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Patsy Ledbetter
From Ballotpedia
This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.
Patsy Ledbetter (Democratic Party) ran for election to the Texas House of Representatives to represent District 68. She lost in the general election on November 3, 2020.
Ledbetter completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. Click here to read the survey answers.
In 2020, Ledbetter participated in a Candidate Conversation hosted by Ballotpedia and EnCiv. Click here to view the recording.
Biography
Patsy Ledbetter was born in Gilmer, Texas. She earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Houston in 1967, a J.D. from Texas Tech University in 1985, and a Ph.D. from the University of North Texas in 1975. Ledbetter’s career experience includes working as an attorney and as a history and humanities instructor at North Central Texas Community College.[1]
Elections
2020
See also: Texas House of Representatives elections, 2020
General election
General election for Texas House of Representatives District 68
Incumbent Drew Springer defeated Patsy Ledbetter in the general election for Texas House of Representatives District 68 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Drew Springer (R) | 85.5 | 56,656 |
 | Patsy Ledbetter (D)  | 14.5 | 9,630 | |
| Total votes: 66,286 | |||
| = 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 68
Patsy Ledbetter advanced from the Democratic primary for Texas House of Representatives District 68 on March 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Patsy Ledbetter | 100.0 | 3,318 |
| Total votes: 3,318 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
Watch the Candidate Conversation for this race!
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Texas House of Representatives District 68
Incumbent Drew Springer advanced from the Republican primary for Texas House of Representatives District 68 on March 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Drew Springer | 100.0 | 27,096 |
| Total votes: 27,096 | |||
| = 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
2020
Candidate Conversations
Candidate Conversations is a virtual debate format that allows voters to easily get to know their candidates through a short video Q&A.
Click below to watch the conversation for this race.
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Patsy Ledbetter completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Ledbetter's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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My roots in Texas come from my upbringing on a farm in Upshur County that had been in my family since before the Civil War. From that background, I learned abiding family values, a deep religious faith, a strong work ethic, a patriotic commitment to our democracy, and a genuine concern for the well being of others. But most important, I learned that talking about my values was not enough-I had to live them.
Fortunately, my career as a teacher and limited practice as an attorney has enabled me to live those values. Since 1967, I have taught in both public schools and at the college level, developing through the years a close personal connection with my students. In some cases, I have taught three generations from the same families. Most of my legal work has involved either handling pro bono cases or guiding students through legal assisting courses. I decided to enter the political arena this late in life, not for myself, but for my students and their future. At my age, I have nothing left to prove and little left to lose, so I hope to use this opportunity to build a better future for them,
- I support heath care reform, specifically expanding Medicaid coverage and managing health care costs. Texans are literally dying for want of access to health care, and even those with insurance cannot afford the premiums and the deductibles. Especially hard hit is rural Texas, where hospitals face economic ruin when patients can't pay their bills.
- I have always been a strong advocate for education. I support a fair funding system for our public schools, higher pay schedules for teachers, and affordable college tuition and fees for all Texans.
- I support building the infrastructure necessary for success in the 21st century, specifically broadband internet and cell phone access. In this information-driven age, rural areas, like House District 68, are held back by slow or non-existent connectivity.
The two issues I care most about are health care reform and education. I have always been devoted to education so that passion is not new to me. Only recently did my inadvertent involvement in the death of a young man convince me that I had to commit to health care reform. He came to me for help getting on disability in order to get medical treatment for skin cancer. Before I got involved, the cancer had already eaten away the lower part of his face, exposing bone, teeth and grizzle. What an indescribably disturbing sight! I had to suppress both the tears and the gag reflex as I tried to find help. Since Texas refuses to expand Medicaid, my efforts were futile. I finally just took him to the emergency room of the Fort Worth charity hospital, but it was too late; he was dead within two months. He died in large measure because Texas allegedly saves money and encourages investment by excluding people like him from health care. So, Texas is a low-tax, rich state. My question to voters is simple: In making our fortune, are we in danger of losing our souls?
The person I look up to most and try to follow is my father, Urban Spencer, who died in 1982. He led a difficult life, losing his mother when he was only ten years old and going to work in a sawmill shortly after that. Even with little formal education, he was one of the most intelligent people I have ever known-he had an especially high quotient of emotional intelligence. At a time when most husbands expected their wives to stay at home and take care of the children, he encouraged my mother to continue her education at the graduate level and to succeed in her teaching career. He was at least as involved in the child-rearing tasks as she was-in fact he was the one we went to when we were hurt or sad. His love was boundless and his patience was without limits. He worked hard every day of his life, and yet he always had time for other people, to help those in need or just do a friend a favor. Although he never gained fame or fortune, he was respected as a man of integrity and generosity in his community and loved by his family. He was probably happier with who he was and what he had than any rich or famous or powerful person I have ever known. I have always tried to live up to the example he set for me.
I would refer one who wants to understand my political philosophy to the Preamble to the Declaration of Independence: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.-That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, -That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness."
I would also direct them to a more recent document, "The Universal Declaration of Human Rights." The government represents all of the people and its primary duty is to protect their rights.
I would also direct them to a more recent document, "The Universal Declaration of Human Rights." The government represents all of the people and its primary duty is to protect their rights.
Integrity, honesty, compassion, strong work ethic, ability to work collaboratively
That I was a kind and good person who left the world just a little better place.
The first historical event I remember is the execution of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg in 1953. I was seven years old at the time. I remember it because my aunt, perhaps the kindest and gentlest person I have ever known, was babysitting me at the time, and I remember her standing at the ironing board, listening to the radio, and crying. It was the first time I had ever seen an adult cry-I thought only children cried. Let me hasten to say, she was no Communist sympathizer! But she explained to me that they had children just my age and she couldn't stop thinking about them. It was the first time I recall giving any thought to the world beyond my own home and family.
My first job was teaching English and Social Studies to seventh and eighth graders in Carrollton, Texas ISD. I started in 1967, but was fired in 1969 because I had become pregnant with my first child. At that time, the district had a strict policy against pregnant women teaching. Fortunately, I was able to get a graduate fellowship at the University of North Texas where my husband was already studying. I finished my Ph.D in history there in 1975 and began teaching at Cooke County College (now North Central Texas College) In 1973.
Henry David Thoreau, Walden.
I read it the first time as a teenager and have returned to it several times as an adult. It always helps me reorder my priorities. In Thoreau's own words: "I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. I did not wish to live what was not life, living is so dear; nor did I wish to practice resignation, unless it was quite necessary. I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life, to live so sturdily and Spartan-like as to put to rout all that was not life. . ." His words help me distinguish what is truly essential and what is just clutter in our busy stressful lives.
I read it the first time as a teenager and have returned to it several times as an adult. It always helps me reorder my priorities. In Thoreau's own words: "I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. I did not wish to live what was not life, living is so dear; nor did I wish to practice resignation, unless it was quite necessary. I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life, to live so sturdily and Spartan-like as to put to rout all that was not life. . ." His words help me distinguish what is truly essential and what is just clutter in our busy stressful lives.
Contemplating this question makes me realize how dark my taste in fiction must be-most of my favorite characters are tragic, so even if I admire them, I wouldn't want to be them. Most seem to end up dead. The closest I can come to a reasonable answer is Anna Frith, the narrator of The Years of Wonder: A Novel of the Plague (I've been reading a lot of this particular genre lately.) The plague strikes her village and she sees the best of worst that humans are capable of in difficult times. At least she survives!
"Sunday Morning Coming Down" Kris Kristofferson
My beautiful daughter was killed in a vehicle/pedestrian accident when she was just twenty-two years old. The loss of a child leaves a grief that never heals.
I perceive the greatest challenge Texas will face in the next decade will be restoring the people's faith in our governing system. I believe that the failure to address such crises as the health care debacle, the decay of our infrastructure, the lack of respect for our teachers and support for our schools, the inadequate response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the erosion of voting rights, and the racial strife have all eroded the public's faith in their government and its ability to address issues that impact their lives. Texas has one of the lowest voter turnout and citizen participation rates in the nation, and yet we persist in further narrowing the electorate. As I campaign, people tell me repeatedly that they aren't going to vote or even register because they believe their vote won't matter. They insist that the system is controlled by a wealthy few and does not serve their interests. This sentiment seems to be especially strong among the young people. If they give up on democracy, it will surely fail. To regain their confidence, politicians must start listening to them, instead of the big donors.
I believe it is essential that legislators build relationships with each other. They need to build coalitions with like-minded members, but they also need to listen to the perspective of those with whom they disagree. No matter how much I think I know about a subject, I can always learn more, but only if I am willing consider other people's point of view and listen to their evidence .
I support establishing an independent, nonpartisan commission as the only fair process for redistricting. In fact, I think the future of our democracy may depend on changing the current system. As it is, the party in power gets to gerrymander districts to ensure that they stay in power. As a result, Republicans only have to be concerned with a challenge from their right, while Democrats only have to be concerned with a challenge from their left. The middle gets left out of the conversation entirely. The result is the bitter partisan divide that is destroying the ability of government to function. Under the direction of a neutral commission, the same computers that draw "secure" districts can draw competitive ones. It seems we value competition in everything except our political campaigns.
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
2020 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on July 25, 2020
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)
