David Swinford

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David Anthony Swinford
Texas State Representative from District 87 (Carson, Moore, Sherman, and Potter counties)
Incumbent
Assumed office 1991

Born	June 28, 1941 (1941-06-28) (age 66)
Nationality	American
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Joyce McCoy Swinford (born 1943)
Children	David C. Swinford (born 1965) of Lubbock and Melissa Rae Swinford (born 1967) of Dumas
Occupation	Agricultural consultant from Dumas, Moore County, Texas, USA

David Anthony Swinford (born June 28, 1941) is an agricultural consultant from the Texas Panhandle who is an influential Republican member of the Texas House of Representatives. Swinford represents District 87, which includes Carson, Moore, and Sherman counties and populous Potter County.

Swinford's district office is located in Amarillo, the seat of Potter County, and his residence is in Dumas, the seat of Moore County, some fifty miles north of Amarillo. Part of Amarillo is in Randall County to the south toward Canyon. That area, some 40 percent of Amarillo, is represented by Swinford's Republican colleague, John T. Smithee, also of Amarillo.

Swinford chairs the House State Affairs Committee and previously headed the Texas House Agriculture & Livestock Committee.

A leading advocate of rural development, Swinford was first elected to the Texas House in 1990. The Panhandle is a heavily Republican part of Texas: only one Democrat in the Texas House, Joseph P. Heflin of Crosbyton, represents west Texas in the chamber, and no Democrats hail from the Panhandle itself.

In 1992, Swinford won his second election by having defeated the Democrat Bonnie Schomp, 17,897 (54.9 percent) to 14,720 (45.1 percent). The two candidates virtually tied in Potter County, but Swinford's home base in Moore County put him over the top. In 2002, Swinford defeated the Democrat Jesse Quackenbush, 17,086 (65.8 percent) to 8,872 (34.2 percent). He was unopposed in 1994, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2004, and 2006.

Swinford obtained a bachelor of science degree in agricultural education from Texas Tech University in Lubbock. He is married to the former Joyce McCoy (born1943). They have a son, David C. Swinford (born 1965 of Lubbock, and a daughter, Melissa Rae Swinford (born 1967) of Dumas.

Though he is considered a conservative in the legislature through his support of right-to-life measures and home schooling -- his grandchildren have been educated at home -- Swinford announced in 2006 that he no longer supports the construction of a border fence to separate Texas from Mexico. Swinford went to the Rio Grande River to confer with local officials and observe conditions. He reported that the longstanding free flow of goods and services across the border would be hampered by a fence, which he otherwise claimed would not particularly enhance security.

Other conservatives, such as those in the interest group known as Americans for Prosperity, quarreled with Swinford in 2007, when he failed to get out of his State Affairs Committee House Bill 1753, which would have barred such groups as the Texas Association of Counties and the Texas Municipal League from lobbying the legislature with taxpayer dollars.

In 1999, Swinford received the Knapp-Porter Award, the highest honor given by the Texas Agricultural Extension Service. The award was presented at Texas A&M University in College Station to honor Swinford for his support of the Extension Service, which handles the 4-H program, particularly popular in rural areas.