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Cindy Burkett
Cindy Burkett is a former Republican member of the Texas House of Representatives, representing District 113. She was first elected to the chamber in 2010, and she served until January 2019.
Burkett was a Republican candidate who sought election to the Texas State Senate to represent District 2. Burkett lost the primary on March 6, 2018.
Burkett ran in one of 48 contested Republican state legislative 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.
Biography
Burkett earned a B.A. in political science from the University of Texas at Arlington, where she graduated in 2004. When she served in the state House, Burkett was the co-owner of Highline Enterprises and was a member of Mimosa Lane Baptist Church. Prior to her time in the legislature, Burkett represented Senate District 2 on the State Republican Executive Committee. She also sat on the Mesquite Board of Adjustments and on the board of Keep Mesquite Beautiful.
Committee assignments
2017 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:
| Texas committee assignments, 2017 |
|---|
| • Local & Consent Calendars |
| • Public Health |
| • Redistricting, Chair |
| • Transportation |
2015 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Burkett served on the following committees:
| Texas committee assignments, 2015 |
|---|
| • Appropriations |
| • Local & Consent Calendars |
| • Transportation |
2013-2014
In the 2013-2014 legislative session, Burkett served on the following committees:
| Texas committee assignments, 2013 |
|---|
| • Investments & Financial Services |
| • Local & Consent Calendars |
| • Transportation |
2011-2012
During the 2011-2012 legislative session, Burkett serves on the following Texas House of Representatives committees:
| Texas committee assignments, 2011 |
|---|
| • Criminal Jurisprudence |
| • Elections |
Sponsored legislation
The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.
Elections
2018
- See also: Texas State Senate elections, 2018
General election
General election for Texas State Senate District 2
Incumbent Bob Hall defeated Kendall Scudder in the general election for Texas State Senate District 2 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Bob Hall (R) | 59.3 | 153,151 |
 | Kendall Scudder (D) | 40.7 | 104,897 | |
| Total votes: 258,048 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Thomas Gotcher (L)
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Texas State Senate District 2
Kendall Scudder advanced from the Democratic primary for Texas State Senate District 2 on March 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Kendall Scudder | 100.0 | 20,573 |
| Total votes: 20,573 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for Texas State Senate District 2
Incumbent Bob Hall defeated Cindy Burkett in the Republican primary for Texas State Senate District 2 on March 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Bob Hall | 53.2 | 35,561 |
 | Cindy Burkett | 46.8 | 31,239 | |
| Total votes: 66,800 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Libertarian primary election
Libertarian primary for Texas State Senate District 2
Thomas Gotcher advanced from the Libertarian primary for Texas State Senate District 2 on March 6, 2018.
Candidate | ||
| ✔ | Thomas Gotcher | |
| ||||
| = candidate completed 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?
| The Dallas Morning News identified this Republican primary as potentially competitive. It featured a matchup between incumbent Bob Hall and state Rep. Cindy Burkett. According to the Dallas Morning News, Hall has said that Burkett is a moderate, while Burkett has said that Hall is not an effective legislator. Hall was first elected in 2014 as a conservative affiliated with the Tea Party movement.[1][2] He supported a primary challenge to Burkett in her 2016 state House race because he did not think she was conservative enough. He was also an opponent of House Speaker Joe Straus in the past.[3] On February 7, 2018, Bob Hall began running a TV ad titled "Sen. Bob Hall is Our Trusted Conservative Leader."[4] Endorsements for Hall
Endorsements for Burkett
|
Campaign advertisements
Bob Hall - support
|
|
Cindy Burkett - oppose
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.[11]
Incumbent Cindy Burkett defeated Rhetta Andrews Bowers in the Texas House of Representatives District 113 general election.[12]
| Texas House of Representatives, District 113 General Election, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  Cindy Burkett Incumbent |
55.16% | 30,501 | |
| Democratic | Rhetta Andrews Bowers | 44.84% | 24,795 | |
| Total Votes | 55,296 | |||
| Source: Texas Secretary of State | ||||
Rhetta Andrews Bowers ran unopposed in the Texas House of Representatives District 113 Democratic Primary.[13][14]
| Texas House of Representatives, District 113 Democratic Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Democratic | Rhetta Andrews Bowers (unopposed) | |
Incumbent Cindy Burkett defeated Jonathan Boos in the Texas House of Representatives District 113 Republican Primary.[13][14]
| Texas House of Representatives, District 113 Republican Primary, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | Cindy Burkett Incumbent |
55.95% | 7,866 | |
| Republican | Jonathan Boos | 44.05% | 6,194 | |
| Total Votes | 14,060 | |||
2014
Elections for all 150 seats in the Texas House of Representatives took place in 2014. A primary election took place on March 4, 2014. Those candidates who did not receive 50 percent or more of the vote in their party primary on March 4 faced an additional May 27 primary runoff. The general election was held on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in these elections was December 9, 2013. Incumbent Cindy Burkett was unopposed in the Republican primary. Milton Whitley was unopposed in the Democratic primary. Whitley was defeated by Burkett in the general election.[15][16][17]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Cindy Burkett Incumbent |
59.4% | 17,644 | |
| Democratic | Milton Whitley | 40.6% | 12,047 | |
| Total Votes | 29,691 | |||
2012
Burkett won re-election in the 2012 election for Texas House of Representatives, District 113. Burkett was unopposed in the May 29 primary and defeated Angela Sarlay (G) in the general election, which took place on November 6, 2012.[18]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Cindy Burkett Incumbent |
80.9% | 28,727 | |
| Green | Angela Sarlay | 19.1% | 6,763 | |
| Total Votes | 35,490 | |||
2010
Burkett won election to Texas House of Representatives District 101. She defeated Greg Noschese and Thomas Latham in the March 2 Republican primary. She then defeated incumbent Republican candidate Robert Miklos in the November 2 general election.[18]
| Texas House of Representatives, District 101 2010 General election results | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | Percent | ||
| Cindy Burkett (R)
|
13,266 | 51.81% | ||
| Robert Miklos (D) | 12,338 | 48.18% | ||
Campaign themes
2016
Burkett's campaign website highlighted the following issues:
| “ |
Stopping Illegal Immigration: While Washington falters, in Texas we must do everything in our power to secure the border and preserve the precious resources we have allocated for American citizens here at home. Fixing Education: Moving forward, Cindy is committed to increasing local control and efficiency so our schools and teachers can more effectively drive up student achievement in the classroom. Creating Jobs: With small businesses employing over half of private sector workers, Cindy has taken every step to empower our local job creators by getting government out of the way. In fact, last session, Cindy passed over $1.3 billion in tax relief so our small businesses can hire more employees across the state. Repeal and Replace Obamacare: Like you, Cindy knows we need a new approach to health care that will lower premiums through competition and provide an affordable option for everyone. In the Texas House, Cindy will continue to fight Obamacare’s implementation until itis finally repealed and replaced with a free-market solution that works for every Texan. Balancing the Budget:
|
” |
| —Cindy Burkett[20] | ||
2014
Burkett's website highlighted the following campaign themes:[21]
Create Jobs
- Excerpt: "Cindy knows that small businesses create jobs, not government. Small businesses employ over half of all private sector workers and pay 44% of private sector payroll. They have also created 64% of the private sector jobs over the past 15 years. We must lower taxes so that small business people can retain employees they may have had to layoff or hire new folks."
Stop Higher Taxes
- Excerpt: "Cindy Burkett knows that the more you raise taxes, the harder it is for people to make ends meet. And since the government can foreclose on people’s homes for failure to pay property taxes, increases create fear throughout our community. Fear of losing a job leads to fear of losing a home."
Illegal Immigration
- Excerpt: "Illegal immigration is down across the country because of the economy, but up in Texas, costing taxpayers an estimated $3.7 billion per year! With 50% of immigrant families on some kind of welfare program, Texas breadwinners having a tough enough time providing for our own families, we simply can’t afford the costs associated with illegal immigration."
2nd Amendment
- Excerpt: "Cindy is the proud bearer of a concealed handgun license. She believes strongly in the U.S. Constitution and the right to keep and bear arms."
Pro-Life
- Excerpt: "Cindy believes that life is precious and will defend it with action, not just words. Cindy co-authored the successful bill requiring doctors to show women the standard, pre-abortion sonogram before they go forward with the procedure."
2012
Burkett's website highlighted the following campaign themes:
Less government: Yes
Excerpt:"Concerned that government is overstepping it’s bounds? If you are, you’re right. It is. Cindy knows first hand that government is getting bigger and more burdensome by the minute – making it harder for employers to keep people on the job. Higher taxes and more regulations imposed at all levels of government are crushing the economy."
Higher taxes: No
Excerpt:"You’d think that politicians would have learned this lesson already. Ronald Reagan and JFK both proved that cutting taxes stimulates the economy. Lower taxes means more money in your pocket, more money to hire people and more money to invest. Higher taxes stifle economic growth. That’s what we’re feeling right now in our economy. Cindy will vote to cut taxes – and cut them deeply."
Illegal immigration: No
Excerpt:"The percentage of babies born at Parkland (Dallas County’s taxpayer funded hospital) to illegal immigrants has increased over the past couple of years from an eye-popping 70% to a mind-numbing 74%. Illegal immigration is down across the country because of the economy, but up in Texas, costing taxpayers an estimated $3.7 billion per year! With 50% of immigrant families on some kind of welfare program and Texas breadwinners having a tough enough time providing for our own families, we simply can’t afford this anymore."
2nd Amendment: Yes
Excerpt:"Cindy is the proud bearer of a concealed handgun license. She believes strongly in the U.S. Constitution and the right to keep and bear arms."
Pro-Life: Yes
Excerpt:"Cindy believes that life is precious and will defend it."
2nd Amendment: Yes
Excerpt:"Cindy is the proud bearer of a concealed handgun license. She believes strongly in the U.S. Constitution and the right to keep and bear arms."
More welfare: No
Excerpt:"Frankly, if you ask Cindy, America is getting “way too European.” Our nation was built on hard work and individual freedom. If we are going to pull ourselves out of this recession, it will be by re-instilling our people with the spirit that grew our nation over the past century. The problem we are having with our national debt is the most obvious example of where we have lost our way. Now we are indebted to countries like China. We are their welfare case. Breaking free of this cycle is going to start right here at home with all of us taking more responsibility for our actions."
2nd Amendment: Yes
Excerpt:"Cindy is the proud bearer of a concealed handgun license. She believes strongly in the U.S. Constitution and the right to keep and bear arms."
Obamacare: No
Excerpt:"Talk about out-of-control government. The Obamacare bill threatens all of us. It was passed despite massive public opposition and represents our government going against the will of the people. Cindy will fight it, and she will vote to prevent Obamacare from affecting Texans."
Small business: Yes
Excerpt:"Small businesses employ over half of all private sector workers and pay 44% of private sector payroll. They have also created 64% of the private sector jobs over the past 15 years. It’s time to stop “saying nice things” about small business and start freeing them up to save our economy from this mess the politicians have gotten us into. First, we must block Obamacare, which will ruin many small businesses. Also, we must lower taxes so that small business people can retain employees they may have had to layoff or hire new folks. And finally, we need to stop allowing big businesses and their lobbyists to shut out competition from start-ups and entrepreneurs."
Cut taxes to create jobs: Yes
Excerpt:"Recently, Dallas County government voted to raise property taxes. Cindy Burkett knows that the more you raise taxes, the harder it is for people to make ends meet. And since the government can foreclose on people’s homes for failure to pay property taxes, increases create fear throughout our community. Fear of losing a job leads to fear of losing a home. Cindy Burkett will vote against any moves to increase taxes. Will vote against any state income tax. Look at the states with the highest tax rates. They’re the ones losing all the jobs."
Small business: Yes
Excerpt:"Small businesses employ over half of all private sector workers and pay 44% of private sector payroll. They have also created 64% of the private sector jobs over the past 15 years. It’s time to stop “saying nice things” about small business and start freeing them up to save our economy from this mess the politicians have gotten us into. First, we must block Obamacare, which will ruin many small businesses. Also, we must lower taxes so that small business people can retain employees they may have had to layoff or hire new folks. And finally, we need to stop allowing big businesses and their lobbyists to shut out competition from start-ups and entrepreneurs."
Political corruption: No
Excerpt:"Just about every day you read that some member of Congress has been caught taking money inappropriately from lobbyists. Cindy Burkett knows that, unfortunately, the bigger government gets, the more tax money of ours it takes, the more corrupt it will become. Bigger government equals more corrupt government. With all that money at stake, it’s just going to happen. So the solution is smaller government and lower taxes. As we move slowly in that direction, Cindy believes that we should prohibit elected officials and their relatives from becoming paid lobbyists. It’s just not right for someone to get elected and immediately start planning for their high paid lobby job once they leave office. We need our elected officials working for the people, not the lobbyists and their clients."
Property Rights
Excerpt:"Cindy is a conservative who believes strongly in private property rights. She opposes any forced seizure of private property for the Trans-Texas Corridor project."
Taking our country back from Obama and Pelosi: Yes
Excerpt:"Talk about the most destructive Administration in the history of the country. Obama and Pelosi have run the world’s greatest economy into the ground and overreached so dramatically, that average people like us have to stand up to them. America was not built on socialism. We were not taught to solve problems by borrowing a trillion dollars from China. But Obama and Pelosi seem bent on bankrupting our children’s future. If we don’t stand up and fight then we will be remembered as the generation that allowed America, the greatest country ever conceived, to fall."
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.
Endorsements
2012
In 2012, Burkett’s endorsements included the following:
- Texas Association of Business
- Texas Restaurant Association
- Dallas County Republican Assembly
- Texans for Fiscal Responsibility/Empower Texans
- Texas Home School Coalition
- Texas Alliance for Life
- Texas Right to Life
- Concerned Women of America
- David Barton with Wall Builders
- Young Conservatives of Texas
- Conservative Republicans of Texas
- A-Rating by the NRA and TSRA
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Texas scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
2018
In 2018, the Texas State Legislature did not hold a regular session.
2017
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2017, click [show]. |
|---|
|
In 2017, the Texas State Legislature was in its 85th legislative session from January 10 through May 29. A special session was held from July 18 to August 15.
|
2016
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2016, click [show]. |
|---|
|
In 2016, the Texas State Legislature did not hold a regular session. |
2015
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2015, click [show]. |
|---|
|
In 2015, the Texas State Legislature was in its 84th legislative session from January 13 through June 1.
|
2014
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2014, click [show]. |
|---|
|
In 2014, the Texas State Legislature did not hold a regular session. |
2013
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2013, click [show]. |
|---|
|
In 2013, the Texas State Legislature was in its 83rd legislative session from January 8 through May 27. Thirty minutes after the regular session ended, Governor Rick Perry called legislators back for a special session starting that evening.[22] Two additional called sessions were held from July 1 through July 30 and July 30 through August 5.[23]
|
2012
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2012, click [show]. |
|---|
|
In 2012, the Texas State Legislature did not hold a regular session. |
2011
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2011, click [show]. |
|---|
|
In 2011, the Texas State Legislature was in its 82nd legislative session from January 11 through May 30. A special session was called for May 31 through June 29.[23]
|
Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Burkett and her husband, Mike, have three children.
See also
- State legislative elections, 2018
- Texas State Senate elections, 2018
- State legislative special elections, 2018
- Texas State Senate
- Texas State Legislature
- Texas House of Representatives Committees
- Texas Joint Committees
- Texas state legislative districts
External links
- Search Google News for this topic
- Texas Legislature website
- Official Campaign website
- Profile from Open States
- Official Facebook Page
- Candidate's LinkedIn Profile
- Texas House GOP YouTube Channel
- Official Campaign Contributions
- Campaign Contributions: 2012, 2010
- Biography from Project Vote Smart
- Texas Tribune Profile
Footnotes
- ↑ Texas Observer, "Meet Bob Hall, the Tea Party True Believer Headed to the Senate," May 30, 2014
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedGROMER - ↑ Dallas Morning News, "Sen. Bob Hall's hard-line stance draws challenge from four-term Rep. Cindy Burkett," December 27, 2017
- ↑ Texas Tribune, "The Blast," February 7, 2018
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedBlastf20 - ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedBLASTJ23 - ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedBLASTj25 - ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedBlastf12 - ↑ Dallas Morning News, "We recommend Cindy Burkett in the GOP primary for Texas Senate District 2," February 13, 2018
- ↑ Texas Tribune, "The Blast," March 2, 2018
- ↑ Texas Secretary of State, "Important 2016 Election Dates," accessed December 14, 2015
- ↑ Texas Secretary of State, "2016 General Election," accessed December 2, 2016
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Texas Secretary of State, "2016 March Primary Election Candidate Filings by County," accessed August 22, 2016
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Texas Secretary of State, "1992 - Current Election History results," accessed August 22, 2016
- ↑ Texas Secretary of State, "1992 - Current ELECTION HISTORY," accessed December 2, 2014
- ↑ The Libertarian Party of Texas, "2014 Texas Representative Candidate List," accessed July 30, 2014
- ↑ Green Party of Texas, "Greens Release Candidate List," accessed July 30, 2014
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 Texas Secretary of State, "1992 - Current Election History," accessed February 17, 2014
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Cindy Burkett, "Issues," accessed February 25, 2016
- ↑ cindyburkett.org, "Issues," accessed February 14, 2014
- ↑ kten.com, "Texas Lawmakers To Tackle Redistricting In Special Session," May 29, 2013
- ↑ 23.0 23.1 Legislative reference Library of Texas, "Texas Legislative Sessions and Years," accessed June 13, 2014
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Robert Miklos (D) |
Texas House - District 113 2011-2019 |
Succeeded by Rhetta Andrews Bowers (D) |
