John O'Shea (Texas)

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

John O'Shea

Republican Party

Elections and appointments

Last election

May 28, 2024

Education

Bachelor's

Texas Christian University, 1991

Graduate

University of Texas at Austin, 1993

Personal

Birthplace

Milwaukee, Wis.

Religion

Catholic

Profession

Business owner

Contact

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Campaign Twitter

Campaign Instagram

Personal Facebook

John O'Shea (Republican Party) ran for election to the U.S. House to represent Texas' 12th Congressional District. He lost in the Republican primary runoff on May 28, 2024.

O'Shea completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2023. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

John O'Shea was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He earned a bachelor's degree from Texas Christian University in 1991 and a graduate degree from the University of Texas at Austin in 1993. His career experience includes working as a business owner.

Elections

2024

See also: Texas' 12th Congressional District election, 2024

Texas' 12th Congressional District election, 2024 (March 5 Republican primary)

Texas' 12th Congressional District election, 2024 (March 5 Democratic primary)

General election

General election for U.S. House Texas District 12

Craig Goldman defeated Trey Hunt in the general election for U.S. House Texas District 12 on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Craig Goldman (R)	63.5	215,564
		Trey Hunt (D)	36.5	124,154

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 339,718
= 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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Republican primary runoff election

Republican primary runoff for U.S. House Texas District 12

Craig Goldman defeated John O'Shea in the Republican primary runoff for U.S. House Texas District 12 on May 28, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Craig Goldman	62.9	16,787
		John O'Shea	37.1	9,903

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 26,690
= 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 U.S. House Texas District 12

Trey Hunt defeated Sebastian Gehrig in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Texas District 12 on March 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Trey Hunt	58.0	11,935
		Sebastian Gehrig	42.0	8,638

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 20,573
= 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 U.S. House Texas District 12

Craig Goldman and John O'Shea advanced to a runoff. They defeated Clint Dorris, Shellie Gardner, and Anne Henley in the Republican primary for U.S. House Texas District 12 on March 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Craig Goldman	44.4	31,568
✔		John O'Shea	26.4	18,757
		Clint Dorris	14.9	10,591
		Shellie Gardner	7.6	5,373
	Submit photo	Anne Henley	6.8	4,849

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 71,138
= 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

• Ryan Catala (R)
• Montgomery Markland (R)
• Kay Granger (R)

Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for O'Shea in this election.

Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

John O'Shea completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2023. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by O'Shea's 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.

Raised to be proud of his heritage, he is the son of Dr. John Thomas O’Shea and Nancy O’Shea. His mother founded the renowned Oakridge School in Arlington, Texas because she wanted her children to have a better education than that being offered by the public school system. John is committed to improving the American education situation as there is nothing more important than providing a quality education to our future leaders.

John is a man of great faith in God, and believes America was His great gift to the world, and that our greatest export has been freedom. He also believes he owes this country so much, because of the great opportunities he was given to succeed in life.

Beyond his phenomenal success in business, his greatest pride is in being a brother, a husband, a father, a grandfather, a business partner, and a friend to many. If he is so fortunate as to be elected by the voters in the 12th Congressional district, John has committed to serve a maximum of two terms. He wants to inspire others to get involved in our amazing Constitutional Republic.

In Texas we celebrate success, and respect those who use their God-given talents to succeed and make the world a better place. Pulitzer Prize winner, Carl Sandburg’s observation of us was, “Texans are a blend of valor and swagger.” As freedom-loving, independent-thinking Americans, we earned our swagger because of our valor. As a boot wearing, gun toting, proud-to-be-a-Texan, John is one of us.

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?

• 100% pro America First candidate. It is not just a political movement, but a moral imperative as we must benefit every American first.
• It is time for new leadership in our federal government and a return to citizen servants and away from career politicians. If fortunate to be elected I pledge to a maximum of 2 terms.
• Strict constitutionalist driven to see that government is rolled back and every citizen enjoys all of their God-given civil liberties.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

A restoration of parental rights including the reform of our educational system.

Securing our national sovereignty through a secure border and limited involvement in global organizations.
Returning the federal government to fiscal conservatism by balancing the budget and reducing the national debt.
Restoring the balance of power between the citizen and the government.
Limited involvement in foreign affairs and a cessation of continued military intervention.

Ensuring election integrity so that every citizen's vote counts and transparency so that the public has faith in the elections.

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

My friend Attorney General Ken Paxton because he leads with courage.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

Honor and integrity.

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

Banker and was involved in the banking industry in various banks for approximately 20 years.

What qualities does the U.S. House of Representatives possess that makes it unique as an institution?

The U.S. House of Representatives provides for equal representation of all parts and communities of the vountry and is the steward of our nation's federal spending.

Do you believe that it's beneficial for representatives to have previous experience in government or politics?

Absolutely not.

What do you perceive to be the United States’ greatest challenges as a nation over the next decade?

Rolling back the unelected administrative state and defeating Marxist ideology in our country.

Do you believe that two years is the right term length for representatives?

It appears right as the Founding Fathers envisioned the representatives being accountable to their constituents.

What are your thoughts on term limits?

I support term limits and pledge to seek no more than two terms.

Is there a particular representative, past or present, whom you want to model yourself after?

Chip Roy

Marjorie Taylor Greene
Matt Gaetz
Andy Biggs

Jim Jordan

Do you believe that compromise is necessary or desirable for policymaking?

Only for compromise that makes sense and ultimately benefits the American people.

How should the U.S. House use its investigative powers?

To ensure adherence and accountability of the federal government to the Constitution.

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.

Campaign website

O'Shea’s campaign website stated the following:

“	America First Is not just a political movement, but a moral imperative. We would not consider a man active in his church and community, but abusive and neglectful to his own wife and kids, to be a moral man. Charity first begins at home, then extends outward to help and preserve the country. With crumbling infrastructure, over-dependence on overseas manufacturing and energy; rising crime and failing public education, America has a number of higher priority issues that must be addressed to ensure our citizens are taken care of before focusing on other global matters. We have the resources to make America great again, but our ruling class oligarchs and establishment politicians have been profiting by selling-out our great nation. This needs to stop, now. Border Security A nation without a border is not a country. We secure our border because we love our citizens inside it, not because we hate those outside of it. We have ceded control of our border to drug cartels who profit enormously from human and drug trafficking, which destabilizes Mexico while endangering our own population. To make matters worse, our current government refuses to complete the wall started under the Trump administration, while funding non-governmental organizations that actively recruit the migrant invasion! Cities and towns across the nation are strained by the influx of illegals requiring assistance. American citizens are suffering from increased crime and drug overdoses. These atrocities, along with the assault, rape and enslavement of migrants, means there is NOTHING humanitarian about our open borders. Protecting Innocent Unborn Lives As a Catholic, I believe life begins at conception and abortion is murder. As a strict Constitutionalist, I also believe abortion is a states’ rights issue and I am proud to live in Texas where we protect the unborn. However, it is not enough just to protect the child. We must also do more for women, who find themselves victims of rape or unwanted pregnancies, to ensure they have the necessary medical and economic support to bring the child to term; and assist those who want to give up the child for adoption. We must also hold men more accountable for their roles in these situations, especially as far as rape is concerned. Much more punitive measures should be put in place to further ensure they do not repeat the offense. Free Speech The basic litmus test as to whether a country truly embraces democracy and individual liberty is whether or not it permits free speech – even when we find said speech objectionable or offensive. Censorship has never led to anything positive in the history of mankind and is a tool of an authoritarian government. Too often, over the past several years, dissenting voices have been censored by our own government (or its proxies) for disagreeing with the establishment’s “accepted” narrative. Furthermore, recent history has shown most dissenting speech has been correct. We can not restore our constitutional ideals in this nation until we truly return to the individual’s right to freedom of speech! Protecting our 2nd Amendment The right to own and bear arms is indelibly ingrained in the very fiber of the United States, whether it’s for hunting, sport or self-protection. Our very nation was born by brave patriots who were willing to take up arms and overthrow a tyrannical government. This check on power must always remain. Thomas Jefferson said, “When the people fear the government, there is tyranny. When the government fears the people, there is liberty.” Economy In 2019, President Trump presided over the greatest American economy I have ever witnessed. Manufacturing was returning to our shores, more equitable trade deals with other countries were brokered; we were energy independent and actually exporting gas and oil. People re-entered the workforce and unemployment was low. Working-class wages rose 10% that year alone, and inflation was at 1%. Then the Biden administration took charge and, in essence, overturned everyone of President Trump’s policies. This lead to the economic disaster we’re experiencing now! We are now energy dependent on other countries. Inflation has been fueled by enormous deficit spending by the federal government, while the Federal Reserve Bank continues to print massive amounts of money – further devaluing the dollar! This has led to “stagflation”, which means inflation is soaring while the economy is in recession. Not good! However, the good news is stagflation can be reversed by returning our country to America First principles, as President Trump’s policies have shown. Election Inquiry The past two election cycles have led to a growing portion of the American population questioning whether or not we truly have free and fair elections. Massive ballot mailings without signature verification, illegal ballot harvesting, ballot drop boxes, and states refusing to follow their own election laws have given rationale-minded people legitimate concerns. Yet, astoundingly, election integrity has become a bi-partisan issue! ​The vast majority of Americans favor voter IDs and signature verification; and most favor in-person voting except for the truly confined and citizens and service people overseas. Simple steps can be taken to ensure elections are open, transparent and fair. This will enable concerned citizens to feel like election results are legitimate, once again, as rightful proper leadership is put in place.	”
—John O'Shea’s campaign website (2024)

Campaign finance summary

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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.

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John O'Shea campaign contribution history

Year	Office	Status	Contributions	Expenditures
2024*	U.S. House Texas District 12	Lost primary runoff	$351,914	$341,661
Grand total			$351,914	$341,661
Sources: OpenSecrets,  Federal Elections Commission ***This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* Data from this year may not be complete

See also

2024 Elections

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

Government

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Newsletters

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External links

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Candidate

U.S. House Texas District 12

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Personal

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Footnotes

[show]

Texas' current delegation to the United States Congress

Senators

John Cornyn (R)

Ted Cruz (R)

Representatives

District 1

Nathaniel Moran (R)

District 2

Daniel Crenshaw (R)

District 3

Keith Self (R)

District 4

Pat Fallon (R)

District 5

Lance Gooden (R)

District 6

Jake Ellzey (R)

District 7

Lizzie Fletcher (D)

District 8

Morgan Luttrell (R)

District 9

Al Green (D)

District 10

Michael McCaul (R)

District 11

August Pfluger (R)

District 12

Craig Goldman (R)

District 13

Ronny Jackson (R)

District 14

Randy Weber (R)

District 15

Monica De La Cruz (R)

District 16

Veronica Escobar (D)

District 17

Pete Sessions (R)

District 18

Vacant

District 19

Jodey Arrington (R)

District 20

Joaquin Castro (D)

District 21

Chip Roy (R)

District 22

Troy Nehls (R)

District 23

Tony Gonzales (R)

District 24

Beth Van Duyne (R)

District 25

Roger Williams (R)

District 26

Brandon Gill (R)

District 27

Michael Cloud (R)

District 28

Henry Cuellar (D)

District 29

Sylvia Garcia (D)

District 30

Jasmine Crockett (D)

District 31

John Carter (R)

District 32

Julie Johnson (D)

District 33

Marc Veasey (D)

District 34

Vicente Gonzalez (D)

District 35

Greg Casar (D)

District 36

Brian Babin (R)

District 37

Lloyd Doggett (D)

District 38

Wesley Hunt (R)

Republican Party (27)

Democratic Party (12)

Vacancies (1)