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, 21:09, May 30, 2020
{{Infobox officeholder
|name=Mark McGregor Shelton
|nationality=[[United States|American]]
|office=[[Texas]] State Representative for District 97 southwestern ([[Fort Worth]])
|term_start=January 13, 2009
|term_end=January 8, 2013
|preceded=Dan Barrett
|succeeded=Craig Goldman
|party=[[Republican Party|Republican]]
|birth_date=November 8, 1956
|birth_place=Place of birth missing]
|occupation=Infectious disease pediatrician
|residence=Fort Worth, Texas, USA
|spouse=Mary Ann Osterhoudt Shelton
|children=Richard Bryce Shelton<br>
Andrew James Shelton<br>
Peter Shelton<br>
Betsy Shelton
|religion=[[Southern Baptist]]
|alma_mater=Miribeau B. Lamar High School (Arlington, Texas)<br>
[[Baylor University]] ([[Waco, Texas|Waco]])<br>
[[Texas A&M University]] Health Science CenterCollege of Medicine ([[Bryan, Texas|Bryan]])
}}
'''Mark McGregor Shelton''' (November 8, 1956), is a [[pediatrician]] at the Cook Children's Medical Center in [[Fort Worth], [[Texas]], who is a [[Republican Party|Republican]] former state representative. From 2009 to 2013, he represented House District 97 in Tarrant County.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://lrl.texas.gov/legeLeaders/members/memberDisplay.cfm?memberID=5663&searchparams=chamber=~city=~countyID=0~RcountyID=~district=~first=~gender=~last=Shelton~leaderNote=~leg=~party=Republican~roleDesc=~Committee=
|title=Mark Shelton|publisher=Texas Legislative Reference Library|accessdate=May 30, 2020}}</ref>
Shelton did not seek reelection in 2012 but instead ran a strong but unsuccessful race for state senator in District 10, having been defeated by [[Democratic Party|Democrat]] Wendy Russell Davis, her party's 2014 nominee against Republican [[Greg Abbott]] and a 2020 opponent to [[U.S. Representative]] [[Chip Roy]]. Shelton ran again in 2014 for the same Senate seat but was handily defeated by the more [[conservative]] challenger, [[Konni Burton]], a [[business]]woman from Colleyville in Tarrant County, a favorite of the [[Tea Party movement]].<ref name=kburton/>Burton received 17,435 votes (60.2 percent) to Shelton's 6,237 (38.9 percent).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://team1.sos.state.tx.us/enr/results/may27_173_state.htm?x=0&y=2631&id=422|title=2014 Republican Party Primary Runoff: Election Night Returns|publisher=[[Texas Secretary of State]]|accessdate=May 28, 2014}}</ref> Burton was defeated for reelection by a Democrat in her bid for a second term in 2018.
==Background==
Shelton's place of birth is not available. The website intelius.com reports that he formerly lived in Edmond near [[Oklahoma City]], [[Oklahoma]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.intelius.com/results.php?ReportType=1&formname=name&qf=Mark&qmi=M&qn=Shelton&qcs=Fort+Worth%2C+TX&focusfirst=1|title=Mark McGregor Shelton|publisher=intelius.com|accessdate=May 30, 2020}}</ref> He was reared in Arlington in Tarrant County and graduated in 1974 from Mirabeau B. Lamar High School there. In 1979, he received a Bachelor of Science in Biology from [[Baylor University]] in [[Waco, Texas|Waco]], Texas. In 1983, he received his [[M.D.]] from the Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine in [[Bryan, Texas|Bryan]].<ref name=ttribune>{{cite web|url=http://www.texastribune.org/directory/mark-shelton/#ui-tabs-1|title=Mark Shelton|publisher=''The Texas Tribune''|accessdate=March 30, 2014}}</ref>
Since 1988, Shelton has been the director of the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Program at the Cook Medical Center. He specializes in the control of infectious diseases and has directed the pediatric [[AIDS]] unit. He is active in community affairs, including the [[Boy Scouts]], having himself been an [[Eagle Scout]]. He has raised funds for Ronald McDonald House Charities and the Lena Pope Home, an orphanage in Fort Worth.<ref name=ttribune/>
Shelton and his wife, the former Mary Ann Osterhoudt (born c. 1956), have four children, Richard Bryce, Andrew James, Peter, and Betsy. He is a member of the Travis Avenue [[Southern Baptist|Baptist]] Church in Fort Worth.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://votesmart.org/candidate/biography/102058/mark-shelton#.UzhZx8tOUfg|title=Mark Shelton's Biography|publisher=Project Vote Smart|accessdate=May 30, 2020}}</ref>
==Political life==
On November 6, 2007, Dr. Shelton was one of seven candidate who ran in a [[special election]] to fill the seat vacated by Republican Anna Mowery, who resigned midway in her term. He finished second with 4,049 votes (22.9 percent). The top votegetter, Democrat Dan Barrett, polled 5,575 (31.5 percent). Republican Craig Goldman, who would ultimately succeed Shelton as the District 97 representative in 2013, finished in fourth place in the special election with 2,947 votes (16.7 percent).<ref>Texas Secretary of State, Election Returns (Legislative), November 6, 2007.</ref>In the runoff election, Barrett defeated Shelton, 5,365 (52.2 percent) to 4,915 (47.8 percent) to claim the seat for the year remaining in Mowery's term.<ref>Texas Secretary of State, Election Returns (Legislative), December 18, 2007.</ref>
In the Republican primary in 2008, Shelton ran again and won outright over two opponents who had also run in the special election just four months earlier. He received 7,787 votes (58.5 percent).<ref>Texas Secretary of State, Election Returns (Legislative), March 4, 2008.</ref>
In the 2008 general election, Shelton turned the tables on Barrett and won back the seat for the Republicans. He polled 37,800 votes (55.3 percent) to Barrett's 29,206 (42.8 percent). The remaining 1.9 percent went to the [[Libertarian Party]] nominee, Rodney Lynn Wingo (born c. 1947) of Fort Worth.<ref>Texas Secretary of State, General Election Returns (Legislative), November 4, 2008..</ref>
In 2010, Shelton won his second term in the general election. Though no Democrat ran that year, he defeated the Libertarian candidate from 2008, Rodney Wingo, 28,275 (86.4 percent) to 4,448 (13.6 percent).<ref>Texas Secretary of State, Elections Returns (Legislative), November 2, 2010.</ref>
Shelton won the Republican nomination for the state Senate on May 29, 2012 with 80.8 percent of the ballots casts over his intra-party rival, Derek Cooper.<ref>Texas Secretary of State, Elections Returns (Legislative), May 29, 2012.</ref>In the general election Wendy Davis narrowly prevailed, 147,103 votes (51.1 percent) to Shelton's 140,656 (48.9 percent),<ref>Texas Secretary of State, General Elections Returns (Legislative), November 6, 2012.</ref>
On March 4, 2014, again seeking Davis' Senate seat, Shelton ran second in the Republican primary. He polled 15,689 votes (35.2 percent) to Konni Burton's 19,288 (43.2 percent). Three other candidates held the remaining but critical 21.6 percent of the vote.<ref name=republicanTexas Secretary of State, Republican primary election returns, March 4, 2014.<ref>Burton carried the endorsement of [[U.S. Senator]] [[Ted Cruz]], who called her a "tireless, unwavering warrior for the conservative cause".<ref name=kburton>{{cite web|url=
http://www.breitbart.com/Breitbart-Texas/2014/03/17/SD10-Candidate-Konni-Burton-to-Start-Runoff-Campaign|title=Texas Senate Candidate Konni Burton to Start Runoff Campaign with Ted Cruz|publisher=breitbart.com|accessdate=March 30, 2014}}</ref>Other conservative figures who lined up with Burton over Shelton were state Representative Matt Krause of Fort Worth and former Republican National Committeeman Tim Lambert of [[Lubbock]], the president of the Texas Homeschool Coalition.<ref name=kburton/>Shelton carried the blessing of [[Mayor]] Betsy Price of Fort Worth, who describes him as "an advocate for business, job growth, and low taxes."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.drmarkshelton.com/|title=Fort Worth Mayor Betsy Price endorses Dr. Mark Shelton for Senate District 10|publisher=drmarkshelton.com|accessdate=March 30, 2014}}</ref>
Burton defeated the Democrat Libby B. Willis (born c. 1959), a [[community organizer]] from Fort Worth, who carried Davis' endorsement.<ref name=kburton/> The Republican primary turnout in 2014 exceeded that of the Democrats in the nominally Democratic district by 21,531 votes,<ref name=republican/><ref name=democrat/>a factor undoubtedly contributing to Burton's margin of nearly 53 percent in the general election.
===Legislative voting records===
In 2011, Representative Shelton voted to forbid state funding of agencies which perform [[abortion]]s. He co-sponsored companion legislation which requires that a woman undergo a sonogram before procuring an abortion. This act is based on the view that a woman could change her mind about an abortion once she witnesses the development of the unborn child through the latest technology.<ref name=votingrecords>{{cite web|url=https://votesmart.org/candidate/key-votes/102058/mark-shelton#.UzifO8tOUfg|title=Mark Shelton's Voting Records|publisher=votesmart.org|accessdate=May 30, 2020}}</ref>The Texas [[Right to Life]] Committee, according to Project Vote Smart, rated Shelton only 60 percent favorable in 2011. The [[National Abortion Rights Action League]] rated him 0 percent.<ref name=ratings/>
Shelton voted for the adoption of the biennial state budgets in 2011 and supported a resolution to reduce funding for state agencies, which passed the House, 84-63. He voted to extend the [[sales tax]] to [[Internet]] transactions to match existing laws for brick and mortar stores; the measure passed the House, 125-20. Shelton voted to prohibit [[smoking]] in public places; the bill passed the House, 73-66. He voted to establish eligibility for indigent health care. He sponsored the bill to establish corporal punishment in public schools; the measure passed the House, 80-64. Shelton voted to require that student centers at state colleges and universities in their construction and operation be cognizant of traditional family values; the measure passed the House, 110-24. To guarantee the integrity of the election process, Shelton co-sponsored picture identification of voters.<ref name=votingrecords/> The law finally took effect in October 2013 and was used widely without incident in the primaries on March 4, 2014.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/21/texas-voter-id-law-into-effect_n_4138138.html|title=Texas Voter ID Officially Takes Effect|date=October 21, 2013|publisher=''[[The Huffington Post]]''|accessdate=March 16, 2014}}</ref>
===Interest group ratings===
[[Phyllis Schlafly]]'s [[Eagle Forum]], managed in Texas by [[Cathie Adams]], a former state chairman of the Texas Republican Party, rated Shelton 32 percent favorable in 2011 but 75 percent in 2009. The Young Conservatives of Texas in 2011 netted him a lifetime score of 71 percent. Texans for Fiscal Responsibility, founded by Michael Quinn Sullivan, rated Shelton 38 percent favorable in 2011 but 85 percent two years earlier in 2009. The Texas Association of Business gave him a cumulative score of 91 percent. The Texas League of Conservation Voters rated Shelton 69 percent in 2011; the [[Sierra Club]], 33 percent. The [[National Rifle Association]] scored him 92 percent in 2012 and "A" in his previous legislative session. In 2009, the Libertarian Party of Texas rated Shelton 59 percent on both personal liberties and economic issues.<ref name=ratings>{{cite web|url=http://votesmart.org/candidate/evaluations/102058/mark-shelton#.Uzg_sMtOUfg|title=Mark Shelton's Ratings and Endorsements|publisher=votesmart.org|accessdate=May 30, 2020}}</ref>
==Reference3s==
{{reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shelton, Mark}}
[[Category:Texas]]
[[Category:Physicians]]
[[Category:Politicians]]
[[Category:Republicans]]
[[Category:Southern Baptists]]
[[Category:Eagle Scouts]]