Sam Vega

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

Sam Vega

Democratic Party

Elections and appointments

Last election

March 3, 2020

Education

Bachelor's

University of Toledo, 2012

Contact

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Campaign Twitter

Personal Facebook

Personal LinkedIn

Sam Vega (Democratic Party) ran for election to the U.S. House to represent Texas' 24th Congressional District. He lost in the Democratic primary on March 3, 2020.

Vega completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2019. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Vega earned his bachelor's degree from the University of Toledo in 2012.

Elections

2020

See also: Texas' 24th Congressional District election, 2020

Texas' 24th Congressional District election, 2020 (March 3 Republican primary)

Texas' 24th Congressional District election, 2020 (March 3 Democratic primary)

General election

General election for U.S. House Texas District 24

Beth Van Duyne defeated Candace Valenzuela, Darren Hamilton, Steve Kuzmich, and Mark Bauer in the general election for U.S. House Texas District 24 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Beth Van Duyne (R)	48.8	167,910
		Candace Valenzuela (D)	47.5	163,326
		Darren Hamilton (L)	1.6	5,647
		Steve Kuzmich (Independent)	1.2	4,229
		Mark Bauer (Independent)	0.8	2,909

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 344,021
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Watch the Candidate Conversation for this race!

Democratic primary runoff election

Democratic primary runoff for U.S. House Texas District 24

Candace Valenzuela defeated Kim Olson in the Democratic primary runoff for U.S. House Texas District 24 on July 14, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Candace Valenzuela	60.4	20,003
		Kim Olson	39.6	13,131

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 33,134
= 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 24

The following candidates ran in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Texas District 24 on March 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Kim Olson	41.0	24,442
✔		Candace Valenzuela	30.4	18,078
		Jan McDowell	10.0	5,965
	Submit photo	Crystal Fletcher (Unofficially withdrew)	5.7	3,386
		Richard Fleming	5.1	3,010
		Sam Vega	4.5	2,677
		John Biggan	3.4	1,996

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 59,554
= 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

• William Carl Fisher (D)

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House Texas District 24

Beth Van Duyne defeated David Fegan, Desi Maes, Sunny Chaparala, and Jeron Liverman in the Republican primary for U.S. House Texas District 24 on March 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Beth Van Duyne	64.3	32,067
		David Fegan	20.7	10,295
		Desi Maes	5.8	2,867
		Sunny Chaparala	5.6	2,808
		Jeron Liverman	3.6	1,809

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 49,846
= 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

• Deanna Maria Metzger (R)

Libertarian convention

Libertarian convention for U.S. House Texas District 24

Darren Hamilton advanced from the Libertarian convention for U.S. House Texas District 24 on March 21, 2020.

		Candidate
✔		Darren Hamilton (L)

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.
= 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 themes

2020

Campaign website

Vega’s campaign website stated the following:

“	Climate Change The climate crisis is a threat to our very existence. The time to stand for our future is NOW. Medicare for All Most developed nations see healthcare as a fundamental right. We should too. Voting Rights Voting should be one of the simplest ways to participate in our democracy. Let's work to make sure that it's easy, accessible, and fair. Women’s Rights Women make up 51% of the population. It is beyond time we legislate women's inalienable rights to their own bodies. Housing for All The homelessness crisis only worsens as the gulf between the rich and poor widens. It is our duty to ensure everyone has safe, accessible, and affordable housing. Criminal Justice Reform Our criminal justice system favors the rich and unjustly punishes the poor. To fix this, we need wide-ranging reform. LGBTQ+ Equality LGBTQ+ people have always existed. It is time we ensure their place in our world with legislation that protects them from all forms of discrimination.	”
—Sam Vega’s campaign website (2020)

2019

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Sam Vega completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2019. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Vega'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.

Sam was born in Northwest Ohio to two working class parents. His father is a 2nd generation Mexican American Army veteran and state employee. His mother was born in the Dominican Republic and immigrated to the United States after struggling through a life of harsh poverty. She put herself to work, putting in long hours in factories and the food service industry.

Like many working families, the Vegas experienced hardship. Notably, when Sam's mother suffered an injury in a workplace incident, it wasn't uncommon to go without a running water or spend a week without power. The struggle was amplified as his parents battled with lawyers and doctors who seemed hell bent on making their lives more stressful rather than treat his mother with compassion. The experience stuck with him, being the first of many instances in which he would watch corporate greed use and abuse working families.

Sam studied at the University of Toledo, and became the first among his siblings to gain a degree. Like many of his peers, he sought an education as a ticket to a high paying job. But like over 44 million Americans today, he took on debt in order to pay for his education. Today, he still carries that burden, paying into the estimated 1.5 trillion dollars of debt collectively sitting on the backs of families across America.

Sam moved to Texas in 2015 where he has worked as an Art Director and Project Manager. He is a proud Hispanic-American, and member of the working people of Texas.

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?

• Healthcare is a human right.
• We need to protect our environment and deal with the climate crisis.
• We need to eliminate college debt.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

I'm passionate about passing policies that ensure we have Medicare for All, get started on the Green New Deal, and strengthen our democracy by protecting our right to vote. Other areas that are important to me are immigration justice, protecting reproductive rights, and investing into our education system.

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

No, I don't believe so.

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

The Climate Crisis is already putting a strain on various aspects of our society. I think we need to shift how we operate; instead of being driven by the highest profit, we must strive to make a world where we all can thrive together.

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

No, I don't think they should be quite that short. I think 3 or 4 years might be more appropriate. That being said, I don't think it is a much needed change at this time. I think there are bigger things to focus on.

What are your thoughts on term limits?

I think there absolutely should be term limits on most if not all positions in government.

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

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

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

Newsletters

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External links

• Search Google News for this topic

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)