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Graeson Lynskey
From Ballotpedia
This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.
Graeson Lynskey (Democratic Party) ran for election to the Texas House of Representatives to represent District 33. He lost in the general election on November 8, 2022.
Lynskey completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Graeson Lynskey was born in Rockwall, Texas.[1]
Elections
2022
See also: Texas House of Representatives elections, 2022
General election
General election for Texas House of Representatives District 33
Incumbent Justin Holland defeated Graeson Lynskey in the general election for Texas House of Representatives District 33 on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Justin Holland (R) | 65.1 | 44,031 |
 | Graeson Lynskey (D)  | 34.9 | 23,597 | |
| Total votes: 67,628 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Texas House of Representatives District 33
Graeson Lynskey defeated Peter Haase in the Democratic primary for Texas House of Representatives District 33 on March 1, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Graeson Lynskey | 51.4 | 2,593 |
 | Peter Haase | 48.6 | 2,447 | |
| Total votes: 5,040 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Texas House of Representatives District 33
Incumbent Justin Holland defeated Dennis London and Scott LaMarca in the Republican primary for Texas House of Representatives District 33 on March 1, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Justin Holland | 69.2 | 11,821 |
 | Dennis London | 25.8 | 4,413 | |
| Scott LaMarca | 4.9 | 841 | ||
| Total votes: 17,075 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Campaign finance
Campaign themes
2022
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Graeson Lynskey completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Lynskey's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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I'm a 4th generation Texan and lifelong resident of Rockwall County running for office to put people over politics. Over the last several years, we've watched as our politics have gotten smaller, more petty and divisive, and stopped working for Texans and their families. The good values of treating each other with compassion, being a good neighbor, and putting others needs before our own have been lost in the partisan bickering and fighting. While politicians duke it out hoping to win their fight, Texans are losing.
I'm in the race because these values, our values, ought to be represented in our politics. Our state legislature should work for all of us, not just partisan operatives or wealthy donors. It's time for anew day in Texas, and it's time to start putting people over politics.
- This campaign is about creating a kind of politics big enough for a state like Texas. I promise to always put the needs of Texans first, and ensure our politics are no longer so small and divisive.
- For too long, politicians down in Austin have prioritized winning the game and fighting against each other. They've let politics overshadow governance to the detriment of good hard working folks in Texas. Once elected, I vow to never stop putting people over politics.
- The job of our state legislature ought to be ensuring that every Texan, no matter who you are or where you come from, gets a fair shake. When I'm in the legislature, I'll make sure no one in our state is punished for who they are, where they come from, what they look like, how they worship, or who they love.
My number one priority is permanently fixing the electric grid. The fallout from the 2021 winter storm in February was embarrassing and inexcusable. Whether your heat stays on should be the last thing on anyone's mind during a record breaking storm. Once I'm elected, the first thing I'll do is immediately call for the full winterization and expansion of our electric capabilities to ensure Texans are never left out in the cold again.
Over the last several years, we've had to watch as Republicans in the legislature chipped away at our rights as Texans. Every year, it becomes more and more clear that their version of Texas is out of step with reality. Our leaders should protect all of our rights to live life free from discrimination or abuse, and as your state rep, that's exactly what I'll do.
I think the most important characteristic for an elected official is a heart for service and community. The truth is, being a politician is easy. Voting the way the party tells you, cashing lobby checks, and riding the wave of power is easy. But serving your community takes a lot more work, passion, and involvement. Leading with those you serve in mind, and making sure you're accessible to your constituents is a much more important promise than voting one way or the other, and it's the exact promise that I think our current elected officials are falling down on. A servant's heart and a strong community focus are paramount to an elected officials role, and they're characteristics I feel fortunate to bring to the office.
The most important legacy for me to leave is a state and country that's in better shape than it was when I inherited it. When I first got into politics, we were at the beginning of the Trump administration and there were a lot of people who were worried about the direction of our nation. Now, about 5 years later, it's more important to me than ever to make sure I leave this state and this country in better shape than I found it. Things like getting more folks involved in our political system, supporting and expanding our public education infrastructure, and making sure our state remains a small business friendly state. Above policy accomplishments though, it's important to me that Texas lives up to it's motto of "Friendship". if I could leave any legacy at all, it would be rebuilding the culture surrounding our politics to be bigger, more inclusive, and more focused than ever before on delivering for our citizens. Everyday, I hope to get closer to a kind of Texas that puts us first, and does so in a way that is civil and lives up to the state motto.
My first job was working for my dad in a pharmacy taking inventory and helping with shipping. It was a real honest to God 9-5 that I worked during the summers when I was in high school to make spending money. It was fairly menial and a bit mind numbing at times, but it was an important job. I remember my dad telling me how crucial it was that he knew how much of everything he had, and that everyone's medication went out on time. He made sure to tell me at least once a day that pharmacy is the most trusted industry in America, and that it was our job to keep it that way.
That job wasn't anything that I would have liked to be doing, and to this day I have no desire to work in a pharmacy. More important than what that job didn't give me though, is what it did. Working in the pharmacy taught me how important it is to work for the team and make sure you pull your weight. It also taught me that when things get a little tough, you have to rely on those around you to help you get back into fighting shape, a lesson I learned a few times. Working at the pharmacy also taught me the value of doing a job and doing it well. Even when the work is boring or uninteresting, doing it right and doing it well is necessary to your success. And even though I didn't love the job, I still think about all I took from it at the end.
That job wasn't anything that I would have liked to be doing, and to this day I have no desire to work in a pharmacy. More important than what that job didn't give me though, is what it did. Working in the pharmacy taught me how important it is to work for the team and make sure you pull your weight. It also taught me that when things get a little tough, you have to rely on those around you to help you get back into fighting shape, a lesson I learned a few times. Working at the pharmacy also taught me the value of doing a job and doing it well. Even when the work is boring or uninteresting, doing it right and doing it well is necessary to your success. And even though I didn't love the job, I still think about all I took from it at the end.
My favorite book has been and continues to be Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. I originally read the novel in high school and I instantly fell in love with Bradbury's writing and the message that book gives to us. It's a powerful story about all we have to gain by questioning authority, relentlessly pursuing truth and knowledge, and being willing to go against the grain. Bradbury also does a fantastic job of transporting all of us to the world he creates through his incredibly storytelling and world building skills. Fahrenheit 451 taught me for the first time in my life what it meant when people tried to burn books, ban books, or suppress knowledge, and how important it is to make sure you get your hands on that stuff as soon as you can.
The State Legislature's job is to write good, sensible laws for the Governor to sign. In order for the legislature to be able to write laws that they believe are good and sensible, we need to be free from the Governor's massive influence. I believe the Governor's role in the legislature should be minimized in order for the House and Senate to function as an independent branch of Government. Further, I do not support the Governor's move last session to take away the salaries of good hardworking folks in the House just because he was mad at a few dozen politicians. Politics aside, taking thousands of public servants' paychecks away because you aren't satisfied with the way their bosses are behaving is petty and cruel.
One day, while out knocking on doors in my district, I met a man who had been a teacher for 41 years before he retired. he told me that he wanted to make it to 45, but after COVID, he just couldn't stay in. We got to talking about him and his story and his hopes for the district when he started telling me about his grandson. His grandson, who is eight, and attends an elementary school in the district. His grandson, who goes to school every day and is sent home with a note saying he'd been exposed to COVID. His grandson, who doesn't want to go to school because he's scared of getting sick. The man told me that in 41 years as an educator, anything that happened to the kids in that classroom was his responsibility, and given his experience as an educator, he couldn't understand why his grandson could be exposed to COVID everyday and nothing was being done. I'm in this race for this man, and his kids, and his grandkids, and everyone else in Texas who can't fathom the path our state has gone down. The truth is, none of it has to be this way. We can provide high quality education while also keeping our communities safe. There is a way forward, we just have to start putting Texans first. I think about this man and his grandson often as I'm knocking on doors. And anytime someone asks me about COVID or public education, I make sure to tell them that story.
There are some areas where compromise is absolutely necessary for good solid policy making. There are a handful of issues where it's important for an agreement to be reached, like budgeting for example, and healthy compromise between both sides leads to a good piece of policy being signed. With that said, it's important for me as a candidate to be honest about the issues I will not compromise on. I will not compromise on people's rights to their bodies or to their privacy, nor will I compromise on a person's right to marry who they choose, love who they choose, and worship how they choose. There are a lot of places where we as people can come together for the benefit of all texans, but i refuse to negotiate someone's rights away in the process.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
See also
2022 Elections
External links
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Candidate Texas House of Representatives District 33 |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on January 31, 2022
Current members of the Texas House of Representatives
Leadership
Speaker of the House:Dustin Burrows
Representatives
District 1
Gary VanDeaver (R)
District 2
Brent Money (R)
District 3
Cecil Bell (R)
District 4
Keith Bell (R)
District 5
Cole Hefner (R)
District 6
Daniel Alders (R)
District 7
Jay Dean (R)
District 8
Cody Harris (R)
District 9
Trent Ashby (R)
District 10
Brian Harrison (R)
District 11
Joanne Shofner (R)
District 12
Trey Wharton (R)
District 13
Angelia Orr (R)
District 14
Paul Dyson (R)
District 15
Steve Toth (R)
District 16
Will Metcalf (R)
District 17
Stan Gerdes (R)
District 18
Janis Holt (R)
District 19
Ellen Troxclair (R)
District 20
Terry Wilson (R)
District 21
Dade Phelan (R)
District 22
Christian Manuel (D)
District 23
Terri Leo-Wilson (R)
District 24
Greg Bonnen (R)
District 25
Cody Vasut (R)
District 26
Matt Morgan (R)
District 27
Ron Reynolds (D)
District 28
Gary Gates (R)
District 29
Jeffrey Barry (R)
District 30
A.J. Louderback (R)
District 31
Ryan Guillen (R)
District 32
Todd Hunter (R)
District 33
Katrina Pierson (R)
District 34
District 35
Oscar Longoria (D)
District 36
Sergio Munoz (D)
District 37
Janie Lopez (R)
District 38
Erin Gamez (D)
District 39
Armando Martinez (D)
District 40
Terry Canales (D)
District 41
Robert Guerra (D)
District 42
Richard Raymond (D)
District 43
J.M. Lozano (R)
District 44
Alan Schoolcraft (R)
District 45
Erin Zwiener (D)
District 46
Sheryl Cole (D)
District 47
Vikki Goodwin (D)
District 48
Donna Howard (D)
District 49
Gina Hinojosa (D)
District 50
James Talarico (D)
District 51
District 52
Caroline Harris (R)
District 53
Wesley Virdell (R)
District 54
Brad Buckley (R)
District 55
Hillary Hickland (R)
District 56
Pat Curry (R)
District 57
Richard Hayes (R)
District 58
Helen Kerwin (R)
District 59
Shelby Slawson (R)
District 60
Mike Olcott (R)
District 61
District 62
Shelley Luther (R)
District 63
Ben Bumgarner (R)
District 64
Andy Hopper (R)
District 65
Mitch Little (R)
District 66
Matt Shaheen (R)
District 67
Jeff Leach (R)
District 68
David Spiller (R)
District 69
James Frank (R)
District 70
Mihaela Plesa (D)
District 71
Stan Lambert (R)
District 72
Drew Darby (R)
District 73
Carrie Isaac (R)
District 74
Eddie Morales (D)
District 75
Mary Gonzalez (D)
District 76
Suleman Lalani (D)
District 77
Vincent Perez (D)
District 78
Joseph Moody (D)
District 79
Claudia Ordaz (D)
District 80
Don McLaughlin (R)
District 81
Brooks Landgraf (R)
District 82
Tom Craddick (R)
District 83
Dustin Burrows (R)
District 84
Carl Tepper (R)
District 85
Stan Kitzman (R)
District 86
John Smithee (R)
District 87
Caroline Fairly (R)
District 88
Ken King (R)
District 89
Candy Noble (R)
District 90
Ramon Romero (D)
District 91
David Lowe (R)
District 92
Salman Bhojani (D)
District 93
Nate Schatzline (R)
District 94
Tony Tinderholt (R)
District 95
Nicole Collier (D)
District 96
David Cook (R)
District 97
John McQueeney (R)
District 98
District 99
Charlie Geren (R)
District 100
Venton Jones (D)
District 101
Chris Turner (D)
District 102
Ana-Maria Ramos (D)
District 103
Rafael Anchia (D)
District 104
Jessica Gonzalez (D)
District 105
Terry Meza (D)
District 106
Jared Patterson (R)
District 107
Linda Garcia (D)
District 108
Morgan Meyer (R)
District 109
Aicha Davis (D)
District 110
Toni Rose (D)
District 111
Yvonne Davis (D)
District 112
Angie Button (R)
District 113
Rhetta Bowers (D)
District 114
John Bryant (D)
District 115
District 116
Trey Fischer (D)
District 117
Philip Cortez (D)
District 118
John Lujan (R)
District 119
Elizabeth Campos (D)
District 120
District 121
Marc LaHood (R)
District 122
Mark Dorazio (R)
District 123
Diego Bernal (D)
District 124
Josey Garcia (D)
District 125
Ray Lopez (D)
District 126
Sam Harless (R)
District 127
District 128
Briscoe Cain (R)
District 129
Dennis Paul (R)
District 130
Tom Oliverson (R)
District 131
Alma Allen (D)
District 132
Mike Schofield (R)
District 133
Mano Deayala (R)
District 134
Ann Johnson (D)
District 135
Jon Rosenthal (D)
District 136
John Bucy (D)
District 137
Gene Wu (D)
District 138
Lacey Hull (R)
District 139
District 140
Armando Walle (D)
District 141
District 142
Harold Dutton (D)
District 143
Ana Hernandez (D)
District 144
Mary Perez (D)
District 145
District 146
Lauren Simmons (D)
District 147
Jolanda Jones (D)
District 148
Penny Shaw (D)
District 149
Hubert Vo (D)
District 150
Valoree Swanson (R)
Republican Party (88)
Democratic Party (62)
