Nathaniel Willis "Tan" Parker IV (born May 22, 1971) is an American politician. A Republican, he has represented the

District 12 District 12 may refer to: * District 12 (Ho Chi Minh city), Vietnam *Schwamendingen, Zürich, Switzerland, also known as District 12 * District 12, an electoral district of Malta * District 12 (Hunger Games), fictional district in the Hunger Games ...

in the

Texas Senate The Texas Senate is the upper house of the Texas Legislature, with the Texas House of Representatives functioning as the lower house. Together, they form the State legislature (United States), state legislature of the state of Texas. The Senate ...

since 2023. He served 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. There are no Term limits in the United States, term limits. The ...

from 2007 to 2023. He was elected in 2006 to represent District 63. Parker sought the position of Texas House Speaker with the retirement of

Joe Straus Joseph Richard Straus III (born September 1, 1959) is an American politician who served as the speaker of the Texas House of Representatives from 2009 to 2019. A Republican, he represented District 121, which comprises northeastern Bexar Count ...

but withdrew his candidacy in 2018 to support the consensus choice, representative Dennis Bonnen of Angleton in

Brazoria County Brazoria County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, the population of the county was 372,031. The county seat is Angleton. Brazoria County is included in the Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land metropolitan stat ...

Background

Parker was educated at the

University of Dallas The University of Dallas is a Private university, private Catholic church, Catholic university in Irving, Texas, United States. Established in 1956, it is Higher education accreditation in the United States, accredited by the Southern Associat ...

, at which he served in the College Republicans Club. He earned a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree in

political philosophy Political philosophy studies the theoretical and conceptual foundations of politics. It examines the nature, scope, and Political legitimacy, legitimacy of political institutions, such as State (polity), states. This field investigates different ...

and Economics in 1993. In 1992 he worked briefly in the White House of George H. W. Bush. He later earned a

Master's Degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

from the

London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), established in 1895, is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the University of London. The school specialises in the social sciences. Founded ...

. Parker serves on several board of directors and advisory councils, including the University of Dallas, Communities in Schools North Texas, the Children’s Advocacy Center for Denton County, and Kyle’s Place, an emerging shelter project for homeless teens. Parker resides in

Flower Mound Flower Mound is an incorporated town located in Denton and Tarrant counties in the U.S. state of Texas. Located northwest of Dallas and northeast of Fort Worth adjacent to Grapevine Lake, the town derives its name from a prominent mound loca ...

with his wife of over 30 years, Beth Haugan Parker, who he met while a student at the University of Dallas. The Parkers have two daughters, Lauren and Ashley.

Political career

In 2006, Parker first ran for state office when his predecessor, Mary C. Denny, vacated the seat for House District 63. He faced four opponents in the Republican

primary election Primary elections or primaries are elections held to determine which candidates will run in an upcoming general election. In a partisan primary, a political party selects a candidate. Depending on the state and/or party, there may be an "open pr ...

, including Lewisville ISD board president Anne Lakusta, who received the endorsement of the ''

Dallas Morning News ''The Dallas Morning News'' is a daily newspaper serving the Dallas–Fort Worth area of Texas, with an average print circulation in 2022 of 65,369. It was founded on October 1, 1885, by Alfred Horatio Belo as a satellite publication of the ' ...

''. Parker garnered the most votes in the primary but needed a runoff to defeat Lakusta. No other party fielded a candidate in the general election, so Parker's runoff election win earned him the seat. In 2008, Parker faced two candidates,

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 ...

Jesus Carrillo and

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 John Turner. He defeated both with 64,048 votes (72.97 percent) to Carrillo's 19,883 (22.65 percent) and Turner's 3,831 (4.36 percent). In 2010, he was unopposed in both the Republican primary and the general election. In 2012, Parker ran unopposed in the Republican primary election and defeated Bruce Hermann

in the general election, which took place on November 6, 2012. In 2014, he ran unopposed in the Republican primary election. He faced

Daniel Moran in the general election and defeated Moran with 30,809 votes (77.3%) to Moran's 9,026 (22.7%). In 2015, Parker's colleagues elected him the Chairman of the House Republican Caucus and he was chosen later that year as the best legislator by Texas Monthly magazine. On March 1, 2016, he once again won the Republican primary election for House District 63. Upon entering the 85th Legislative Session, Parker was unanimously re-elected as the chairman of the House Republican Caucus, which represents the Republican members of the Texas House by supplying its members with policy development and other crucial support services. On March 8, 2018, Parker became the third member of the House of Representatives to file for Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives to replace Joe Straus, a moderate Republican, who steps down with the regular legislative session in January 2019. He subsequently won reelection on November 6, 52,893 votes (67.2 percent) to 25,852 (32.8 percent) for his Democratic opponent, Laura Haines. Thereafter, he left the speaker's race. Parker would win re-election for HD63 again in both 2018 and in 2020. On July 7, 2021, Parker announced his bid to run for the

, for

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

. The announcement comes two days after District 12 current Senator

Jane Nelson Jane Gray Nelson (born October 5, 1951) is an American businesswoman and former school teacher who serves as the Secretary of State of Texas since 2023. She was a Texas state senator who represented Texas Senate, District 12, Texas Senate Distr ...

announced her retirement from the Senate. On March 1, 2022, Parker won the Republican nomination with 53,212 votes (71.07 percent) to 21,657 (28.93 percent) for Chris Russell Parker won the

2022 General Election The following elections were scheduled to occur in 2022. The National Democratic Institute also maintains a calendar of elections around the world. * 2022 United Nations Security Council election * 2022 national electoral calendar * 2022 loca ...

against Francine Ly, with a margin of 23-points. In 2024 he faced no opposition in the Republican primary for his Texas Senate seat.

References

External links

Tan Parker's campaign Web siteTexas Senate bio
, - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Parker, Tan 1971 births 21st-century members of the Texas Legislature Alumni of the London School of Economics Businesspeople from Texas Living people People from Flower Mound, Texas Republican Party members of the Texas House of Representatives Republican Party Texas state senators University of Dallas alumni