Tommy Land (born August 18, 1955) is an American businessman and politician from

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

. A

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

, he was elected on November 6, 2018, as the next

Arkansas Commissioner of State Lands The Arkansas Commissioner of State Lands is an executive position and constitutional officer within the Arkansas government which has been an elective post since 1874. Land Commissioners are elected to four year terms. The current state Land Commis ...

, and assumed office in January 2019. He won re-election in 2022.

Early life and education

Land was born in

Haines City, Florida Haines City is a city in Polk County, Florida, United States. Its population was 13,174 at the 2000 census and 20,535 at the 2010 census. It is the third most populous city in Polk County. It is part of the Lakeland– Winter Haven Metropolitan ...

. While in high school (circa 1972), he and his family moved to

Heber Springs, Arkansas Heber Springs is a city in and the county seat of Cleburne County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 7,165 at the 2010 census. Geography Heber Springs is located near the center of Cleburne County at (35.494329, −92.039168). Arkansa ...

, the county seat of Cleburne County in the north central part of the state. Land graduated from

Heber Springs High School Heber Springs High School is a comprehensive public high school located in the remote town of Heber Springs, Arkansas, United States. The school provides secondary education for students in grades 9 through 12. It is one of five public high sch ...

. After completing his education, Land began a career with

Southwestern Bell Southwestern Bell Telephone Company is a wholly owned subsidiary of AT&T. It does business as other d.b.a. names in its operating region, which includes Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, and portions of Illinois. The company is cu ...

. Land had an early interest in real estate and bought his first home at age 19 after persuading a judge to grant him "adult" status to sign the real estate contract.

Political career

Land became involved in politics in the early 2010s. In a 2016 interview, he said he was serving as the chairman of the

first district First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and reco ...

for the

Arkansas Republican Party The Republican Party of Arkansas (RPA), headquartered at 1201 West 6th Street in downtown Little Rock, is the affiliate of the Republican Party in Arkansas. It is currently the dominant party in the state, controlling all four of Arkansas' U.S ...

. Land was one of six Arkansas Republican

presidential elector The United States Electoral College is the group of presidential electors required by the Constitution to form every four years for the sole purpose of appointing the president and vice president. Each state and the District of Columbia app ...

s for

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...

and Mike Pence in the 2016 Electoral College. In a Family Council survey of 2018 Arkansas candidates, Land said as Commissioner of State Lands he would "encourage all state offices to look for ways to make government more effective and less expensive."

Electoral history

Land's bid to be the Republican candidate for Land Commissioner was uncontested in the 2018 primary after Alex Ray, from Bryant, dropped out of the race in February. Land faced Democrat Larry Williams in the general election and won with 60 percent of the vote.

Personal life

Land married his wife, Judy, circa 1977. They have a daughter and a son together. He retired from

after 30 years of working in construction and customer service, circa 2003. After that, Land started his own digital telephone and computer networking company. Land acquired a real estate licence in 2016 and the family has leased

mineral rights Mineral rights are property rights to exploit an area for the minerals it harbors. Mineral rights can be separate from property ownership (see Split estate). Mineral rights can refer to sedentary minerals that do not move below the Earth's surfac ...

from their property, also operating a cattle farm. Judy was elected as Cleburne County assessor in 2014.

References

External links

Arkansas Commissioner of State LandsCampaign website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Land, Tommy 1955 births 2016 United States presidential electors 21st-century American politicians Arkansas Republicans Living people People from Haines City, Florida People from Heber Springs, Arkansas