Ed Thompson (Texas politician)

Background

Thompson graduated c. 1968 from La Porte High School in La Porte in Harris County near Houston. He received a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from the University of Houston. Thompson is affiliated with the Chamber of Commerce and is a past president of the Pearland Economic Development Corporation. Thompson held the District 5 seat on the Pearland City Council from 2010 to 2012. During that time his council colleagues named him mayor pro tempore, a position which he vacated in order to run for state representative.

Thompson is also a former trustee of the Pearland Independent School District. He referees high school football in the Houston area. Thompson and his family are members of Sagemont Church in Houston, a large congregation that began in 1966 as a mission of the First Baptist Church of Pasadena, Texas.

Thompson and his wife, the former Frederica Anne Harrison (born c. 1957), known as Freddie Thompson, have two children and four grandchildren.

Political life

In 2012, Republican Representative Randy Weber of Pearland left the state House after two terms to run successfully for the United States House of Representatives from Texas' 14th congressional district. To fill the state vacancy, Thompson defeated businesswoman Debra A. Rosenthal-Ritter (born c. 1957) of Pearland for the Republican nomination. He polled 7,544 votes (67 percent) to her 3,707 (33 percent). Thompson then won the general election over Democrat Doug Martin Blatt (born c. 1958) of Alvin, Texas, 40,642 votes (65.5 percent) to 21,388 (34.5 percent).

Thompson serves on the House committees of (1) Environmental Regulation and (2) Special Purpose Districts.

In the 2013 legislative session, Thompson supported a ban on abortion after twenty weeks of gestation; the bill passed the House, 96-49. He co-sponsored companion legislation to increase medical and licensing requirements of abortion providers. Texas Right to Life rated him 78 percent favorable.

Thompson voted against the taxpayer-funded breakfast program for public schools, which nevertheless passed the House, 73-58. He co-sponsored legislation to provide marshals for school security as a separate law-enforcement entity. He opposed the requirement of immunization of minors without parental consent, a measure which the House approved, 71-61. He voted for the bill to extend the franchise tax exemption to certain businesses. Thompson voted to prohibit texting while driving. He voted to require testing for narcotics of those receiving unemployment compensation. He voted against the "equal pay for women" measure, which passed the House, 78-61. Thompson co-sponsored the measure to forbid the state from engaging in the enforcement of federal regulations of firearms. He voted to allow college and university officials to carry concealed weapons in the name of campus security. He co-sponsored legislation to reduce the time required to obtain a concealed-carry permit. He voted for the redistricting bills for the state House, the Texas Senate, and the United States House of Representatives. Thompson voted to establish term limits for certain state officials.

In 2013, Phyllis Schlafly's Eagle Forum, managed in Texas by Cathie Adams, a former state chairman of the Texas Republican Party, rated Thompson 98 percent favorable; the Young Conservatives of Texas, 73 percent. The Texas League of Conservation Voters rated him 71 percent. The interest group, Texans for Fiscal Responsibility, founded by Michael Quinn Sullivan, rated him 80 percent. The Texas Association of Business rated him 87 percent. The National Rifle Association rated him 92 percent.

Thompson was unopposed for the Republican nomination for a second term as the District 29 state representative in the primary election held on March 4, 2014.