Matt Shaheen

Texas legislator

Matt Shaheen

Member of the Texas House of Representatives from the 66th district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 13, 2015
Preceded by	Van Taylor

Personal details
Born	Matthew Frank Shaheen (1965-06-08) June 8, 1965 (age 58) Virginia, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Robyn
Children	3
Residence(s)	Plano, Texas, U.S.
Education	Randolph–Macon College (BS) Southern Methodist University (MA)

Matthew Frank Shaheen (born June 8, 1965) is an American politician serving as a member of the Texas House of Representatives from the 66th district. Elected in the November 2014, he assumed office in January 2015.

Early life and education

Shaheen was born in Virginia.^[1] He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in business economics from Randolph–Macon College and a Master of Arts in liberal arts from Southern Methodist University.^[2]

Career

Shaheen worked as a business executive at Hewlett Packard Enterprise. He was also a member of the Collin County Board of Commissioners.^[3] Shaheen was elected to the Texas House of Representatives in November 2014 and assumed office in January 2015. During the 2019–2020 legislative session, Shaheen was the vice chair of the House Urban Affairs Committee. Shaheen is the founder of the Texas Freedom Caucus, a legislative caucus in the Texas House modeled after the Freedom Caucus.^[4]

During the 2016 Republican Party presidential primaries, Shaheen endorsed Senator Ted Cruz.^[5]

Shaheen was viewed as a possible candidate for the Texas Senate in 2018, but opted to seek re-election to the House instead.^[6]

Shaheen supports a ban on Democrats being given committee chairmanships as long as the Republicans hold the majority of seats in the Texas House.^[7]

Electoral history

Republican primary results, 2014
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Matt Shaheen	4,916	48.83
	Republican	Glenn Callison	4,031	40.04
	Republican	Stacy Chen	1,120	11.13
Total votes			10,067	100.00

Republican primary runoff results, 2014
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Matt Shaheen	4,612	54.27
	Republican	Glenn Callison	3,886	45.73
Total votes			8,498	100.00

Texas House of Representatives, District 66, 2014
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Matt Shaheen	24,631	100.00
Total votes			24,631	100.00
	Republican hold

Texas House of Representatives, District 66, 2016
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Matt Shaheen	40,368	57.39
	Democratic	Gnanse Nelson	27,240	38.73
	Libertarian	Shawn W. Jones	2,726	3.88
Total votes			70,334	100.00
	Republican hold

Texas House of Representatives, District 66, 2018
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Matt Shaheen	34,382	50.29
	Democratic	Sharon Hirsch	33,991	49.71
Total votes			68,373	100.00
	Republican hold

Texas House of Representatives, District 66, 2020
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Matt Shaheen	42,728	49.56
	Democratic	Sharon Hirsch	41,879	48.58
	Libertarian	Shawn W. Jones	1,600	1.86
Total votes			86,207	100.00
	Republican hold

References

^ "Matt Shaheen's Biography". Vote Smart. Retrieved May 11, 2021.
^ "Rep. Matt Shaheen - Texas State Directory Online". www.txdirectory.com. Retrieved May 11, 2021.
^ Representatives, Texas House of. "Rep. Shaheen, Matt District 66". www.house.texas.gov. Retrieved May 11, 2021.
^ "Matt Shaheen". Ballotpedia. Retrieved May 11, 2021.
^ "Press Release - 41 Texas Lawmakers Endorse Cruz for President | The American Presidency Project". www.presidency.ucsb.edu. Retrieved May 11, 2021.
^ Svitek, Patrick (August 18, 2017). "State Rep. Matt Shaheen passes on Texas Senate run". The Eagle. Retrieved May 11, 2021.
^ Johnson, Brad. The Back Mic: Legislators Opposed to Democratic Chairs Listed, Rep. Moody Quells DA Appointment Rumors, House Rules Discussed, The Texan, December 9, 2022.