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Texas, State Senate, District 15

Texas State Senate District 15
Current incumbentJohn Whitmire Democratic Party
Population793,108
Race27.8% White, 66.7% Black/Hispanic, 5.6% Other
Ethnicity57.1% Not Hispanic, 42.9% Hispanic
Voting age72.4% age 18 and over

Texas' fifteenth state senate district is represented by Democratic Senator John Whitmire.

As of the 2010 census, a total of 793,108 civilians reside within Texas' fifteenth state senate district. Texas state senators represent an average of 811,147 residents. After the 2000 Census, each member represented 672,640 residents.

About the office

Members of the Texas State Senate serve four-year terms and are not subject to term limits. One-half of the Senate membership is elected every two years in even-numbered years, with the exception that all 31 Senate seats are up for election for the first legislature following the decennial census in order to reflect the newly redrawn districts. After the initial election, the Senate is divided by lot into two classes, with one class having a re-election after two years and the other having a re-election after four years. Texas legislators assume office at the beginning of the legislative session (January).

Qualifications

To be eligible to serve in the Texas State Senate, a candidate must be:

  • A U.S. citizen
  • 26 years old before the general election
  • A five-year resident of Texas before the general election
  • A district resident for 1 year prior to the general election

Salaries

State legislators
SalaryPer diem
$7,200/year$190/day. Set by the ethics commission.

Pension

When calculating a legislators' pension, their normal salary is artificially inflated to $125,000. This goes back to 1981, when lawmakers linked their salaries to those of state judges. Since then, they raised judges' salaries while removing the caps on their own pensions, pushing the maximum benefit up to 100% of a judge's salary.

In 2011, this resulted in an average state employee pension of $17,526 annually. The maximum pension a legislator can earn is $125,000, of which Rep. Tom Craddick (R) will be the first to qualify for when he retires. .

Vacancies

If there is a vacancy in the senate, the Governor must call a special election to fill the vacant seat. A Governor's proclamation to a special election must be delivered to local elections authorities representing the vacant seat no later than 36 days before the scheduled election.

The Secretary of State can declare a candidate duly elected in a special election if there is no opposition.

Elections

2020

Elections for the office of Texas State Senate will take place in 2020. The general election will be held on November 3, 2020. A primary is scheduled for March 3, 2020, and a primary runoff is scheduled for May 26, 2020. The filing deadline was December 9, 2019.

2018

General election
General election for Texas State Senate District 15

Incumbent John Whitmire (D) defeated Randy Orr (R) and Gilberto Velsquez Jr. (L) in the general election for Texas State Senate District 15 on November 6, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes

John Whitmire (D)
65.2
153,016

Randy Orr (R)
32.2
75,518

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Gilberto Velsquez Jr. (L)
2.7
6,229

Total votes: 234,763
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Texas State Senate District 15

Incumbent John Whitmire defeated Damian Lacroix and Hank Segelke in the Democratic primary for Texas State Senate District 15 on March 6, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes

John Whitmire (D)
74.9
27,220

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Damian Lacroix (D)
17.9
6,506

Hank Segelke (D)
7.2
2,609

Total votes: 36,335
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Texas State Senate District 15

Randy Orr advanced from the Republican primary for Texas State Senate District 15 on March 6, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes

Randy Orr (R)
100
17,057

Total votes: 17,057

2014

Elections for 15 of the 31 seats in the Texas State Senate took place in 2014. A primary election took place on March 4, 2014. The general election was held on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in these elections was December 9, 2013. Ron Hale was unopposed in the Republican primary, while incumbent John Whitmire defeated Damian LaCroix in the Democratic primary. Whitmire defeated Hale in the general election. Gilberto Velasquez, Jr. was running as a Libertarian candidate.

Texas State Senate, District 15 General Election, 2014

Party Candidate Vote % Votes
Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngJohn Whitmire Incumbent 59.2% 74,192
Republican Ron Hale 38.5% 48,249
Libertarian Gilberto Velasquez, Jr. 2.4% 2,947
Total Votes 125,388

2012

Elections for the office of Texas State Senate consisted of a primary election on May 29, 2012, and a general election on November 6, 2012. Incumbent John Whitmire (D) defeated Bill Walker (R) in the general election. Both candidates were unopposed in the primary elections. Whitmire raised a total of $1,341,636 in campaign contributions while Walker did not raise any money.

Texas State Senate, District 15, General Election, 2012

Party Candidate Vote % Votes
Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngJohn Whitmire Incumbent 62.3% 135,822
Republican Bill Walker 37.7% 82,038
Total Votes 217,860

Campaign contributions

From 2002 to 2014, candidates for Texas State Senate District 15 raised a total of $8,123,934. Candidates who raised money in contributions earned $541,596 on average. All figures come from Follow the Money.

Campaign contributions, Texas State Senate District 15

Year Amount Candidates Average
2014 $1,397,913 4 $349,478
2012 $1,932,588 1 $1,932,588
2010 $1,139,778 2 $569,889
2008 $970,826 1 $970,826
2006 $1,084,808 2 $542,404
2004 $481,540 1 $481,540
2002 $487,528 2 $243,764
2000 $628,953 2 $314,477
Total $8,123,934 15 $541,596