Allen West (politician)

Allen West
Chair of the Texas Republican Party
In office
July 20, 2020 – July 11, 2021
Preceded byJames Dickey
Succeeded byMatt Rinaldi
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Florida's 22nd district
In office
January 3, 2011 – January 3, 2013
Preceded byRon Klein
Succeeded byLois Frankel
Personal details
Born
Allen Bernard West

(1961-02-07) February 7, 1961 (age 63)
Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse
Angela Graham
​
(m. 1989)​
Children2
EducationUniversity of Tennessee (BA)
Kansas State University (MA)
United States Army Command and General Staff College (MMAS)
Military service
Allegiance United States
 Texas
Branch/service United States Army
Texas State Guard
Years of service1983–2004 (U.S. Army)
2019–present (Texas State Guard)
Rank Lieutenant Colonel
Commands2nd Battalion, 20th Field Artillery Regiment
Battles/warsGulf War
Iraq War
AwardsBronze Star
Meritorious Service Medal
Army Commendation Medal
Army Achievement Medal

Allen Bernard West (born February 7, 1961)[1] is an American politician and retired military officer. A member of the Republican Party, West represented Florida's 22nd congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 2011 to 2013 and served as the chairman of the Republican Party of Texas from 2020 to 2021.

West was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, and began his military career in 1983 after graduating from the University of Tennessee. He was deployed to Kuwait in 1991 and Iraq in 2003. In 2003, West was charged in an incident that involved the beating and simulated execution of an Iraqi policeman, with West firing a gun near the Iraqi man's head during an interrogation. After an Article 32 hearing was held, West accepted non-judicial punishment, was fined $5,000, and allowed to retire as a lieutenant colonel.[2][3] After leaving the army, West moved to Florida, where he taught at a high school for a year and worked for a defense contractor, part of this time spent in Afghanistan as a civilian adviser to the Afghan National Army.

West entered politics in 2008 as the Republican nominee for Florida's 22nd congressional district, losing to Democratic incumbent Ron Klein. In a rematch in 2010, he won the seat, coinciding with significant Republican gains in that year's midterm elections. West took office in January 2011 as the first African-American Republican member of Congress from Florida since Josiah T. Walls left office in 1876 near the end of Reconstruction.[4] In Congress, West was a high-profile member of the Tea Party Caucus and the Tea Party movement.[5] Widely described as a "firebrand conservative", West stirred controversy during his time in Congress for incendiary comments about Islam, descriptions of President Barack Obama as a "low-level Socialist agitator", and unfounded accusations that 81 Democratic members of Congress were members of the Communist Party.[3][6][7] Redistricting due to the 2010 census resulted in West switching to Florida's 18th congressional district for the 2012 House elections. He lost to Democratic nominee Patrick Murphy in what was the most expensive congressional House race that year.[8][9]

West ran for the chairmanship of the Republican Party of Texas in 2020. West became the new state chairman after he defeated the incumbent chairman, James Dickey, on July 20, 2020.[10] On June 4, 2021, West announced his resignation as GOP chair, fueling speculation that he would challenge Governor Greg Abbott in the 2022 gubernatorial primary.[11] On July 4, 2021, West announced his run for Governor of Texas from his church in Carrollton, Texas.[12] His resignation was effective July 11, when the State Republican Executive Committee met to select his successor.[13] On the way out, West has received criticism within the Texas GOP for having a conflict of interest; it has been alleged that he should not have served as Texas GOP chair and campaigned for governor at the same time.[14][15] He was defeated by Abbott in the primary.

  1. ^ "West, Allen – Biographical Information". bioguide.congress.gov. Archived from the original on December 24, 2016. Retrieved March 28, 2016.
  2. ^ "CNN.com – U.S. officer fined for harsh interrogation tactics". CNN. December 13, 2003. Archived from the original on June 6, 2007. Retrieved June 22, 2007.
  3. ^ a b "Texas GOP ousts chairman, picks tea party firebrand Allen West to lead in 2020 elections". Dallas News. July 20, 2020. Archived from the original on July 20, 2020. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
  4. ^ "Minority candidates rack up poll history". London Morning Star. November 3, 2010. Archived from the original on November 5, 2010. Retrieved November 3, 2010. In Florida Allen West is the first black Republican to have been elected to Congress from Florida since the 1870s.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference MJones2012 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Svitek, Patrick (July 20, 2020). "Former Florida congressman Allen West unseats James Dickey to become Texas GOP chairman". The Texas Tribune. Archived from the original on July 20, 2020. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
  7. ^ Man, Anthony (July 20, 2020). "Controversial former Florida Congressman Allen West is new chairman of the Texas Republican Party". sun-sentinel.com. Archived from the original on July 20, 2020. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
  8. ^ "Most Expensive Races". OpenSecrets.org. April 16, 2013. Archived from the original on April 20, 2016. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  9. ^ "Allen West concedes to Patrick Murphy". Politico. November 20, 2012. Archived from the original on November 20, 2012. Retrieved November 20, 2012.
  10. ^ Waltens, Brandon. Allen West Declares Victory in Race to Lead Texas GOP Archived July 20, 2020, at the Wayback Machine, Texas Scorecard, July 20, 2020.
  11. ^ Svitek, Patrick (June 4, 2021). "Allen West resigns as chair of Texas Republican Party". The Texas Tribune. Archived from the original on June 4, 2021. Retrieved June 4, 2021.
  12. ^ Svitek, Patrick (July 4, 2021). "Allen West announces he is running against Gov. Greg Abbott in Republican primary". The Texas Tribune. Archived from the original on July 4, 2021. Retrieved July 4, 2021.
  13. ^ Svitek, Patrick (July 5, 2021). "Allen West Announces He Is Running Against Gov. Greg Abbott In Republican Primary". Houston Public Media. Archived from the original on July 10, 2021. Retrieved July 8, 2021.
  14. ^ Svitek, Patrick (July 8, 2021). "Allen West's final days as state GOP chair filled with intraparty drama". The Texas Tribune. Archived from the original on July 9, 2021. Retrieved July 9, 2021.
  15. ^ Caputo, Marc (July 9, 2021). "'We don't like bullies, egomaniacs or jerks': Allen West crashes Texas governor's race". Politico. Archived from the original on July 9, 2021. Retrieved July 9, 2021.