Jon Woods

Jonathan Earl "Jon" Woods
Member of the Arkansas Senate
from the 7th district
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 14, 2013
Preceded by Bill Pritchard
Member of the Arkansas House of Representatives
from the 93rd District
In office
January 8, 2007 – January 14, 2013
Preceded by Doug Matayo
Succeeded by Jim Dotson
Personal details
Born August 23, 1977
Charlotte, North Carolina
Political party Republican
Residence Springdale, Arkansas
Alma mater University of Arkansas
Occupation Legislator
Musician
Religion Roman Catholic[1]
Website Legislative Bio
Jon Woods
Background information
Birth name Jonathan Earl Woods
Born August 23, 1977
Charlotte, North Carolina
Genres Hard rock, Rock, Alternative
Instruments Thunderbird Bass, vocals
Years active 2003–present
Associated acts A Good Fight
Website A Good Fight Website

Jonathan Earl Woods, known as Jon Woods (born August 23, 1977 in Charlotte, North Carolina), is an Arkansas State Senator and musician. He is the bassist in the Fayetteville rock band, A Good Fight.

Biography

Jon Woods was born in Charlotte on August 23, 1977. He moved to Blytheville in Mississippi County in eastern Arkansas in 1979. He attended public school in Gosnell through the ninth grade. His family moved to Siloam Springs, Arkansas, in 1994. He graduated in 1996 from Siloam Springs High School. He then enrolled at Northwest Arkansas Community College in Bentonville, where he obtained two degrees, an Associate of Arts and an Associate of Science in Business. He continued his education at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, where he joined the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity, served in the student senate, and was elected chairman of the College Republicans. He graduated with a degree in Business Administration from the Sam Walton College of Business in 2002.

Jon has made a lifelong commitment to service, whether it was his work in his youth as a Boy Scout, where he achieved the rank of Eagle Scout, or his work in the community.

Music career

Main article: A Good Fight

Woods and his brother Dustin founded A Good Fight with Sean Merriott and Eddie Love in 2006. A Good Fight has had success with getting its music on several reality shows on MTV and Sony Playstation's MLB 13: The Show.[2] They are currently touring.

Political career

Woods is the Republican member of the Arkansas Senate from Springdale, Arkansas. In 2006, he ran for a seat in the Arkansas House of Representatives. He was the youngest legislator of Arkansas's 86th General Assembly in 2007. He was re-elected to this position twice. Restricted by term limits that allow only 3 terms in the House of Representatives, Woods decided to run for the Arkansas State Senate from District 7, which includes most of Springdale, Johnson, Tontitown, Goshen, Elkins, Durham and parts of Fayetteville and all of eastern Washington County.[3] In 2012, Woods was elected to the Arkansas State Senate.

Arkansas House of Representatives 2007-2012

2007-2008 86th General Assembly

During his first term he showed his ability to bring people of differing points of view together by making Arkansas’ first Umbilical Cord Blood Bank a reality. This institution harvests primitive stem cells from umbilical cords,[4] helping advance stem cell research without abandoning his pro-life convictions. Along with Senator Johnny Key, Woods was awarded the Invest in Life award for his work on the project.[5]

2009-2010 87th General Assembly

In his second term during the 87th General Assembly in 2009, he became the chair of the technology committee,[6] an unheard of feat for a second term member from the minority party. He sponsored legislation that helped amend the Arkansas State Constitution granting the citizens of Arkansas the right to hunt, fish, trap, and harvest wildlife.[7] It was referred to the voters in 2010 where it passed with 612,495 votes or 82.78% of the vote with 127,444 or 17.22% voting against.[8]

2011-2012 88th General Assembly

In his third and final term in the Arkansas House of Representatives during the 88th General Assembly in 2011, Jon took on sex offenders, increasing the penalties for sex crimes[9] and expanding notification to the public about sex offenders living in their neighborhoods.[10] He also sponsored legislation to create the Office of Health Information Technology to implement electronic health records in Arkansas[11] and cosponsored legislation to create a sales tax holiday weekend for families to buy school supplies for their school aged children.[12]

Arkansas Senate 2013-present

2013-2014 89th General Assembly

He is a member of the Insurance and Commerce, Joint Performance Review, Public Retirement & Social Security Programs, and Judiciary Committees and the Arkansas Legislative Council.[13]

Election history

Arkansas State Senate District 7 General Election November 6, 2012
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Jon Woods 15,110 64.76
Democratic Diana Gonzales Worthen 8,221 35.24
Arkansas State Senate District 7 Primary May 22, 2012
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Jon Woods 2,784 51.58
Republican Bill Pritchard 2,613 48.42
Arkansas State Representative District 93 Primary May 23, 2006
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Jon Woods 1,064 57.70
Republican Kathy McFetridge 780 42.30

External links

References

  1. ↑ "Catholic Charities". Retrieved 28 January 2013.
  2. ↑ Flyer Profile: A Good Fight April 8, 2009 · By Dustin Bartholomew http://www.fayettevilleflyer.com/2009/04/08/flyer-profile-a-good-fight/
  3. ↑ "Welcome to My Campaign Website!". woodsforarkansas.com. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  4. ↑ "HB 2416". Arkansas State Legislature. Retrieved 23 January 2013.
  5. ↑ "SENATOR JOHNNY KEY, REPRESENTATIVE JON WOODS RECEIVE FIRST EVER "INVEST IN LIFE" AWARDS FROM CORD BLOOD BANK OF ARKANSAS". Retrieved 26 January 2013.
  6. ↑ "ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY - JOINT". Arkansas State Legislature. Retrieved 23 January 2013.
  7. ↑ "SJR3". Arkansas Stale Legislature. Retrieved 23 January 2013.
  8. ↑ "Election Results". Arkansas Secretary of State. Retrieved 23 January 2013.
  9. ↑ "HB 1015". Arkansas State Legislature. Retrieved 23 January 2013.
  10. ↑ "HB 1009". Arkansas State Legislature. Retrieved 23 January 2013.
  11. ↑ "HB 1905". Arkansas State Legislature. Retrieved 23 January 2013.
  12. ↑ "HB 1369". Arkansas State Legislature. Retrieved 23 January 2013.
  13. ↑ Woods, Jon. "Member Profile". Retrieved 23 January 2013.