Texas 31st Congressional District elections, 2014

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Texas' 31st Congressional District

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General Election Date
November 4, 2014

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Primary Date
March 4, 2014

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November 4 Election Winner:
John Carter
Incumbent prior to election:
John Carter

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Race Ratings
Cook Political Report: Solid R[1]

Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe R[2]

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2014 U.S. Senate Elections

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## Contents

* 1 Candidates
* 2 Election results
* 3 Key votes
* 3.1 HR 676
* 3.2 Government shutdown
* 4 Campaign contributions
* 4.1 John Carter
* 4.2 Louie Minor
* 5 District history
* 5.1 2012
* 5.2 2010
* 6 See also
* 7 External links
* 8 Footnotes

The 31st Congressional District of Texas held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 4, 2014.

Incumbent John Carter (R) won re-election in 2014. He was unchallenged in the Republican primary and defeated Louie Minor (D) in the general election.

Candidate Filing Deadline  | Primary Election  | General Election

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December 9, 2013 | March 4, 2014 | November 4, 2014

Primary: A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. Texas utilizes an open primary system. Voters do not have to register with a party in advance in order to participate in that party's primary. The voter must sign a pledge stating the following (the language below is taken directly from state statutes)[3]

“  | The following pledge shall be placed on the primary election ballot above the listing of candidates' names: 'I am a (insert appropriate political party) and understand that I am ineligible to vote or participate in another political party's primary election or convention during this voting year.'[4] | ”

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For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.

Voter registration: Voters had to register to vote in the primary by February 2, 2014. For the general election, the voter registration deadline was October 5, 2014 (30 days prior to election).[5]

See also: Texas elections, 2014

Incumbent: Heading into the election the incumbent was John Carter (R), who was first elected in 2002.

Texas' 31st Congressional District is located in the central portion of the state and includes Williamson County and parts of Bell County.[6]

## Candidates[edit]

General election candidates

John Carter
Louie Minor
Scott Ballard

March 4, 2014, primary results

Republican Primary

* John Carter \- Incumbent a

Democratic Primary

* Louie Minor a

|

Libertarian Convention

* Scott Ballard a

## Election results[edit]

U.S. House, Texas District 31 General Election, 2014 Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes

|
|
|

| Republican  | John Carter Incumbent | 64% | 91,607
| Democratic  |  Louie Minor  | 32% | 45,715
| Libertarian  |  Scott Ballard  | 4% | 5,706
Total Votes | 143,028
Source: Texas Secretary of State

## Key votes[edit]

Below are important votes the incumbent cast during the 113th Congress.

### HR 676[edit]

See also: Boehner's lawsuit against the Obama administration

On July 30, 2014, the U.S. House approved a resolution 225 to 201 to sue President Barack Obama for exceeding his constitutional authority. Five Republicans—Thomas Massie of Kentucky, Paul Broun of Georgia, Scott Garrett of New Jersey, Walter Jones of North Carolina and Steve Stockman of Texas—voted with Democrats against the lawsuit.[7] Carter joined the other 224 Republicans in favor of the lawsuit. All Democrats voted against the resolution.[8][9]

### Government shutdown[edit]

See also: United States budget debate, 2013

On September 30, 2013, the House passed a final stopgap spending bill before the shutdown went into effect. The bill included a one-year delay of the Affordable Care Act's individual mandate and would have also stripped the bill of federal subsidies for congressional members and staff. It passed through the House with a vote of 228-201.[10] At 1 a.m. on October 1, 2013, one hour after the shutdown officially began, the House voted to move forward with going to a conference. In short order, Sen. Harry Reid rejected the call to conference.[11] Eddie Bernice Johnson voted against the stopgap spending bill that would have delayed the individual mandate.[12]

The shutdown ended on October 16, 2013, when the House took a vote on HR 2775 after it was approved by the Senate. The bill to reopen the government lifted the $16.7 trillion debt limit and funded the government through January 15, 2014. Federal employees also received retroactive pay for the shutdown period. The only concession made by Senate Democrats was to require income verification for Obamacare subsidies.[13] The House passed the legislation shortly after the Senate, by a vote of 285-144, with all 144 votes against the legislation coming from Republican members. Eddie Bernice Johnson voted for HR 2775.[14]

## Campaign contributions[edit]

### John Carter[edit]

John Carter (2014) Campaign Finance Reports

Report| Date Filed| Beginning Balance| Total Contributions
for Reporting Period| Expenditures| Cash on Hand
April Quarterly[15]| April 15, 2013| $464,659.20| $91,074.99| $(59,355.70)| $496,378.49
July Quarterly[16]| July 15, 2013| $496,378.49| $122,005.84| $(125,888.59)| $492,495.74
October Quarterly[17]| October 15, 2013| $492,495.74| $132,477.78| $(67,757.79)| $557,215.73
Year-End[18]| January 31, 2014| $557,215| $73,374| $(182,401)| $448,189
Pre-Primary[19]| February 20, 2014| $448,189| $14,000| $(40,077)| $422,111
Pre-Special[20]| February 27, 2014| $422,111| $6,100| $(6,924)| $421,287
April Quarterly[21]| April 15, 2014| $421,287| $118,615| $(32,545)| $507,357
Pre-Special[22]| July 8, 2014| $507,357| $135,488| $(48,237)| $594,608
July Quarterly[23]| July 15, 2014| $594,608| $66,788| $(52,110)| $609,287
October Quarterly[24]| October 15, 2014| $609,287| $159,555| $(160,673)| $608,169
| | | Running totals|
| | | $919,478.61| $(775,969.08)|

### Louie Minor[edit]

Louie Minor (2014) Campaign Finance Reports

Report| Date Filed| Beginning Balance| Total Contributions
for Reporting Period| Expenditures| Cash on Hand
October Quarterly[25]| October 15, 2013| $0| $10,723| $(3,415)| $7,307
Year-End[26]| January 31, 2014| $7,307| $24,685| $(24,321)| $7,671
Pre-Primary[27]| February 21, 2014| $7,671| $6,379| $(11,654)| $2,396
April Quarterly[28]| April 15, 2014| $2,396| $10,419| $(10,496)| $2,318
July Quarterly[29]| July 15, 2014| $2,318| $9,614| $(10,679)| $1,253
October Quarterly[30]| October 16, 2014| $1,253| $4,321| $(6,090)| $−1,769
| | | Running totals|
| | | $66,141| $(66,655)|

## District history[edit]

Candidate ballot access

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Find detailed information on ballot access requirements in all 50 states and Washington, D.C.

### 2012[edit]

The 31st Congressional District of Texas held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 6, 2012, in which incumbent John Carter (R) won re-election. He defeated Stephen Wyman (D) and Ethan Garofolo (L) in the general election.[31]

U.S. House, Texas District 31 General Election, 2012 Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes

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| Republican  | John R. Carter Incumbent | 61.3% | 145,348
| Democratic  |  Stephen M. Wyman  | 35% | 82,977
| Libertarian  |  Ethan Garofalo  | 3.7% | 8,862
Total Votes | 237,187
Source: Texas Secretary of State "Official Election Results, 2012 General Election"

### 2010[edit]

On November 2, 2010, John Carter won re-election to the United States House. He defeated Bill Oliver (L) in the general election.[32]

U.S. House, Texas District 31 General Election, 2010

Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes
| Republican  | John Carter incumbent | 82.5% | 126,384
| Libertarian  |  Bill Oliver  | 17.5% | 26,735
Total Votes | 153,119

## See also[edit]

* United States House of Representatives elections in Texas, 2014
* United States House of Representatives elections, 2014

## External links[edit]

* Texas Secretary of State, 2014 March Primary Election Candidate Filings by County
* Texas Secretary of State, Republican primary results
* Texas Secretary of State, Democratic primary results
* Texas Tribune, U.S. House elections brackets

## Footnotes[edit]

1. ↑ Cook Political Report, "2014 HOUSE RACE RATINGS FOR June 26, 2014," accessed July 28, 2014
2. ↑ Sabato's Crystal Ball, "2014 House Races," accessed July 28, 2014
3. ↑ Texas Statutes, "Section 172.086," accessed October 7, 2024
4. ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
5. ↑ VoteTexas.gov, "Register to Vote," accessed January 3, 2014
6. ↑ Texas Redistricting Map, "Map," accessed July 24, 2012
7. ↑ U.S. House, "House Resolution 676," accessed July 30, 2014
8. ↑ Associated Press, "Suing Obama: GOP-led House gives the go-ahead," July 31, 2014
9. ↑ Washington Post, "House clears way for lawsuit against Obama," accessed July 30, 2014
10. ↑ Clerk of the U.S. House, "Final vote results for Roll Call 504," accessed October 31, 2013
11. ↑ Buzzfeed, "Government Shutdown: How We Got Here," accessed October 1, 2013
12. ↑ Clerk of the U.S. House, "Final vote results for Roll Call 504," accessed October 31, 2013
13. ↑ The Washington Post, "Reid, McConnell propose bipartisan Senate bill to end shutdown, extend borrowing," accessed October 16, 2013
14. ↑ U.S. House, "Final vote results for Roll Call 550," accessed October 31, 2013
15. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "John Carter April Quarterly," accessed July 24, 2013
16. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "John Carter July Quarterly," accessed July 24, 2013
17. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "John Carter October Quarterly," accessed October 22, 2013
18. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "John Carter Year-End," accessed February 6, 2014
19. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "John Carter Pre-Primary," accessed April 20, 2014
20. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "John Carter Pre-Special," accessed April 20, 2014
21. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "John Carter April Quarterly," accessed April 20, 2014
22. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "John Carter Pre-Special," accessed July 23, 2014
23. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "John Carter July Quarterly," accessed July 23, 2014
24. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "John Carter October Quarterly," accessed October 20, 2014
25. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Louie Minor October Quarterly," accessed February 13, 2014
26. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Louie Minor Year-End," accessed February 13, 2014
27. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Louie Minor Pre-Primary," accessed May 2, 2014
28. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Louie Minor April Quarterly," accessed May 2, 2014
29. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Louie Minor July Quarterly," accessed July 25, 2014
30. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Louie Minor October Quarterly," accessed October 22, 2014
31. ↑ Politico, "2012 Election Map, Texas," November 6, 2012
32. ↑ U.S. Congress House Clerk, "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 2, 2010," accessed March 28, 2013

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[show]

Texas' current delegation to the United States Congress

Senators

John Cornyn (R)

Ted Cruz (R)

Representatives

District 1

Nathaniel Moran (R)

District 2

Daniel Crenshaw (R)

District 3

Keith Self (R)

District 4

Pat Fallon (R)

District 5

Lance Gooden (R)

District 6

Jake Ellzey (R)

District 7

Lizzie Fletcher (D)

District 8

Morgan Luttrell (R)

District 9

Al Green (D)

District 10

Michael McCaul (R)

District 11

August Pfluger (R)

District 12

Craig Goldman (R)

District 13

Ronny Jackson (R)

District 14

Randy Weber (R)

District 15

Monica De La Cruz (R)

District 16

Veronica Escobar (D)

District 17

Pete Sessions (R)

District 18

Vacant

District 19

Jodey Arrington (R)

District 20

Joaquin Castro (D)

District 21

Chip Roy (R)

District 22

Troy Nehls (R)

District 23

Tony Gonzales (R)

District 24

Beth Van Duyne (R)

District 25

Roger Williams (R)

District 26

Brandon Gill (R)

District 27

Michael Cloud (R)

District 28

Henry Cuellar (D)

District 29

Sylvia Garcia (D)

District 30

Jasmine Crockett (D)

District 31

John Carter (R)

District 32

Julie Johnson (D)

District 33

Marc Veasey (D)

District 34

Vicente Gonzalez (D)

District 35

Greg Casar (D)

District 36

Brian Babin (R)

District 37

Lloyd Doggett (D)

District 38

Wesley Hunt (R)

Republican Party (27)

Democratic Party (12)

Vacancies (1)