded byNew constituency Member of the U.S. House of Representativesfrom Texas's 38th congressional district 2023–present Incumbent U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial) Preceded byVal Hoyle United States representatives by seniority 384th Succeeded byGlenn Ivey
Texas's current delegation to the United States Congress
Current members of the United States House of Representatives
Texas's delegation(s) to the 118th–present United States Congresses (ordered by seniority)
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