Lois Kolkhorst

Lois W. Kolkhorst
Texas Senate, District 18, including Aransas, Austin, Bastrop, Caldwell, Calhoun, Colorado, DeWitt, Fayette, Goliad, Gonzales, Jackson, Lavaca, Lee, Matagorda, Refugio, Victoria, Waller, Washington and Wharton counties and a western portion of Fort Bend County
Incumbent
Assumed office January 13, 2015
Preceded by	Glenn Hegar
Texas State Representative for District 13 (Austin, Burleson, Colorado, Fayette, Grimes, Lavaca, and Washington counties)
In office 2001–2015
Preceded by	Charles B. Jones
Succeeded by	Leighton Schubert
Personal details
Born	November 4, 1964 Brenham Washington County Texas, USA
Nationality	American
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	James Darren "Jim" Kolkhorst
Children	Lois Kate and Jake Kolkhorst
Residence	Brenham, Texas
Alma mater	Texas Christian University
Occupation	Businesswoman
Religion	Lutheran Church

Senator Kolkhorst won the special election on December 6, 2014, for the Texas Senate District 18 seat being vacated by incoming Texas State Comptroller of Public Accounts Glenn Hegar.

Lois W. Kolkhorst (born November 4, 1964)^[1] is a businesswoman in her native Brenham, Texas, who is a Republican member of the Texas State Senate.

She was elected to the state Senate from the 18th District in a special election held on December 6, 2014,^[2] to choose a successor to incoming Texas State Comptroller of Public Accounts Glenn Hegar.

Early years

Kolkhorst is a 1988 graduate of Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, Texas, at which she studied advertising and public relations and played on the women's golf team.^[1]

Political life

Senator Lois W. Kolkhorst is a fifth-generation Texan, with ancestral roots to the Texas War of Independence. A Brenham native, she went on to graduate from TCU where she played collegiate golf.

In December 2014, Kolkhorst was elected to the Texas Senate in a special election, after previously serving fourteen years in the Texas House. She is a member of the Senate Finance Committee. She also serves as Vice-Chair of the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services.

Kolkhorst is a member of the Senate Committee on Education. Representing all or part of twenty-one Texas counties, she serves on the Senate Transportation Committee as well as the Senate Select Committee on Texas Ports. Kolkhorst serves on the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Water and Rural Affairs and the Texas Agriculture Policy Board.

In 2013, she worked closely with Texas Governor Rick Perry and U.S. Senator Ted Cruz to reject a push by members of the Texas Legislature to expand Medicaid in Texas. She has been named among the "Ten Best Legislators" by Texas Monthly magazine.^[3] In her race for Senate District 18 in 2014, she received the endorsement of outgoing Governor Rick Perry, incoming Governor Greg Abbott, and incoming Comptroller Glenn Hegar.

Personal life

Kolkhorst and her husband, James Darren "Jim" Kolkhorst (born 1965), have two children, Lois Kate and Jake Kolkhorst.^[1] Though they reside in Brenham, the couple owns and operates Kolkhorst Petroleum in Navasota in Grimes County.^[3] The company was founded by Jim Kolkhorst's father, James Henry "Bubba" Kolkhorst.

She is a member of the St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Brenham.^[4]

References

1. "Lois Kolkhorst's Biography". votesmart.org. Retrieved February 20, 2014.
2. Kolkhorst Wins Special State Senate Election
3. "Lois Kolkhorst Biography" (PDF). Legislative Reference Library. Retrieved February 20, 2014.
4. "State Rep. Lois Kolkhorst District 13 (R-Brenham)". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved February 20, 2014.