Kelly Gene Hancock (born December 2, 1963) is an American businessman and

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 ...

State Senator for

District 9 ''District 9'' is a 2009 science fiction mockumentary film directed by Neill Blomkamp in his feature film debut, written by Blomkamp and Terri Tatchell, and produced by Peter Jackson and Carolynne Cunningham. It is a co-production of New Zea ...

, which encompasses portions of Tarrant and

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

counties, including all or part of the following communities in Tarrant County: Arlington,

Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst ...

Colleyville Colleyville is a city in northeastern Tarrant County, Texas, United States, centrally located in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. A wealthy suburb of the Dallas/Fort Worth area, Colleyville was originally a small farm town in the 19th century. Th ...

Euless Euless ( ) is a city in Tarrant County, Texas, United States, and a suburb of Dallas and Fort Worth. Euless is part of the Mid-Cities region between Dallas and Fort Worth. In 2020 Census, the population of Euless was 61,032. The population of t ...

, Fort Worth, Grand Prairie,

Grapevine ''Vitis'' (grapevine) is a genus of 79 accepted species of vining plants in the flowering plant family Vitaceae. The genus is made up of species predominantly from the Northern Hemisphere. It is economically important as the source of grapes, ...

Haltom City Haltom City is a city, part of the Dallas–Fort Worth region, in Tarrant County, Texas, United States. Its population was 46,073 at the 2020 census. Haltom City is an inner suburb of Fort Worth, a principal city of the DFW Metroplex. The city ...

Hurst Hurst may refer to: Places England * Hurst, Berkshire, a village * Hurst, North Yorkshire, a hamlet * Hurst, a settlement within the village of Martock, Somerset * Hurst, West Sussex, a hamlet * Hurst Spit, a shingle spit in Hampshire ** Hur ...

Keller Keller may refer to: People * Keller (surname) * Helen Keller * Keller Williams, jam-band musician * Keller E. Rockey Places India * Keller, Shopian United States * Keller, Georgia * Keller, Indiana * Keller, Texas * Keller, Virginia * Keller, W ...

North Richland Hills North Richland Hills, commonly known as NRH, is a city inside Tarrant County, Texas, United States, and a mid-to-high end suburb of Fort Worth. The population was 69,917 at the 2020 census, making it the third largest city in Tarrant County. I ...

Richland Hills Richland Hills is a city in Tarrant County, Texas, United States. The population was 7,801 at the 2010 census. Government Richland Hills operates under a charter adopted in 1986, which provides for a "Council-Manager" form of government. The Cou ...

Saginaw Saginaw () is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the seat of Saginaw County. The city of Saginaw and Saginaw County are both in the area known as Mid-Michigan. Saginaw is adjacent to Saginaw Charter Township and considered part of Greater ...

, Southlake,

Trophy Club Trophy Club is a suburb of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. When established in the 1970s, it was one of the earliest premier planned communities in Texas, built around the only golf course designed by Ben Hogan. It is located west of DFW Airpor ...

, Watauga and Westlake. In Dallas County, Senate District 9 includes portions of

, Grand Prairie, and Irving. Hancock was elected to the Texas Senate in November 2012, having previously served three terms in the

Texas House of Representatives The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Texas Legislature. It consists of 150 members who are elected from single-member districts for two-year terms. As of the 2010 United States census, each member represents abo ...

Personal life

A Fort Worth native, Hancock has resided his entire life in the

Mid-Cities The Mid-Cities is a suburban region filling the 30-mile (48 km) span between Dallas and Fort Worth. These communities include the cities of Arlington, Bedford, Colleyville, Coppell, Euless, Flower Mound, Grand Prairie, Grapevine, Haltom Ci ...

area of Tarrant County. In 2003, Hancock and his brother Cary founded Advanced Chemical Logistics, a chemical distribution company in Northeast Fort Worth. Hancock graduated from

Baylor University Baylor University is a private Baptist Christian research university in Waco, Texas. Baylor was chartered in 1845 by the last Congress of the Republic of Texas. Baylor is the oldest continuously operating university in Texas and one of the ...

Waco Waco ( ) is the county seat of McLennan County, Texas, United States. It is situated along the Brazos River and I-35, halfway between Dallas and Austin. The city had a 2020 population of 138,486, making it the 22nd-most populous city in the st ...

, Texas, in 1986 with a

Bachelor of Business Administration Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) is a bachelor's degree in business administration awarded by colleges and universities after completion of undergraduate study in the fundamentals of business administration and usually including advanced ...

. Hancock and his wife Robin live in

with their children: Chloe, Skylar and Harrison.

Political career

Hancock is a lifelong

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

who began his political career serving for thirteen years on the Birdville ISD school board. In 2006, he was elected to the first of three consecutive terms in the

or District 91. In the Texas Senate's 83rd Legislative Session of 2013, Hancock was tabbed to serve on the following committees: Transportation, Jurisprudence, Business and Commerce, and Senate Administration. Hancock serves as the vice chairman for the Economic Development Committee. In September 2013, Hancock announced his intent to run for a second term in the Senate. Hancock was named one of the "Worst Legislators" in Texas by ''

Texas Monthly ''Texas Monthly'' (stylized as ''TexasMonthly'') is a monthly American magazine headquartered in Downtown Austin, Texas. ''Texas Monthly'' was founded in 1973 by Michael R. Levy and has been published by Emmis Publishing, L.P. since 1998 and is ...

'' magazine in 2017. In 2021, Republicans in the Texas legislature drew heavily pro-Republican gerrymandered maps to vastly increase the number of safe Republican districts. Hancock's district, which had been a competitive district in the 2020 election, was redrawn to make it much more Republican.

Legislation

NCAA championship game in Arlington

In April 2013, Hancock authored Senate Bill 398, which ensured AT&T Stadium in Arlington would be eligible for state funds in the facility's pursuit of a

BCS National Championship game The BCS National Championship Game, or BCS National Championship, was a postseason college football bowl game, used to determine a national champion of the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), first played in the 1998 college fo ...

in College Football. Governor Rick Perry signed the bill into law. Arlington and AT&T Stadium will host college football's first playoff National Championship Game after the 2014 season.

Voter fraud

In the 2017 special legislative session, Hancock spoke in support of a bill to increase the penalty from misdemeanor to

felony A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "félonie") to describe an offense that resu ...

when one is convicted of intentionally submitting false information on a mail-in ballot application. Hancock said mail-in voting has been targeted for illegal voting and election fraud and that the legislation is needed. Democrat

Jose Menendez Jose Antonio Menendez (born March 11, 1969) is a member of the Texas Senate for District 26. A member of the Democratic Party, he is a former member of the Texas House of Representatives for District 124. He won a special election on February ...

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_t ...

, however, argued against the legislation on grounds of "unintended consequences."

Delivery of alcoholic beverages

In 2019 Hancock co-sponsored a bill that was signed by governor

Greg Abbott Gregory Wayne Abbott (born November 13, 1957) is an American politician, attorney, and former jurist serving as the 48th governor of Texas since 2015. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the 50th attorney general of Texas from 2002 ...

on June 12, 2019. Dealing with the sale and delivery of alcoholic beverages to private citizens. This law allows food establishments to sale and deliver alcohol along with food deliveries.

2018 reelection

Hancock was reelected to the state Senate in the general election held on November 6, 2018. With 132,001 votes (54.1 percent), he defeated his Democratic opponent, Gwenn Burud, who polled 112,113 (45.9 percent). His margin in Tarrant County was sufficient to overcome his loss in increasingly Democratic Dallas County.

Electoral history

2012 Texas Senate General Election Won with 58.37% of vote 2012 Texas Senate Republican Party Primary Election Won with 64.96% of vote Texas House District 91, 2010 General Election Won with 100.00% of vote Texas House District 91, 2010 Republican Party Primary Election Won with 75.36% of vote Texas House District 91, 2008 General Election Won with 61.27% of vote Texas House District 91, 2008 Republican Party Primary Election Won with 100.00% of vote Texas House District 91, 2006 General Election Won with 59.07% of vote Texas House District 91, 2006 Republican Party Primary Election Won with 52.46% of vote

References

External links

* , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Hancock, Kelly 1963 births Living people Baylor University alumni Businesspeople from Texas School board members in Texas Republican Party members of the Texas House of Representatives Republican Party Texas state senators Politicians from Fort Worth, Texas People from North Richland Hills, Texas 21st-century American politicians