John Nathan Raney (born April 4, 1947) is a businessman in College Station,

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

, who is a former Republican member of 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. There are no Term limits in the United States, term limits. The ...

for District 14, which encompasses Brazos County, including

Bryan–College Station Bryan–College Station is a metropolitan area centering on the twin cities of Bryan and College Station, Texas, in the Brazos Valley region of Texas. The 2010 census placed the population of the three-county metropolitan area at 255,519. The ...

Background

A sixth-generation Texan, Raney was born in

Huntsville Huntsville is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Alabama. The population of the city is estimated to be 241,114 in 2024, making it the 100th-most populous city in the U.S. The Huntsville metropolitan area had an estimated 525,465 ...

in Walker County and reared for several years on a farm in Madison County, which had been owned by his family for 125 years. In 1950, he moved back to Huntsville. In 1960, he relocated to Bryan, where he graduated in 1965 from the former Stephen F. Austin High School, renamed and consolidated in 1971 as Bryan High School. In 1969, Raney received a

Bachelor of Business Administration A Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) is an undergraduate degree in business administration awarded by colleges and universities after completion of four years and typically 120 credits of undergraduate study in the fundamentals of busine ...

degree from

Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, TA&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas, United States. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of ...

, with a concentration in marketing. In June 1969, after his graduation from TAMU, Raney launched Aggieland Book Store, a business which he still operates. From 1969 to 1975, he was a

first lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a se ...

in the

Texas Army National Guard The Texas Army National Guard is a component of the United States Army, the United States National Guard and the Texas Military Forces (along with the Texas Air National Guard and the Texas State Guard). Texas Army National Guard units are train ...

Political career

Raney has been active in the Republican party since the early 1970s, including a stint as Chairman of the Republican Party of Brazos County. ;2011 Representative Raney has served in the state House since December 23, 2011, having won with 58 percent of the vote in a

special Special or specials may refer to: Policing * Specials, Ulster Special Constabulary, the Northern Ireland police force * Specials, Special Constable, an auxiliary, volunteer, or temporary; police worker or police officer * Special police forces ...

runoff election The two-round system (TRS or 2RS), sometimes called ballotage, top-two runoff, or two-round plurality, is a single-winner electoral system which aims to elect a member who has support of the majority of voters. The two-round system involves one ...

to fill the seat vacated by fellow Republican Fred Brown, whose tenure had extended from 1999 until his resignation in 2011. ;2012 Raney won his first full term in the House on November 6, 2012, 60 to 36 percent, over

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

Judy Le Unes. The

Libertarian Libertarianism (from ; or from ) is a political philosophy that holds freedom, personal sovereignty, and liberty as primary values. Many libertarians believe that the concept of freedom is in accord with the Non-Aggression Principle, according ...

candidate, Joshua Baker, received the remaining 4 percent of the ballots cast. ;2014 In 2014, Raney ran against Democrat Andrew Metscher, a Texas A&M student in economics. He defeated Metscher in the general election 68%–28%.State Rep. John Raney, District 14 (R-College Station)

Texas Tribune ''The Texas Tribune'' is a nonprofit politics and public policy news website headquartered in Austin, Texas, United States. Its stated aim is to promote civic engagement through original, explanatory journalism and public events. ''The Texas Tr ...

. ;2016 Representative Raney faced a Republican primary opponent in the 2016 election cycle from former College Station City Councilman Jess Fields. Raney defeated Fields 68%-31%. ;2018 Raney won again in the

general election A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from By-election, by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. Gener ...

held on November 6, 2018. With 26,663 votes (56.4 percent), he defeated his Democratic opponent, Josh Wilkinson, who polled 20,647 votes (43.6 percent). ;2022 Raney won against challenger John Harvey Slocum in the republican primary race on March 1, 2022.

Policy positions

A member of the House committees on Administration, Appropriations, and Higher Education, Representative Raney supports tuition

revenue bond A revenue bond is a special type of municipal bond distinguished by its guarantee of repayment solely from revenues generated by a specified revenue-generating entity associated with the purpose of the bonds, rather than from a tax. Unlike gener ...

s for public universities, the concealed-carry law in classrooms for the purpose of

self-defense Self-defense (self-defence primarily in Commonwealth English) is a countermeasure that involves defending the health and well-being of oneself from harm. The use of the right of self-defense as a legal justification for the use of Force (law), ...

from attackers, and the prohibition of

abortion Abortion is the early termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. Abortions that occur without intervention are known as miscarriages or "spontaneous abortions", and occur in roughly 30–40% of all pregnan ...

after twenty weeks of

gestation Gestation is the period of development during the carrying of an embryo, and later fetus, inside viviparous animals (the embryo develops within the parent). It is typical for mammals, but also occurs for some non-mammals. Mammals during pregn ...

. Representative Raney authored a bill to allow Texas A&M University to lease and sell land on the main campus in College Station. Representative Raney backed the approved 2013 Texas State Budget and legislation to assist College Station in the establishment of a medical district. He supports legislation to allow Brazos County to earmark specified hotel and motel

sales tax A sales tax is a tax paid to a governing body for the sales of certain goods and services. Usually laws allow the seller to collect funds for the tax from the consumer at the point of purchase. When a tax on goods or services is paid to a govern ...

es to underwrite part of the costs for renovations to

Kyle Field Kyle Field is an American football stadium in College Station, Texas located on the campus of Texas A&M University. It has been the home to the Texas A&M Aggies football team in rudimentary form since 1904, and as a permanent concrete stadium s ...

at TAMU. Representative Raney supported legislation to increase funding of highways and transportation, securing the border with

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

, and more funding for education at the vocational, technical, and higher levels. Raney has received endorsements from Life PAC, Texas Alliance for Life, Texas Retailers Association, Texas Municipal Police Association, Texas Association of Business, Texas Association of Manufacturers, Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas, Texas Association of Realtors, National Rifle Association, Texas State Rifle Association, College Station Professional Firefighters Association, Bryan Professional Firefighters Association, National Federation of Business, Conservative Roundtable of Texas, Texans for Lawsuit Reform, Department of Public Safety Officers Association, Independent Bankers Association of Texas, A&M PAC, Texas Medical Association, Texas Farm Bureau, Texas Society of Professional Engineers, and others.

Personal life

Raney met his wife, the former Elizabeth Hodges, at the 1972 Republican State Convention. The couple married in 1974 and have two daughters and sons-in-law, Beth and Grant Hawkins and Laura and Alex Scogin, and eight grandchildren. Raney is affiliated with the

Chamber of Commerce A chamber of commerce, or board of trade, is a form of business network. For example, a local organization of businesses whose goal is to further the interests of businesses. Business owners in towns and cities form these local societies to a ...

, the

National Federation of Independent Business The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) is an association of small businesses in the United States. It is headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee, with offices in Washington, D.C., and all 50 state capitals. The stated goal of NFIB ...

, and the Texas Retailers Association. He is active in the First

United Methodist Church The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant Christian denomination, denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was ...

in Bryan.

References

External links

Campaign website

State legislative page

John Raney at the Texas Tribune
{{DEFAULTSORT:Raney, John N. 1947 births Living people Republican Party members of the Texas House of Representatives People from Madison County, Texas People from Bryan, Texas People from College Station, Texas Texas A&M University alumni Businesspeople from Texas United States Army officers American United Methodists 20th-century Methodists 21st-century Methodists People from Huntsville, Texas 21st-century members of the Texas Legislature