Kevin Brady

Kevin Brady
Ranking Member of the United States House Committee on Ways and Means
Incumbent
Assumed office  January 3, 2019
Preceded by	Richard Neal
Chair of the United States House Committee on Ways and Means
In office November 5, 2015 – January 3, 2019
Preceded by	Paul Ryan Sam Johnson
Succeeded by	Richard Neal
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas's Texas 8th Congressional District district
Incumbent
Assumed office  January 3, 1997
Preceded by	Jack Fields
Member of the Texas House of Representatives from the 15th district
In office January 3, 1991 – January 3, 1997
Preceded by	Mike McKinney
Succeeded by	Tommy Williams
Born	April 11, 1955 Vermillion, South Dakota
Political party	Republican Party
Spouse(s)	Cathy Patronella m. 1991
Children	2

Kevin Patrick Brady (born April 11, 1955) is the U.S. Representative for Texas Congressional District 8th, serving since 1997. He is a member of the Republican Party. His congressional district includes part of northern Houston metro, including Montgomery County, and seven other rural counties north of the Houston metro area. He previously served as chairman of the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee, from 2015 to 2018, where he was the lead writer of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017.

Early life

Brady grew up in South Dakota, where he attended college at the University of South Dakota. After college he went to work for the Rapid City, South Dakota Chamber of Commerce. He later took a job for the Beaumont, Texas Chamber of Commerce, moving him from South Dakota to Texas for the first time. His last private sector job was with The Woodlands, Texas Chamber of Commerce.

Texas House of Representatives

In 1990, Brady was elected to represent District 15 in the Texas House of Representatives. The district is centered on The Woodlands, Texas.

U.S. Congress, Texas Congressional District 8th

Upon the retirement of Jack Fields, who represented the Texas Congressional District 8, Brady decided to run for the open seat. Brady did not receive 50% of the vote in the initial 1996 Republican primary, so he had to compete in a runoff against, Dr. Gene Fontenot. Brady won the runoff with a 53%–47% margin.

After a Supreme Court case on congressional districts, Bush v. Vera, Texas was forced to hold a new election with redrawn congressional district lines. In the November general election, held in jungle primary format, Brady came in first with 41% of the vote. In the December 1996 runoff election, Brady defeated Fontenot again. This time it was a 59% to 41% victory for Brady.

During Brady's time in the U.S. Congress, the 8th Congressional District has been a Republican stronghold. From 1998 to 2014, Brady did not face strong Republican opposition in the various Republican primaries. He won handily each year when he did have competition with about 67% to 80% of the vote.

In 2016, Brady faced the most formidable Republican challenge since taking the Congressional seat twenty years ago. He had developed a reputation as a reliable Rino vote in Washington, which lead to him getting three Republican opponents in the 2016 Republican primary. Brady was opposed by State Representative Steve Toth from The Woodlands who received 37% of the vote. Brady was able to avoid a runoff by receiving 53% of the vote, but it was his lowest Republican primary vote total since 1996. Toth argued that Brady was compromised with President Barack Obama too often and that Brady should not have voted to revive the Import-Export Bank. Toth had Tea Party support and Brady did not.