3,323 bytes added
, 18:16, April 18, 2020
{{Inbox officeholder
| name=John McCall Zerwas, Sr.
| office=[[Texas]] State Representative for District 28 (Fort Bend County)
| term_start=January 2007
| term_end=September 30, 2019
| preceded=Glenn Hegar
| succeeded=Gary Gates
| party= [[Republican Party|Republican]]
| birth_date=March 24, 1955
| birth_place=Place of birth missing
Resident of Richmond, Fort Bend County, Texas
| spouse=(1) Cynthia Hughes "Cindy" Zerwas (married 1978- 2013, her death)
(2) Sylvia Haist Zerwas (married 2015)
| children =Four children from first marriage<br>
Two stepchildren from second marriage
| alma_mater=University of Houston
Baylor College of Medicine (Houston)
| occupation=[[Anesthesiologist]]
'''John McCall Zerwas, Sr.''' (born March 24, 1955), is an [[anesthesiologist]] from Richmond in [[suburban]] Fort Bend County, [[Texas]], who served from 2007 to 2019 as a [[Republican Party|Republican]] state representative for District 28. Zerwas resigned his legislative midway in his seventh term to become the executive vice chancellor for health affairs for the [[University of Texas]] System. <ref>{{cite web|author=Julie Chang|title=State Rep. John Zerwas to become UT System vice chancellor |url=https://www.statesman.com/news/20190801/state-rep-john-zerwas-to-become-ut-system-vice-chancellor|publisher=''Austin American-Statesman'' |date=August 1, 2019|accessdate=October 10, 2019}</ref> <ref name=ttt>{{cite web |author=Patrick Svitek|title= State Rep. John Zerwas to step down in September |url= https://www.texastribune.org/2019/07/31/state-rep-john-zerwas-stepping-down-early/|accessdate=October 10, 2019 |publisher=''The Texas Tribune''|date=July 31, 2019|accessdate=April 18, 2020}}</ref>
Zerwas and his first wife, Cynthia "Cindy" Hughes, graduated in 1973 from Bellaire High School near [[Houston, Texas|Houston]] and wed in 1978. They had four children. After graduating from the University of Houston, Zerwas earned his medical degree at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston in 1980. He began a full-time practice in 1985. After his wife's death, he married the former Sylvia Haist and acquired two stepchildren.
In 2017, Zerwas was named the chairman of the budget-writing House Appropriations Committee.<ref name=ttt/>
On his departure from the legislature, Zerwas cited "an absolute honor to represent House District 28, and I am proud of what we have been able to accomplish over the last twelve years. … I have served under three [[Speaker]]s ([[Tom Craddick]], [[Joe Straus]], and Dennis Bonnen), and each of them gave me incredible opportunities to lead …"<ref name=ttt/>
Zerwas' successor, fellow Republican Gary Gates, in a [[special election]] handily defeated the [[Democratic Party|Democrat]] Elizabeth Alexander "Eliz" Markowitz (born 1983) to fill the time left in Zerwas' seat. Former [[U.S. Representative]] and defeated U.S. Senate nominee, [[Beto O'Rourke]]of [[El Paso]] had campaigned extensively on Markowitz's behalf. In the November 3, 2020, general election Gates again faces Markowitz. She ran unsuccessfully in 2018 for a seat on the Texas Board of Education.
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zerwas, John}}
[[Category:Texas]]
[[Category:Physicians]]
[[Category:Politicians]]
[[Category:Republicans]]