Ray Merrick
Ray Merrick is a former Republican member of the Kansas House of Representatives, representing District 27 from 2013 to 2017. He served as Speaker of the House from 2013 to 2017. He previously served in the Kansas State Senate from 2011 to 2013 and in the house from 2000 to 2010.
Merrick did not seek re-election to the Kansas House of Representatives in 2016.
Biography
Merrick's professional experience includes owning MJM Management and serving as Senior Vice President/General Manager for both the Myron Green Cafeterias Company and Treat America.[1]
Committee assignments
2015 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Merrick served on the following committees:
| Kansas committee assignments, 2015 |
|---|
| • Interstate Cooperation, Chair |
| • Legislative Coordinating Council, Vice Chair |
| • Calendar and Printing, Chair |
| • Legislative Budget |
2013-2014
At the beginning of the 2013 legislative session, Merrick served on the following committees:
| Kansas committee assignments, 2013 |
|---|
| • Interstate Cooperation, Chair |
| • Calendar and Printing, Vice chair |
| • Legislative Budget |
2011-2012
In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Merrick served on these committees:
| Kansas committee assignments, 2011 |
|---|
| • Commerce |
| • Financial Institutions and Insurance |
| • Utilities |
2009-2010
In the 2009-2010 legislative session, Merrick served on these committees:
| Kansas committee assignments, 2009 |
|---|
| • Calendar and Printing, Chair |
| • Interstate Cooperation, Vice chair |
| • Legislative Budget, Vice chair |
Campaign themes
Merrick's website listed some of his major goals as "tougher restrictions on sexual predators," "protecting Blue Valley and Olathe school districts," and "advocating responsible government and protecting our tax dollars."[2]
Online streaming
For important Kansas legislative committees, including the State Senate's Judiciary committee, technology existed to allow for live streaming video online for these committees, but the technology was hardly ever activated during the 2012-2013 legislative session. A spokesperson for Merrick stated that there were no plans to require that legislative committee meetings would be streamed online, despite the capability. "It’s at the discretion of the committee chair," she said.[3]
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
2016
Elections for the Kansas House of Representatives were held in 2016. The primary election was held on August 2, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was June 1, 2016. Incumbent Ray Merrick (R) did not seek re-election.
Sean Tarwater Sr. defeated Larry Miller in the Kansas House of Representatives District 27 general election.[4][5]
| Kansas House of Representatives, District 27 General Election, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  Sean Tarwater Sr. |
69.34% | 9,712 | |
| Democratic | Larry Miller | 30.66% | 4,294 | |
| Total Votes | 14,006 | |||
| Source: Kansas Secretary of State | ||||
Larry Miller ran unopposed in the Kansas House of Representatives District 27 Democratic primary.[6][7]
| Kansas House of Representatives, District 27 Democratic Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Democratic | Larry Miller (unopposed) | |
Sean Tarwater Sr. defeated Timothy Harmon in the Kansas House of Representatives District 27 Republican primary.[6][7]
| Kansas House of Representatives, District 27 Republican Primary, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | Sean Tarwater Sr. |
53.53% | 1,539 | |
| Republican | Timothy Harmon | 46.47% | 1,336 | |
| Total Votes | 2,875 | |||
2014
Elections for the Kansas House of Representatives took place in 2014. A primary election was held on August 5, 2014, and a general election was held on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was June 2, 2014. Theresa Hohl was unopposed in the Democratic primary. Incumbent Ray Merrick was unopposed in the Republican primary. Merrick defeated Hohl in the general election.[8][9]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Ray Merrick Incumbent |
69.5% | 6,121 | |
| Democratic | Theresa Hohl | 30.5% | 2,684 | |
| Total Votes | 8,805 | |||
2012
Merrick won re-election in the 2012 election for Kansas House of Representatives District 27. Merrick ran unopposed in the August 7 Republican primary and ran unopposed in the general election, which took place on November 6, 2012.[10][11]
2010
Merrick ran for re-election to the 27th District Seat in 2010 with no opposition. He was also unopposed in the GOP primary. The general election took place on November 2, 2010.[12][13]
2008
On November 4, 2008, Merrick was re-elected to the 27th District Seat in the Kansas House of Representatives, defeating Becky Ansley (D).[14] Merrick raised $84,742 for his campaign, while Ansley raised $14,593.[15]
| Kansas House of Representatives, District 27 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | Percent | ||
| Raymond Merrick (R)
|
10,855 | 68.1% | ||
| Becky Ansley (D) | 5,084 | 31.8% | ||
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
Kansas Freedom Index
The Kansas Policy Institute, Kansas’s "first free market think tank," releases its legislator scorecard as a part of its Kansas Freedom Index for Kansas state representatives and senators once a year. The Score Card gives each legislator a score from 1%-100% based on how they voted in the prior legislative term on specific issues which the Kansas Policy Institute thought were pro-limited government policies.[16]
2013
Ray Merrick received a score of 64.0% in the 2013 index.[17]
Endorsements
Presidential preference
2012
Ray Merrick endorsed Newt Gingrich in the 2012 presidential election.[18]
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term Ray + Merrick + Kansas + Senate
See also
- Kansas House of Representatives
- House Committees
- Joint Committees
- Kansas state legislative districts
- Kansas State Legislature
External links
- Kansas Legislature - Representative Ray Merrick
- Official campaign website
- Profile from Open States
- Biography from Project Vote Smart
- Project Vote Smart Legislative Profile
- Kansas Votes profile
- State Surge - Legislative and voting track record
- Campaign contributions: 2012, 2010, 2008, 2006, 2004, 2002, 2000
Footnotes
- ↑ Project Vote Smart, "Ray Merrick's Biography," accessed April 1, 2014
- ↑ Ray Merrick for State Senate, homepage," accessed April 1, 2014 (Archived)
- ↑ Watchdog.org, "Eye in the sky: Kansas legislative leader won’t require streaming video," November 7, 2013
- ↑ Kansas Secretary of State, "Candidate list," accessed August 23, 2016
- ↑ Kansas Secretary of State, "2016 General Election official results," accessed December 19, 2016
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Kansas Secretary of State, "Candidate list," accessed June 3, 2016
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Kansas Secretary of State, "2016 Official Kansas Primary Election Results," accessed September 12, 2016
- ↑ Kansas Secretary of State, "2014 Primary Election - Official Vote Totals," accessed September 15, 2014
- ↑ Kansas Secretary of State, "2014 General Election - Official Vote Totals," accessed April 17, 2015
- ↑ Kansas Secretary of State, "2012 Primary Election - Official Vote Totals," accessed March 31, 2014
- ↑ Kansas Secretary of State, "2012 General Election - Official Vote Totals," accessed March 31, 2014
- ↑ Kansas Secretary of State, "2010 Primary Election - Official Vote Totals," accessed March 31, 2014
- ↑ Kansas Secretary of State, "2010 General Election - Official Vote Totals," accessed March 29, 2014
- ↑ Kansas Secretary of State, "2008 General Election - Official Vote Totals," accessed March 29, 2014
- ↑ Follow the Money, "Kansas 2008 - Candidates," accessed March 29, 2014
- ↑ Kansas Policy Institute, "Freedom Index," accessed March 31, 2014
- ↑ Ballotpedia, "2013 Kansas Policy Index," accessed March 10, 2015
- ↑ Newt Gingrich 2012, "Newt Gingrich Announces Support of Conservative Kansas State Legislators," February 15, 2012 (Archived)
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Charlotte O'Hara (R) |
Kansas House of Representatives District 27 2013–2017 |
Succeeded by Sean Tarwater Sr. (R) |
| Preceded by - |
Kansas State Senate District 7 2011–2013 |
Succeeded by Pat Apple (R) |
| Preceded by - |
Kansas House of Representatives District 27 2000–2011 |
Succeeded by NA |
 |
State of Kansas Topeka (capital) |
|---|---|
| Elections |
What's on my ballot? | Elections in 2025 | How to vote | How to run for office | Ballot measures |
| Government |
Who represents me? | U.S. President | U.S. Congress | Federal courts | State executives | State legislature | State and local courts | Counties | Cities | School districts | Public policy |
