Ralph Abraham (politician)
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Ralph Lee Abraham Jr. (born September 16, 1954) is an American veterinarian, physician, and politician who is Louisiana Surgeon General. He was the U.S. representative for from 2015 to 2021. A member of the Republican Party, he is a native and resident of Alto, Louisiana. Abraham ran for
governor of Louisiana The governor of Louisiana (; ) is the chief executive of the U.S. state government of Louisiana. The governor also serves as the commander in chief of the Louisiana National Guard. Republican Jeff Landry has held the office since January 8, ...
in
2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...
, but failed to advance to the runoff. On February 26, 2020, he announced that he would not run for reelection to Congress in
2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...
. Under his tenure as Louisiana Surgeon General, he instructed the Louisiana Department of Health to stop promoting mass vaccination.


Early life, education, and career

Abraham is the son of Marlene Posey, a retired
educator A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. w ...
, and Ralph Abraham Sr. His paternal grandparents were emigrants from
Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...
. He graduated from
Louisiana State University Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as Louisiana State University (LSU), is an American Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louis ...
School of Veterinary Medicine in 1980 and was a practicing veterinarian for ten years. He returned to Louisiana State University School of Medicine for a medical degree in 1994. Abraham has served in the United States Coast Guard Auxiliary and the
Mississippi National Guard The Mississippi National Guard (MSNG), commonly known as the Mississippi Guard, is both a Mississippi state and a federal government organization, part of the United States National Guard. It is part of the Mississippi Military Department, a state ...
. He and his wife, Dianne, have three children. He has been an aviation medical examiner.


U.S. House of Representatives


Elections

;2014 Abraham defeated his Democratic opponent,
Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...
Jamie Mayo of Monroe, 134,612 votes (64.2%) to 75,004 (35.8%). He was sworn into office on January 3, 2015. ;2016 In his bid for reelection, Abraham defeated one challenger, fellow Republican Billy Burkette of
Baton Rouge Baton Rouge ( ; , ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It had a population of 227,470 at the 2020 United States census, making it List of municipalities in Louisiana, Louisiana's second-m ...
, a former
constable A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. ''Constable'' is commonly the rank of an officer within a police service. Other peo ...
in East Feliciana Parish and former chairman of the Louisiana Band of
Choctaw The Choctaw ( ) people are one of the Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States, originally based in what is now Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. The Choctaw language is a Western Muskogean language. Today, Choct ...
Indians. Burkette claimed in his campaign that the Environmental Protection Agency had issued overly strict regulations that hamper
farming Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...
. ;2018 Abraham defeated three challengers in 2018: Billy Burkette, an Independent from Pride, Louisiana; Jessee Carlton Fleenor, a Democrat from Loranger, and Kyle Randol, a Libertarian from Monroe. Abraham polled 149,010 votes (67%) to Fleenor's 67,113 votes (30%). Burkette and Randol received the remaining 3%.


Tenure

After his election, Abraham chose Luke Letlow, his campaign manager, as chief of staff. In June 2017, Abraham co-sponsored the Civil Rights Uniformity Act of 2017. In August 2017, Abraham endorsed
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
's nomination of Terry Doughty, also of Richland Parish, for a seat on the
United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana The United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana (in case citations, W.D. La.) is a United States federal court with jurisdiction over approximately two thirds of the state of Louisiana, with courts in Alexandria, Lafayette ...
, based in Monroe. The selection also carried the backing of U.S. Senators
Bill Cassidy William Morgan Cassidy (born September 28, 1957) is an American physician and politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States senator from Louisiana, a seat he has held since 2015. A member of the Republic ...
and John Neely Kennedy. In December 2017, Abraham voted for the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. After voting, he said, "This is going to be a great tax bill, and great tax reform not only for Louisiana but for the United States." He said businesses would benefit greatly and be able to "reinvest in their infrastructure, reinvest in their employees", and that wages would increase and job opportunities grow. In 2020, Abraham opted not to run for reelection, and endorsed Letlow in the election to succeed him. Letlow won the election, but died from
COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...
complications a few days before he was scheduled to take office. Letlow's widow, Julia, won the special election to fill the vacancy.


Committee assignments

* Committee on Agriculture ** Subcommittee on Conservation and Forestry ** Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities and Risk Management * Committee on Science, Space and Technology ** Subcommittee on Space ** Subcommittee on Research and Technology ** Subcommittee on Oversight * United States House Committee on Armed Services ** Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities ** Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces ** Subcommittee on Military Personnel


Caucus memberships

* Congressional Western Caucus * Coast Guard Caucus * Historic Preservation Caucus * GOP Doctor's Caucus * Mississippi River Caucus * Congressional National Guard and Reserve Components Caucus * National Guard Youth Challenge Caucus * Congressional Sportsmen's Caucus * Veteran's Caucus * Veterinary Medicine Caucus * U.S.-Japan Caucus


Gubernatorial campaign

On December 6, 2018, Abraham declared his candidacy for
governor of Louisiana The governor of Louisiana (; ) is the chief executive of the U.S. state government of Louisiana. The governor also serves as the commander in chief of the Louisiana National Guard. Republican Jeff Landry has held the office since January 8, ...
in the 2019 Louisiana gubernatorial election. He placed third, behind fellow Republican Eddie Rispone and Democratic incumbent John Bel Edwards, failing to advance to the runoff required under Louisiana law as no candidate received a majority in the primary.


Political positions


Health care and public health

Abraham believes the
Affordable Care Act The Affordable Care Act (ACA), formally known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) and informally as Obamacare, is a landmark U.S. federal statute enacted by the 111th United States Congress and signed into law by Presid ...
should be repealed. He opposes the expansion of
Medicaid Medicaid is a government program in the United States that provides health insurance for adults and children with limited income and resources. The program is partially funded and primarily managed by U.S. state, state governments, which also h ...
. On the topic of COVID-19, Abraham has said that masking, lockdowns and vaccination requirements "were practically ineffective." He said that the adverse effects of COVID vaccines were "suppressed", that "we don't know" whether recipients of COVID vaccines can safely donate blood, and suggested that COVID vaccines may be linked to
miscarriage Miscarriage, also known in medical terms as a spontaneous abortion, is an end to pregnancy resulting in the loss and expulsion of an embryo or fetus from the womb before it can fetal viability, survive independently. Miscarriage before 6 weeks ...
s. As Surgeon General of Louisiana, Abraham issued a directive in February 2025 instructing Louisiana state workers to end long-standing mass vaccination clinics and stop promoting seasonal vaccines.


Economic issues

Abraham supports simplifying the tax code. He supports equal pay for women.


Energy policy

Abraham is in favor of the
Keystone Pipeline The Keystone Pipeline System is an Pipeline transport, oil pipeline system in Canada and the United States, commissioned in 2010, formerly owned by TC Energy. It is now owned by South Bow, following TC Energy's spin off of its liquids business i ...
.


Immigration

Regarding
illegal immigration Illegal immigration is the migration of people into a country in violation of that country's immigration laws, or the continuous residence in a country without the legal right to do so. Illegal immigration tends to be financially upward, wi ...
, Abraham opposed amnesty and supported strengthening border security. He supported Trump's 2017
executive order In the United States, an executive order is a directive by the president of the United States that manages operations of the federal government. The legal or constitutional basis for executive orders has multiple sources. Article Two of the ...
to temporarily halt
immigration Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not usual residents or where they do not possess nationality in order to settle as Permanent residency, permanent residents. Commuting, Commuter ...
from seven specified nations until the development of more enhanced screening methods. His spokesman said, "Dr. Abraham generally supports President Trump's temporary suspension of the refugee and immigration admittance program. Dr. Abraham agrees with President Trump that we must take all necessary steps to protect American citizens from potential terrorism threats, and this temporary measure from the President will allow for a thorough review of our policies and procedures for vetting applicants from war-torn areas." Abraham has said he supports banning sanctuary cities in Louisiana, and that he would pay for four minority congresswomen, three of whom were born in the U.S., to leave the United States, if they would tell him where they'd like to go, referencing Trump's "send them back" comments.


Death penalty

Abraham has said he supports the
death penalty Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty and formerly called judicial homicide, is the state-sanctioned killing of a person as punishment for actual or supposed misconduct. The sentence ordering that an offender be punished in s ...
and as governor would find a way to resume executions in the state. He also wants to expand it to include child molesters.


Abortion

Abraham opposes late term abortions. In May 2015, he said, "As a doctor, I know and I can attest that this bill is backed by scientific research showing that babies can indeed feel pain at 20 weeks, if not before".


LGBT issues

Abraham was "100 percent" opposed to
transgender A transgender (often shortened to trans) person has a gender identity different from that typically associated with the sex they were sex assignment, assigned at birth. The opposite of ''transgender'' is ''cisgender'', which describes perso ...
people serving in the military.


''Texas v. Pennsylvania''

In December 2020, Abraham was one of 126 Republican members of the
House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...
to sign an amicus brief in support of '' Texas v. Pennsylvania'', a lawsuit filed at the
United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...
contesting the results of the 2020 presidential election, in which
Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...
defeated Trump. The Supreme Court declined to hear the case on the basis that Texas lacked
standing Standing, also referred to as orthostasis, is a position in which the body is held in an upright (orthostatic) position and supported only by the feet. Although seemingly static, the body rocks slightly back and forth from the ankle in the ...
under Article III of the Constitution to challenge the results of an election held by another state.


Notes


See also

*
List of Arab and Middle-Eastern Americans in the United States Congress This article is a list of all Arab Americans and Middle Eastern Americans who have ever served in the United States Congress. This list includes persons of North Africans in the United States, North African or Somalis in the United States, Horn o ...


References


External links

* * , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Abraham, Ralph 1954 births Living people American politicians of Lebanese descent American veterinarians Baptists from Louisiana Louisiana Republicans Louisiana State University alumni Mississippi National Guard personnel People from Mangham, Louisiana Physicians from Louisiana Politicians from Monroe, Louisiana Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Louisiana United States Coast Guard enlisted 21st-century members of the United States House of Representatives