Jeremy Kohlwes

This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.

Jeremy Kohlwes

Democratic Party

Elections and appointments

Last election

March 1, 2022

Education

Bachelor's

Texas A&M University-San Antonio, 2017

Military

Service / branch

U.S. Army

Years of service

2001 - 2014

Personal

Religion

Buddhist

Profession

Investigative analyst

Contact

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Campaign Twitter

Jeremy Kohlwes (Democratic Party) ran for election to the Texas State Senate to represent District 24. He lost in the Democratic primary on March 1, 2022.

Kohlwes completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2021. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Jeremy Kohlwes was born on Travis Air Force Base in California. Kohlwes served in the U.S. Army from 2001 to 2014. He earned a bachelor's degree from Texas A&M University-San Antonio in 2017. Kohlwes' career experience includes working as an investigative analyst with the Department of the Army. He has been affiliated with the American Legion, Disabled American Veterans, and with the Veterans of Foreign Wars.

Elections

2022

See also: Texas State Senate elections, 2022

General election

General election for Texas State Senate District 24

Peter P. Flores defeated Kathy Jones-Hospod in the general election for Texas State Senate District 24 on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Peter P. Flores (R)	64.3	187,598
		Kathy Jones-Hospod (D)	35.7	104,063

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 291,661
= 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 runoff election

Republican primary runoff for Texas State Senate District 24

Peter P. Flores defeated Raul Reyes Jr. in the Republican primary runoff for Texas State Senate District 24 on May 24, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Peter P. Flores	59.2	28,116
		Raul Reyes Jr.	40.8	19,417

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source 1 Source 2	Total votes: 47,533
= 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 State Senate District 24

Kathy Jones-Hospod defeated Jeremy Kohlwes in the Democratic primary for Texas State Senate District 24 on March 1, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Kathy Jones-Hospod	79.9	20,753
		Jeremy Kohlwes	20.1	5,208

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 25,961
= 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 State Senate District 24

Peter P. Flores and Raul Reyes Jr. advanced to a runoff. They defeated Lamar Lewis in the Republican primary for Texas State Senate District 24 on March 1, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Peter P. Flores	46.1	38,342
✔		Raul Reyes Jr.	32.7	27,243
		Lamar Lewis	21.2	17,650

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 83,235
= 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.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Ellen Troxclair (R)

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Holly Teel (L)

Campaign themes

2022

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Jeremy Kohlwes completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2021. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Kohlwes' responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I am lifelong military, born and raised a military brat and then thirteen years of active service. After I medically retired, I went back to work for the Army as a civilian Investigative Analyst in law enforcement. So, my whole life has been about service to country and the American people. It's all I have ever known.

I had not expected to enter into politics. However, I have watched with much dismay the past few years at what has been happening to our Democracy. Especially on January 6th as an active attempt was made to overthrow our Constitution. The very Constitution I have sworn to protect and defend. I knew I had to take a more active role to protect our country and the people of Texas.

While my political background is not very extensive, neither was my experience with law enforcement when I went back to work for the Army. However, that turned into a great asset because I was able to bring new ideas and viewpoints to the table. And I want to bring that open-minded, out of the box, kind of thinking to the Texas legislature.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• Broadband for All - I will fight to bring broadband access to all Texans in order to open up new possibilities, especially for rural Texans
• School Funding - I will make sure the state is providing adequate funding to ensure our children are getting a quality education
• Fix the Grid - I will put forth every effort to make sure no Texan is left in the cold without power ever again.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

My belief about government is that it should be there to ensure they people are taken care of. Not corporations or just the one percent, EVERYONE. This means ensuring that the people have access to everything they need to pursue an active and productive life. Whether that be a quality education or ensuring health care coverage. That is the government's job, to empower the people.

I think the Founding Fathers really nailed it when declaring our independence from Great Britain. That everyone is endowed with inalienable rights such as life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The Constitution protects our liberty, but it is up to the government to ensure that the people rights to life and to pursue happiness are protected.

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

Texas State Senator Jose Menendez. I had the fortune of being able to intern for him for a while when I was attending college after the Army. That time I spent with him showed me how much he cared about the people. And especially how much he wanted to lead by example. To let his actions speak for themselves.

What makes it more impressive on me is that Senator Menendez displays all the qualities of a good military leader, except that he had never served himself. This is just who he is.

What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?

Empowering the people and supporting everyone's rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?

The most memorable was 9/11. I was in basic training for the Army at Fort Benning, Georgia. It was still pretty early in our training cycle when we were spending most of our time in classes learning about the Army history and traditions. It was slightly chilly day, overcast and a little bit of rain. We had been on break and were formed up waiting to go back into the classroom.

That's when another trainee came running out of the dining facility yelling about a plane hitting the World Trade Center. We all looked at each other in disbelief as he ran off down the breezeway. We went back to class and didn't think much of it.

It wasn't until after class that we were told to head back to the company area so that the commander could speak to us that we realized it was real. Our company commander explained the situation to the entire company. A lot of things changed in that moment. Many of us had joined thinking we would just be training the whole time. But we knew in that moment that we were definitely going out to fight at some point.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

I had my first job when I was fourteen years old working in the Air Force base video store. It was a special summer hire opportunity for students to do during their summer breaks. Even at fourteen, I quickly proved myself to be responsible enough to manage the entire video store operations. I ended up being specifically chosen to go back the next two summers.

What is your favorite book? Why?

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance.

1. I love motorcycles.

2. It's a very well written philosophical exploration into who we are as people and our search for meaning. One that uses relatable experiences like working on a motorcycles to better explain.

What is something that has been a struggle in your life?

In December of 2012, a serious accident ended up costing me my left leg below the knee. In the blink of an eye, my entire life was fundamentally altered. All my plans and dreams were shattered. I ended up having to relearn how to do a lot of things that most people take for granted. And I still have to live my life in differently than most people. The biggest adjustment however, was trying to figure out where my life was going after the accident. I had planned out most of my life and had goals set, I knew where I was going. I had to come up with a new plan, and quickly because now I had a family to support as well.

I had learned a lot about myself by choosing to join the Army Infantry. But it was that accident that really forced me to learn what I was capable of. And where I was weakest and would need the support of my family.

What do you perceive to be your state's greatest challenges over the next decade?

Balancing the fast population growth while ensuring all Texans are taken care of. Texas is growing rapidly, the past Census confirmed that. However, the state, counties, and cities have been struggling to keep up with that growth. Houses are being built faster than the supporting infrastructure can handle. We must put a focus on building Texas to handle this growing population.

However, that doesn't just mean in the major urban areas where much of the growth has been happening. We also need to focus on reinvigorating rural Texas as well. We have the largest rural population in the country. However, there has not been much investment made into rural Texas. With advancements in the internet and web-based conferencing, many of the resources that people move to urban areas for can be provided in rural communities all across Texas.

Do you believe that it’s beneficial for state legislators to have previous experience in government or politics?

Not really. I do believe that legislators should have a good base of knowledge going into political life. But I myself am capitalizing on not having experience directly in politics. What I do have however, is a vision of what I want to accomplish and what the legislature should be doing for the people. And that is ultimately what the voters will look at.

I can hire staff that are experienced in Texas government and law in order to turn my vision into working legislation that can be presented as a bill.

Are you interested in running for a different political office (for example, the U.S. Congress or governor) in the future?

I originally had been looking at running for US Congress before I decided to file for the state senate. I may still run for a congressional seat later after I have had a chance to work towards bettering the lives of Texans. It depends a lot on how everything goes should I be elected. As we have seen this past year, Texas can be an example for the other states to follow. We have seen that recently, except with very bad legislation. I believe that if Texas starts enacting more progressive legislation to help the people, that we will also see other states do the same. Additionally, I know that I can have a greater impact on the lives of Texans in the state legislature.

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

What's on the ballot? U.S. Congress U.S. Congress special elections State executives State legislatures State courts Ballot measures Municipal government School boards Election analysis hub

Government

Who represents me? U.S. Congress State executives State legislators State courts Ballot measures Municipal government School boards

Newsletters

The Heart of the Primaries The Daily Brew The Weekly Brew The Ballot Bulletin Checks and Balances Economy and Society Hall Pass Number of the Day Robe & Gavel Union Station

External links

Search Google News for this topic

Candidate

Texas State Senate District 24

Website

Facebook

Twitter

Footnotes

[show]

Current members of the Texas State Senate

Leadership

Senators

District 1

Bryan Hughes (R)

District 2

Bob Hall (R)

District 3

Robert Nichols (R)

District 4

Brandon Creighton (R)

District 5

Charles Schwertner (R)

District 6

Carol Alvarado (D)

District 7

Paul Bettencourt (R)

District 8

Angela Paxton (R)

District 9

Vacant

District 10

Phil King (R)

District 11

Mayes Middleton (R)

District 12

Tan Parker (R)

District 13

Borris Miles (D)

District 14

Sarah Eckhardt (D)

District 15

Molly Cook (D)

District 16

Nathan Johnson (D)

District 17

Joan Huffman (R)

District 18

Lois Kolkhorst (R)

District 19

Roland Gutierrez (D)

District 20

Juan Hinojosa (D)

District 21

Judith Zaffirini (D)

District 22

Brian Birdwell (R)

District 23

Royce West (D)

District 24

Peter Flores (R)

District 25

Donna Campbell (R)

District 26

José Menéndez (D)

District 27

Adam Hinojosa (R)

District 28

Charles Perry (R)

District 29

César Blanco (D)

District 30

Brent Hagenbuch (R)

District 31

Kevin Sparks (R)

Republican Party (19)

Democratic Party (11)

Vacancies (1)