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John Ragan
John Ragan (Republican Party) was a member of the Tennessee House of Representatives, representing District 33. He assumed office in 2010. He left office on November 5, 2024.
Ragan (Republican Party) ran for re-election to the Tennessee House of Representatives to represent District 33. He lost in the Republican primary on August 1, 2024.
Biography
Ragan graduated from the Air Force Academy and earned an M.S. in Aeronautical Studies from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. He served as an Air Force fighter pilot and has worked as a business consultant.
Committee assignments
Note: This membership information was last updated in September 2023. Ballotpedia completes biannual updates of committee membership. If you would like to send us an update, email us at: editor@ballotpedia.org.
2023-2024
Ragan was assigned to the following committees:
- Calendar and Rules Committee
- Education Administration Committee
- Education Instruction Committee
- Senate Government Operations Committee, Chair
- Government Operations Committee, Chair
2021-2022
Ragan was assigned to the following committees:
- Calendar and Rules Committee
- Education Administration Committee
- Education Instruction Committee
- House Government Operations Committee, Chair
2019-2020
Ragan was assigned to the following committees:
- Government Operations Committee
- House Government Operations Committee
- House Education Committee
- Naming, Designating and Private Acts Committee
2017 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:
| Tennessee committee assignments, 2017 |
|---|
| • Government Operations, Vice chair |
| • Health |
| • Government Operations, Vice chair |
2015 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Ragan served on the following committees:
| Tennessee committee assignments, 2015 |
|---|
| • Government Operations, Vice chair |
| • Transportation |
| • Government Operations, Vice chair |
2013-2014
In the 2013-2014 legislative session, Ragan served on the following committees:
| Tennessee committee assignments, 2013 |
|---|
| • Government Operations, Vice chair |
| • Insurance and Banking |
| • Government Operations |
2011-2012
In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Ragan served on these committees:
| Tennessee committee assignments, 2011 |
|---|
| • Commerce |
| • Education |
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
2024
See also: Tennessee House of Representatives elections, 2024
General election
General election for Tennessee House of Representatives District 33
Richard Scarbrough defeated Anne Backus in the general election for Tennessee House of Representatives District 33 on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Richard Scarbrough (R) | 67.7 | 20,299 |
 | Anne Backus (D)  | 32.3 | 9,685 | |
| Total votes: 29,984 | |||
| = 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 Tennessee House of Representatives District 33
Anne Backus advanced from the Democratic primary for Tennessee House of Representatives District 33 on August 1, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Anne Backus | 100.0 | 2,381 |
| Total votes: 2,381 | |||
| = 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 Tennessee House of Representatives District 33
Richard Scarbrough defeated incumbent John Ragan in the Republican primary for Tennessee House of Representatives District 33 on August 1, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Richard Scarbrough | 52.3 | 2,963 |
 | John Ragan | 47.7 | 2,705 | |
| Total votes: 5,668 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
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Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Ragan in this election.
2022
See also: Tennessee House of Representatives elections, 2022
General election
General election for Tennessee House of Representatives District 33
Incumbent John Ragan defeated Jim Dodson in the general election for Tennessee House of Representatives District 33 on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | John Ragan (R) | 61.7 | 11,093 |
 | Jim Dodson (D) | 38.3 | 6,878 | |
| Total votes: 17,971 | |||
| = 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 Tennessee House of Representatives District 33
Jim Dodson defeated James Brewer in the Democratic primary for Tennessee House of Representatives District 33 on August 4, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Jim Dodson | 81.8 | 1,915 |
| James Brewer | 18.2 | 427 | ||
| Total votes: 2,342 | |||
| = 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 Tennessee House of Representatives District 33
Incumbent John Ragan advanced from the Republican primary for Tennessee House of Representatives District 33 on August 4, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | John Ragan | 100.0 | 4,401 |
| Total votes: 4,401 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
2020
See also: Tennessee House of Representatives elections, 2020
General election
General election for Tennessee House of Representatives District 33
Incumbent John Ragan won election in the general election for Tennessee House of Representatives District 33 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | John Ragan (R) | 100.0 | 23,145 |
| Total votes: 23,145 | |||
| = 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 Tennessee House of Representatives District 33
Incumbent John Ragan advanced from the Republican primary for Tennessee House of Representatives District 33 on August 6, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | John Ragan | 100.0 | 5,565 |
| Total votes: 5,565 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
2018
See also: Tennessee House of Representatives elections, 2018
General election
General election for Tennessee House of Representatives District 33
Incumbent John Ragan defeated Richard Dawson in the general election for Tennessee House of Representatives District 33 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | John Ragan (R) | 61.3 | 13,571 |
 | Richard Dawson (D) | 38.7 | 8,572 | |
| Total votes: 22,143 | |||
| = 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 Tennessee House of Representatives District 33
Richard Dawson defeated Nathaniel Varner in the Democratic primary for Tennessee House of Representatives District 33 on August 2, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Richard Dawson | 78.1 | 2,395 |
| Nathaniel Varner | 21.9 | 670 | ||
| Total votes: 3,065 | |||
| = 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 Tennessee House of Representatives District 33
Incumbent John Ragan advanced from the Republican primary for Tennessee House of Representatives District 33 on August 2, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | John Ragan | 100.0 | 6,717 |
| Total votes: 6,717 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
2016
Elections for the Tennessee House of Representatives took place in 2016. The primary election was held on August 4, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was April 7, 2016.
Incumbent John Ragan defeated Michael S. McKamey in the Tennessee House of Representatives District 33 general election.[1][2]
| Tennessee House of Representatives, District 33 General Election, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  John Ragan Incumbent |
66.15% | 15,743 | |
| Democratic | Michael S. McKamey | 33.85% | 8,057 | |
| Total Votes | 23,800 | |||
| Source: Tennessee Secretary of State | ||||
Michael S. McKamey ran unopposed in the Tennessee House of Representatives District 33 Democratic primary.[3][4]
| Tennessee House of Representatives, District 33 Democratic Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Democratic | Michael S. McKamey (unopposed) | |
Incumbent John Ragan ran unopposed in the Tennessee House of Representatives District 33 Republican primary.[3][4]
| Tennessee House of Representatives, District 33 Republican Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Republican | John Ragan Incumbent (unopposed) | |
2014
Elections for 99 seats in the Tennessee House of Representatives took place in 2014. A primary election took place on August 7, 2014. The general election was held on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was April 3, 2014. Misty Neergaard was unopposed in the Democratic primary. Incumbent John Ragan faced Caitlin Nolan in the Republican primary.[5][6] Neergaard's name was removed from the official Secretary of State general election candidate list prior to the election, and as a result Ragan ran unopposed in the general election.[7]
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|---|---|---|
|
John Ragan Incumbent |
54.7% | 4,497 |
| Caitlin Nolan | 45.3% | 3,727 |
| Total Votes | 8,224 | |
2012
Ragan won re-election in the 2012 election for Tennessee House of Representatives, District 33. Ragan ran unopposed in the August 2 primary election and defeated Jim Hackworth (D) in the general election, which took place on November 6, 2012.[8][9]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | John Ragan Incumbent |
51.4% | 12,828 | |
| Democratic | Jim Hackworth | 48.6% | 12,126 | |
| Total Votes | 24,954 | |||
2010
Ragan defeated Democrat Jim Hackworth in the general election on November 2, 2010. Ragan defeated Johnny Cupp in the August 5 primary.[10][11]
| Tennessee House of Representatives, District 33 General Election (2010) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | |||
| John D. Ragan (R)
|
8,569 | |||
| Jim Hackworth (D) | 7,270 | |||
Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
John Ragan did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.
2022
John Ragan did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.
2020
John Ragan did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.
2016
Ragan's campaign website highlighted the following issues:[12]
The rule of law
- Excerpt: "Our Constitutions, the Federal and then the state are the law of land. No one, including a government official, at any level, from the President or Governor on down to the tax collector or dogcatcher, is above the requirements and sanctions of the law."
Individual liberty
- Excerpt: "[E]very law-abiding citizen deserves the right, free from government interference, to enjoy life, to be secure in his or her liberty and to legally engage in the pursuit of happiness, regardless of whether, or not, some government bureaucrat thinks he or she can achieve it."
Limited government with resulting fiscal responsibility and low taxes
- Excerpt: "Fully enfranchised and capable adults do not need a “Nanny State.” Furthermore, nobody, including government, should be allowed to pass an inheritance of “crushing debt” to the next generation."
Free enterprise
- Excerpt: "If conducting business involves no contract disputes, fraud, theft, coercion, or unsafe practices for the public or employees, then government has no mandate to be involved in it, at all!"
Pro-life
- Excerpt: "I believe that a woman’s body and soul are hers to do with as she legally chooses. However, no citizen has the unfettered right to intentionally harm another human being or otherwise impinge upon another’s rights."
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.
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 Tennessee scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
2024
In 2024, the Tennessee State Legislature was in session from January 9 to April 25.
- Legislators are scored based on their votes on the business community.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to education.
- Legislators are scored on bills related to reproductive health issues.
2023
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2023, click [show]. |
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In 2023, the Tennessee State Legislature was in session from January 10 to April 21.
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2022
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2022, click [show]. |
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In 2022, the Tennessee State Legislature was in session from January 11 to April 28.
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2021
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2021, click [show]. |
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In 2021, the Tennessee State Legislature was in session from January 12 to May 5.
|
2020
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2020, click [show]. |
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|
In 2020, the Tennessee State Legislature was in session from January 14 to June 19.
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2019
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2019, click [show]. |
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In 2019, the Tennessee General Assembly was in session January 8 through May 2.
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2018
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2018, click [show]. |
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In 2018, the 110th Tennessee General Assembly, second session, was in session January 9 to April 27.
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2017
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2017, click [show]. |
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In 2017, the 110th Tennessee General Assembly, first session, was in session January 10 to May 10.
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2016
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2016, click [show]. |
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In 2016, the 109th Tennessee General Assembly, second year, was in session from January 12 through April 22
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2015
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2015, click [show]. |
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In 2015, the 109th Tennessee General Assembly, first year, was in session from January 13 through April 22.
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2014
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2014, click [show]. |
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In 2014, the 108th Tennessee General Assembly, second year, was in session from January 14 to April 18.
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2013
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2013, click [show]. |
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In 2013, the 108th Tennessee General Assembly, first year, was in session from January 8 to April 19.
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2012
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2012, click [show]. |
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In 2012, the 107th Tennessee General Assembly, second year, was in session from January 10 through May 1.
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2011
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2011, click [show]. |
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In 2011, the 107th Tennessee General Assembly, first year, was in session from January 11 to May 21.
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See also
2024 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ The New York Times, "Election 2016," accessed November 11, 2016
- ↑ Tennessee Secretary of State, "2016 general election results - Tennessee House of Representatives," accessed January 19, 2017
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Tennessee Secretary of State, "Candidate Petitions Filed as of April 8, 2016 Noon Qualifying Deadline," accessed April 11, 2016
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Tennessee Secretary of State, "August 4, 2016 Unofficial Election Results," accessed August 4, 2016
- ↑ Tennessee Secretary of State, "August 7, 2014 Election Results," accessed September 11, 2014
- ↑ Tennessee Secretary of State, "Petitions Filed for State Senate and State House of Representatives," accessed April 5, 2014
- ↑ Tennessee Secretary of State "Candidates for the November 4, 2014 General Election", accessed October 11, 2014
- ↑ Tennessee Secretary of State, "2012 List of Candidates," accessed April 18, 2014
- ↑ Tennessee Department of State, "Election Results," accessed April 18, 2014
- ↑ Tennessee Secretary of State, "2010 Primary Election Official Results," accessed April 18, 2014
- ↑ Tennessee Secretary of State, "Tennessee General election results," accessed April 18, 2014
- ↑ John D. Ragan, "Values," accessed July 7, 2016
- ↑ Tennessee Bar Association, "Nashville Chamber Releases 2015 Legislative Scorecard," accessed November 10, 2015
- ↑ Tennessee Bar Association, "Nashville Chamber Releases 2015 Legislative Scorecard," accessed November 10, 2015
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by - |
Tennessee House of Representatives District 33 2010-2024 |
Succeeded by Richard Scarbrough (R) |
