U.S. House, Texas - 22nd District
Southeast Houston and southern suburbs -- Sugar Land, Pearland, part of Pasadena
Race Forecast: No Clear Favorite
2008: Rep.
2006:
Elected in 2006 to a Republican-leaning district in and around Houston that was long the power base of Tom DeLay, Lampson has long known the Republicans would target him for defeat this year. He’s been doing everything he can to downplay his ties to the national Democratic Party, including a voting record that he says displays his political independence. Lampson also has been emphasizing issues that don’t fit on a political spectrum, like responsive constituent service and his efforts to protect children from kidnappers and online predators. GOP officials are touting their nominee, Republican Pete Olson, a Navy veteran and former chief of staff to Republican Sen.
Race Information
- Incumbent: Pete Olson, R
- First Elected: 2008 (1st term)
- Last Elected: (%)
- Incumbent Status: Running for re-election
- Race Forecast: No Clear Favorite
District Information
Politics in America District Profile
Generally wealthy, white-collar and Republican, the 22nd includes a majority of Fort Bend County and a chunk of northern Brazoria County, as well as a piece of Galveston County south of Houston and a slice of the city itself. Although George W. Bush took 64 percent of the district’s 2004 presidential vote and Gov. Rick Perry won a plurality here in the 2006 gubernatorial race, Democrats captured the 22nd’s House seat in 2006.
The 22nd takes in the booming communities of Sugar Land and Pearland, as well as affluent areas surrounding the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center. Wealthy NASA scientists and astronauts who live nearby in Clear Lake help give the 22nd the state’s second-highest median income.
Slightly less than two-fifths of the population resides in Fort Bend County, which includes Sugar Land. Since the 1960s, the area has changed from a sugar-growing center into suburbia. Imperial Sugar, which maintains its headquarters in the city, closed its local sugar refinery in 2003. The closure did not stall economic growth, and local officials plan to redevelop the industrial site. The city has welcomed other new development, such as a town square retail center, and in 2006, Money Magazine ranked Sugar Land as one of the nation’s best places to live.
On its northeastern edge, the 22nd takes in part of southeastern Harris County, where 45 percent of district residents live. This area trends toward the upscale: Some of the wealthiest areas in the county are in southeastern Houston, near Ellington Field, a former Air Force base that now houses the space center’s aircraft operations and hopes to attract commercial operations. The district also sneaks north to grab Houston Hobby Airport, making transportation a key issue.
Major Industry
Aerospace, transportation, retail, agriculture
Cities
Houston (pt.), 109,880; Sugar Land, 63,328; Pasadena (pt.), 57,020; Pearland (pt.), 37,628; Missouri City (pt.), 32,855; Deer Park (pt.), 28,493
Notable
The annual “Texian Market Days” in Fort Bend County include re-enactments of 1830s pioneer life, when the area was settled by some of the “Old 300” families led by Stephen F. Austin.
- Demographics (2000 census)
- Population: 651,619
- Under 18: 29%
- Over 65: 7%
- Married: 62.3%
- Non-Hispanic White: 61%
- Black: 9%
- Hispanic: 20%
- Asian: 8%
- Foreign Born: 14.0%
- Language other than English: 25.5%
- Median Household Income: 57,932
- Owner Occupied Housing: 72%
- Income above $200k: 3.1
- Workforce/Education (2000 census)
- White Collar: 69.1%
- Blue Collar: 20.0%
- Services: 10.9%
- Bachelor's Degree: 32%
- Graduate Education: 10.7%
- Civilian Veterans: 51,510
| Year | Election | Candidate | Votes | Percent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | general | Pete Olson (R) | 161,600 | 52.4% |
| Nick Lampson (D) | 139,879 | 45.4% | ||
| John Wieder (LIBERT) | 6,823 | 2.2% | ||
| 2006 | general | Nick Lampson (D) | 76,775 | 51.8% |
| Shelley Sekula Gibbs (R) | 61,938 | 41.8% | ||
| M. Smither (LIBERT) | 9,009 | 6.1% | ||
| Don Richardson (Write-In) | 428 | 0.3% | ||
| 2004 | general | Tom DeLay (R) | 150,386 | 55.2% |
| Richard Morrison (D) | 112,034 | 41.1% | ||
| Michael Fjetland (I) | 5,314 | 2% | ||
| Tom Morrison (LIBERT) | 4,886 | 1.8% | ||
| 2002 | general | Tom DeLay (R) | 100,499 | 63.2% |
| Tim Riley (D) | 55,716 | 35% | ||
| Gerald LaFleur (LIBERT) | 1,612 | 1% | ||
| Joel West (GREEN) | 1,257 | 0.8% | ||
| Year | Democrat | Republican | Independent |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | John Kerry: 35% | George W. Bush: 64% | |
| 2000 | Al Gore: 33% | George W. Bush: 67% |
Campaign Finance Details for the 2008 Race
| Filers | Through | Total Receipts | Total Disbursements | Total From PACs | Total From Individuals | Ending Cash | Debts Owed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAMPBELL, THOMAS (R) | December 31, 2006 | $84,000.00 | |||||
| WALLACE, DAVID G (R) | February 27, 2007 | $23.00 | |||||
| SAENZ, ERIK (D) | September 30, 2008 | $33.00 | $109.00 | ||||
| LAMPSON, NICHOLAS V. (D) | November 24, 2008 | $2,299,933.00 | $2,301,281.00 | $144,250.00 | $1,194,893.00 | $154,984.00 | |
| RICHARDSON, DONALD L (R) | October 18, 2006 | $8,473.00 | $13,000.00 | ||||
| SMITHER, BOB (LIBERT) | March 31, 2007 | $9,262.00 | |||||
| DELAY, THOMAS DALE (R) | May 10, 2007 | $2,369.00 | $15,193.00 | $85.00 | |||
| BAIG, PATRICIA PERINE (R) | September 30, 2008 | $508.00 | $600.00 | $181.00 | $73,585.00 | ||
| TRAN, GIANNIBICEGO HOA (R) | September 30, 2008 | $107,854.00 | $3,553.00 | ||||
| SEKULA-GIBBS, SHELLEY A DR. MD (R) | September 30, 2008 | $1,455,127.00 | $1,520,892.00 | $1,000.00 | $1,056,548.00 | $14,787.00 | $565,000.00 |
| MORRISON, RICHARD ROBERTS IV (D) | September 30, 2005 | $10,786.00 | |||||
| TALTON, ROBERT EDWIN (R) | May 31, 2008 | $282,940.00 | $282,933.00 | $200,124.00 | |||
| BAZZY, KEVYN BLAKE (R) | March 31, 2008 | $26,725.00 | $28,822.00 | $21,725.00 | $702.00 | ||
| DUNBAR, CYNTHIA (R) | July 15, 2008 | $39,567.00 | $37,782.00 | $3,500.00 | |||
| SQUIER, JIM (R) | October 15, 2008 | $179,039.00 | $179,038.00 | $127,439.00 | |||
| HRBACEK, DEAN ALLEN (R) | September 30, 2008 | $371,140.00 | $359,110.00 | $170,796.00 | $12,028.00 | $174,879.00 | |
| WIEDER, JOHN (LIBERT) | November 4, 2008 | $52,942.00 | $52,728.00 | $20,074.00 | |||
| ROWLEY, RYAN EDWARD (R) | February 13, 2008 | $6,814.00 | $5,897.00 | $280.00 | $916.00 | $5,530.00 | |
| MANLOVE, JOHN (R) | June 2, 2008 | $366,240.00 | $366,002.00 | $296,940.00 | $236.00 | $60,000.00 | |
| OLSON, PETER G (R) | November 24, 2008 | $2,340,159.00 | $2,308,009.00 | $151,999.00 | $1,377,139.00 | $32,150.00 | $279,716.00 |
| KLOCK, ROBERT BRIAN (R) | March 31, 2008 | $46,599.00 | $49,958.00 | $27,600.00 | |||
