Blake Farenthold

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Blake Farenthold
Blake Farenthold.jpg
U.S. House, Texas, District 27
Incumbent
In office
January 3, 2011-present
Term ends
January 3, 2015
Years in position 2
PartyRepublican
PredecessorSolomon P. Ortiz (D)
Compensation
Base salary$174,000/year
Elections and appointments
Last electionNovember 6, 2012
First electedNovember 2, 2010
Next electionNovember 4, 2014
Campaign $$1,769,723
Term limitsN/A
Education
Bachelor'sUniversity of Texas
J.D.St. Mary's University
Personal
BirthdayDecember 12, 1962
Place of birthCorpus Christi, Texas
ProfessionAttorney
Net worth$24,222,549
ReligionEpiscopalian
Websites
Office website
Campaign website

Contents

Randolph Blake Farenthold (b. December 12, 1962) is a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from the state of Texas. Farenthold represents the Texas' 27th congressional district and was first elected to the House in 2010. He won re-election on November 6, 2012.[1]

In redistricting, The Hill published a list of the Top Ten House Members who were helped by redistricting.[2] Farenthold ranked 1st on the list.[2]

Based on analysis of multiple outside rankings, Farenthold is an average Republican member of Congress, meaning he will vote with the Republican Party on the majority of bills.

Biography

Before entering politics, Farenthold had careers as a conservative radio show host, lawyer, and owner of a computer consulting firm.[3]

Career

Committee assignments

U.S. House

2013-2014

Farenthold serves on the following committees:[4]

2011-12

Farenthold was a member of the following committees:[5]

Issues

2012

Redistricting has made Farenthold's district much more conservative than when he won election in 2010 by defeating Democratic incumbent Solomon Ortiz. Thus, his re-election bid was a fairly safe one, but some voters think he is not conservative enough for this new district. "The district is so conservative that Farenthold would likely lose votes to a Libertarian and an independent challenger, in addition to squaring off with his Democratic opponent, Rose Meza Harrison."[9]

Specific votes

Fiscal Cliff

Voted "No" Farenthold voted against the fiscal cliff compromise bill, which made permanent most of the Bush tax cuts originally passed in 2001 and 2003 while also raising tax rates on the highest income levels. He was one of 151 Republicans that voted against the bill. The bill was passed in the House by a 257/167 vote on January 1, 2013.[10]

Elections

2012

See also: Texas' 27th congressional district elections, 2012

Farenthold ran in the 2012 election for the U.S. House, representing Texas' 27th District. He defeated John Grunwald, Don Al Middlebrook, and Trey Roberts in the May 29, 2012, Republican primary. He defeated Rose Meza Harrison (D), Corrie Byrd (L), and William Bret Baldwin (I) in the November 6, 2012, general election.[11]

In redistricting, The Hill published a list of the Top Ten House Members who were helped by redistricting.[2] Farenthold ranked 1st on the list.[2] The article notes that in redistricting the new Republican map moved Farenthold's district into "white, heavily Republican Corpus Christi, Texas."[2] Assuming no major Republican competition in a primary and the new map stood up to the legal challenges, Farenthold would go from an "accidental winner" in 2010[2] into a second-term incumbent in a safe Republican district.[2]

U.S. House, Texas, District 27 General Election, 2012
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark.jpgBlake Farenthold Incumbent 56.8% 120,684
     Democratic Rose Meza Harrison 39.2% 83,395
     Independent Bret Baldwin 2.5% 5,354
     Libertarian Corrie Byrd 1.5% 3,218
Total Votes 212,651
Source: Texas Secretary of State "Official Election Results, 2012 General Election"


Full history


Campaign donors

Comprehensive donor information for Farenthold is available dating back to 2010. Based on available campaign finance records, Farenthold raised a total of $1,769,723 during that time period. This information was last updated on March 25, 2013.[13]

Blake Farenthold's Campaign Contribution History
Year Office Result Contributions
2012 US House (Texas, District 27) Won $1,153,105
2010 US House (Texas, District 27) Won $616,618
Grand Total Raised $1,769,723

2012

Breakdown of the source of Farenthold's campaign funds before the 2012 election.

Farenthold won election to the U.S. House in 2012. During that election cycle, Farenthold's campaign committee raised a total of $1,153,105 and spent $1,182,936.[14]

2010

Breakdown of the source of Farenthold's campaign funds before the 2010 election.

Farenthold won election to the U.S. House in 2010. During that election cycle, Farenthold's campaign committee raised a total of $616,618 and spent $565,898.[15]

Analysis

Ideology and leadership

See also: GovTrack's Political Spectrum & Legislative Leadership ranking

Based on an analysis of bill sponsorship by GovTrack, Farenthold is a "moderate Republican follower" as of June 2013.[16]

Lifetime voting record

See also: Lifetime voting records of United States Senators and Representatives

According to the website GovTrack, Farenthold missed 14 of 1,695 roll call votes from January 2011 to March 2013. This amounts to 0.8%, which is better than the median of 2.2% among current congressional representatives as of March 2013.[17]

Congressional staff salaries

See also: Staff salaries of United States Senators and Representatives

The website Legistorm compiles staff salary information for members of Congress. Farenthold paid his congressional staff a total of $742,786 in 2011. Overall, Texas ranks 27th in average salary for representative staff. The average U.S. House of Representatives congressional staff was paid $954,912.20 in fiscal year 2011.[18]

Net worth

See also: Net Worth of United States Senators and Representatives

2011

Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org - The Center for Responsive Politics, Farenthold's net worth as of 2011 was estimated between $9,659,099 to $38,785,999. That averages to $24,222,549, which is higher than the average net worth of Republican House members in 2011 of $7,859,232. His average net worth decreased by 9.12% from 2010.[19]

2010

Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org - The Center for Responsive Politics, Green's net worth as of 2010 was estimated between $11,188,102 to $42,120,996. That averages to $26,654,549 which is higher than the average net worth of Republican Representatives in 2010 of $7,561,133.[20]

National Journal vote ratings

See also: National Journal vote ratings

2012

Each year National Journal publishes an analysis of how liberally or conservatively each member of congress voted in the previous year. Farenthold tied with three other members of the U.S. House of Representatives, ranking 82nd in the conservative rankings among members of the U.S. House.[21]

2011

Each year National Journal publishes an analysis of how liberally or conservatively each member of congress voted in the previous year. Farenthold was tied with one other member of the U.S. House of Representatives, ranking 148th in the conservative rankings among members of the U.S. House.[22]

Voting with party

2013

The website Open Congress tracks how often members of Congress vote with the majority of the chamber caucus. According to the website, Blake Farenthold has voted with the Republican Party 98.2% of the time, which ranked 41st among the 233 House Republican members as of June 2013.[23]

Recent news

This section displays the most recent stories in a Google news search for the term Blake + Farenthold + Texas + House

All stories may not be relevant to this page due to the nature of the search engine.

Blake Farenthold News Feed


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Personal

Farenthold and his wife, Debbie, have two children.[3]

External links

References

  1. ↑ Politico "2012 Election Map, Texas"
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 The Hill "House members most helped by redistricting" Accessed April 17, 2012
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Official House website "Bio," Accessed November 1, 2011
  4. ↑ CQ.com, House Committee Rosters for the 113th Congress
  5. ↑ Official House website "Committees," Accessed November 1, 2011
  6. ↑ Committee on Homeland Security, Chairman Peter T. King "Subcommittee on Transportation Security"
  7. ↑ Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Chairman John L. Mica "Members, Subcommittee on Water Resources & Environment"
  8. ↑ Committee on Oversight & Government Reform "The Subcommittee on Technology, Information Policy, Intergovernmental Relations and Procurement Reform"
  9. ↑ The Republic, "Redistricting means Farenthold likely safe, but is he conservative enough for new district?" October 27, 2012
  10. ↑ U.S. House "Roll Call Vote on the Fiscal Cliff" Accessed January 4, 2013.
  11. ↑ The New York Times, "Time in House Could Be Short for Republican Newcomers", July 4, 2011
  12. ↑ U.S. Congress House Clerk "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 2, 2010"
  13. ↑ Open Secrets "Career Fundraising for Blake Farenthold," Accessed March 25, 2013
  14. ↑ Open Secrets "Blake Farenthold 2012 Election Cycle," Accessed March 5, 2013
  15. ↑ Open Secrets "2010 Race: Texas District 27," Accessed November 1, 2011
  16. ↑ Gov Track "Blake Farenthold," Accessed June 7 2013
  17. ↑ GovTrack, "Blake Farenthold," Accessed April 2, 2013
  18. ↑ LegiStorm, "Blake Farenthold," Accessed September 13, 2012
  19. ↑ OpenSecrets.org "Blake Farenthold (R-Texas), 2011," accessed February 22, 2013
  20. ↑ OpenSecrets.org, "Blake Farenthold (R-Texas), 2010," Accessed September 13, 2012
  21. ↑ National Journal, "2012 Congressional Vote Ratings," March 7, 2013
  22. ↑ National Journal, "Searchable Vote Ratings Tables: House," February 23, 2012
  23. ↑ Open Congress "Voting With Party"
Political offices
Preceded by
Solomon P. Ortiz 		U.S. House of Representatives - Texas, District 27
2011-Present 		Succeeded by
'
v • d • e
Texas's current delegation to the United States Congress
Senators
John Cornyn (R) • Ted Cruz (R)
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Representatives
Al Green (D) • Bill Flores (R) • Blake Farenthold (R) • Joaquin Castro (D) • Eddie Bernice Johnson (D) • Pete Gallego (D) • Gene Green (D) • Henry Cuellar (D) • Jeb Hensarling (R) • Joe Barton (R) • John Carter (R) • John Culberson (R) • Kay Granger (R) • Kenny Marchant (R) • Kevin Brady (R) • Lamar Smith (R) • Lloyd Doggett (D) • Louie Gohmert (R) • Mac Thornberry (R) • Michael C. Burgess (R) • Michael McCaul (R) • Mike Conaway (R) • Pete Olson (R) • Pete Sessions (R) • Ralph Hall (R) • Randy Neugebauer (R) • Randy Weber (R) • Rubén Hinojosa (D) • Sam Johnson (R) • Sheila Jackson Lee (D) • Beto O'Rourke (D) • Ted Poe (R) • Roger Williams (R) • Marc Veasey (D) • Filemon Vela (D) • Steve Stockman (R)
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