Crawford Clay

**Crawford Zebulon Clay, Jr.**, is an American attorney and politician registered with the Republican Party serving as a U.S. Representative from Texas' Fourth Congressional District, one of the most Republican districts in the United States. He was elected in 2018.

In 2019, Clay announced a bid for the senate seat relinquished by Howard Frankston. In March 2020, Clay defeated favored candidate Lieutenant General Joe Frankston to become the Republican Party's nominee for the vacant seat.

## Early life, education, and career

The Clay family has deep roots in Texas and as public servants. Colonel Zebulon Clay was the first American to chart the Red River, along which his descendants settled. Prominent Clays fought in the Battle of the Alamo, held high offices in the short-lived Republic of Texas, and served in the Confederate Army and Texas militia during the Civil War. As such, Crawford Clay once claimed to be "a Texan through and through."

The Clay family are estimated to be worth at least $500 million, including vast rural properties, cattle ranches, and oil drilling operations. They have also held the office of Representative for Texas' Fourth Congressional District for four successive generations, including Crawford Clay, Jr. The family frequently host community events and donate to local charities, and are viewed paternally by many East Texans; they also have connections and alliances with numerous other landholding Texan families. The Clays project a flawless image as devoutly Christian, socially conservative, neighborly, good people with a penchant for politics, willing and ready to defend the rights and interests of Republican Texans.

Crawford Clay, Jr., was born on March 20, 1972. As a child, he was great fan of local rodeos, and became a proficient horseman at a young age. He was also a committed Baptist parishioner, spending most nights volunteering for church outreach and events after school. In high school, his interests broadened; he joined the debate team and played water polo, and was popular amongst his schoolmates.

Clay attended the University of Texas at Austin, where he studied Political Science and Law. A diligent student, Clay nevertheless remained highly popular amongst his peers due to his athletic skill, activism in extracurriculars such as drama, and natural charisma. He was elected Chairman of his university's chapter of Young Consevatives of Texas. Clay graduated *magna cum laude* in 1997, and moved back to his native county of Denton. There, he was employed as a junior associate of the legal firm Hudson and Croft, which represented the Clay estate.

A few years later, Clay met Julia Hicks, five years his junior and a member of another prominent local family; they wed eight months later. The couple have a daughter, Abigail (b. 2006) as well as two sons, Crawford III (b. 2008) and Marshall (b. 2012).

By thirty-five, Clay had made partner at Hudson and Croft (now renamed Hudson, Croft, and Clay) and was well-known in the county's judiciary for his skill at white-collar criminal defense. With the help of his family's extensive political connections, Clay was appointed Assistant District Attorney for the Eastern District of Texas in 2007, managing the day-to-day affairs of the department. After two years, Clay resigned and ran for District Attorney of Denton County, a post to which he was elected and held for four years. His public career was often lauded by his constituents, who largely supported his hounding of illegal aliens.

At forty-one, Clay was elected county judge. As judge, he cultivated an even greater reputation for his intolerance of crime. He also became reputed for exploding into long-winded tangents against those whom he considered guilty, which, while it often convinced the jury and spectators, just as frequently allowed defendants to successfully recuse him from their cases. In 2018, Crawford Clay, Sr., suffered a stroke; convinced that he no longer had the stamina for public office, the Representative announced that he would not be seeking re-election. With his father's blessing, Clay, Jr., launched a campaign for the seat.

## House of Representatives

Clay's campaign was a momentous success. Already respected for his family name, Clay was also well-known in his own right throughout many counties of the Fourth District for his judicial and DA career. Although there was some concern that Clay would not evoke the same gravitas as his father and that his experience was too paltry to contend for the position, his first rallies dispelled these doubts. Espousing the same ultra-conservative views as his father, Clay spoke as passionately on the campaign trail as he had in his courtroom. He both retained his father's loyal supporters and invigorated his campaign with a fresh, youthful spirit. Coupled with significant monetary support from his own and other landed families in the area, Clay sailed uncontested through the primary and won the general election handily, garnering 81.5% of the vote.

As representative, Clay has supported: agricultural interests, including farm bills that would slash billions of dollars from the food stamp budget; pro-life and pro-gun policies; and legislation which would relax restrictions on oil drilling and nuclear power. His actions have been lauded by conservative interest groups, such as the National Rifle Association, National Right to Life Committee, Vietnam Veterans of America, Christian Coalition of America, and American Farm Bureau, all of which rate Clay at a 90% or higher in terms of his platform and reliability.

In 2019, one of Texas' senate seats fell open and a special election was called, but Clay, with only one year of congressional experience under his belt, did not run; instead, he endorsed Randall Cramp in the GOP primary, expressing contempt for Karen Brookshire's "Republican-In-Name-Only" campaign. Clay has also thrown whole-hearted support behind former President Arnold Wolf in the past, praising the President's strong stance on immigration and planned border wall.

## Senate campaign

In 2019, Texas Senator Howard Frankston announced his retirement. Clay, who had initially sought re-election, instead announced a bid for Frankston's seat in the 2020 election, competing in the Republican primary against Lieutenant General Joe Frankston and Randall Cramp. Initially polling at 13% to Cramp's 15% and Frankston's 30%, Clay's numbers steadily rose over the following months. Despite receiving relatively few endorsements from other GOP figures, Clay's campaign was characterized as dynamic, with support from across the Republican spectrum.

Clay's performance at the primary debate was generally well-received by voters. Cramp's suspension several days later saw Clay suddenly neck-and-neck with Frankston in the polls. Clay spent the final weeks of the campaign embarking on a tour of thirty small towns in various regions of Texas, which he vocally contrasted with Frankston's comparative luck of campaign events. Clay and presidential candidate Bernard Porter mutually endorsed one another days before the primary election.

On March 3rd, 2020, Clay defeated Frankston, winning the Republican nomination with 52% of the vote. His Democratic opponent in the general election is Mayor of Houston Harold Baines.