Chet Edwards

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Thomas Chester "Chet" Edwards
United States Representative from Texas's 17th district
In office 1991-present
Preceded by	Charles W. Stenholm
Succeeded by	Incumbent
Born	November 24, 1951 Corpus Christi, Texas
Political party	Democratic

Thomas Chester "Chet" Edwards (born November 24, 1951), American politician, is the Democratic congressman who has represented a Central Texas in U.S. House of Representatives since 1991. First elected from the 11th District of Texas, he was elected from the 17th District in 2004 due to the 2003 Texas redistricting. A resident of Waco, his district includes the town of Crawford, which makes him President Bush's Congressman.

Born in Corpus Christi, Texas, he was educated at Texas A&M University, earning a bachelor's degree in economics and at Harvard Business School, where he earned an MBA.

Edwards was elected to the Texas Senate in 1981, serving until his election to Congress in 1991. In the state Senate, Edwards was considered one of its brighest and hard-working members and was named by Texas Monthly as one of the "Ten Best" legislators during his tenure.

He is a member of the House Budget and Appropriations Committees, the Military Construction Appropriations Subcommittee (of which he is the ranking member), and the Energy and Water Subcommittee. Edwards is one of only six House members to serve on both the Budget and Appropriations committees.

Starting in the 109th session of Congress, Rep. Edwards is one of only two House Democrats serving on three subcommittees, Military Quality of Life (formerly known as Military Construction), Energy and Water Development and Homeland Security.

After the 2003 Texas redistricting moved him into a district designed for Republican State Rep. Arlene Wohlgemuth, Edwards waged a tough campaign and won the 2004 election, by 9,260 votes or approximately a 3.8% margin, making him the only Democratic congressman targeted by the redistricting to win re-election.

Edwards ran for reelection against Republican Van Taylor, a former Marine Corp reservist and Iraq War veteran, in the 2006 House of Representatives elections. A recent poll showed Edwards with a comfortable 55%-38% lead over Taylor[1]. Edwards won the election with 58% to 40% for Taylor.

[edit] External links

• Congressman Chet Edwards Official Site
• Project Vote Smart - Representative Edwards
• Election Information - U.S. House Office of the Clerk
• 2006 Campaign website
• Voting record maintained by the Washington Post

Preceded by: Charles W. Stenholm	United States House of Representatives, Texas District 17 2005 – present	Incumbent
Preceded by: Marvin Leath	United States House of Representatives, Texas District 11 1991–2005	Succeeded by: Mike Conaway
Preceded by: Dee Travis	Texas Senate, District 9 1983–1991	Succeeded by: David Sibley

Texas's current delegation to the United States Congress

Senators: Kay Bailey Hutchison (R), John Cornyn (R) Representative(s): Louie Gohmert (R), Ted Poe (R), Sam Johnson (R), Ralph Hall (R), Jeb Hensarling (R), Joe Barton (R), John Culberson (R), Kevin Brady (R), Al Green (D), Michael McCaul (R), Mike Conaway (R), Kay Granger (R), Mac Thornberry (R), Ron Paul (R), Rubén Hinojosa (D), Silvestre Reyes (D), Chet Edwards (D), Sheila Jackson Lee (D), Randy Neugebauer (R), Charlie Gonzalez (D), Lamar S. Smith (R), Shelley Sekula-Gibbs (R), Henry Bonilla (R), Kenny Marchant (R), Lloyd Doggett (D), Michael C. Burgess (R), Solomon P. Ortiz (D), Henry Cuellar (D), Gene Green (D), Eddie Bernice Johnson (D), John Carter (R), Pete Sessions (R) All delegations: Alabama • Alaska • Arizona • Arkansas • California • Colorado • Connecticut • Delaware • Florida • Georgia • Hawaii • Idaho • Illinois • Indiana • Iowa • Kansas • Kentucky • Louisiana • Maine • Maryland • Massachusetts • Michigan • Minnesota • Mississippi • Missouri • Montana • Nebraska • Nevada • New Hampshire • New Jersey • New Mexico • New York • North Carolina • North Dakota • Ohio • Oklahoma • Oregon • Pennsylvania • Rhode Island • South Carolina • South Dakota • Tennessee • Texas • Utah • Vermont • Virginia • Washington • West Virginia • Wisconsin • Wyoming — American Samoa • District of Columbia • Guam • Puerto Rico • U.S. Virgin Islands