Wesley Hunt | |
|---|---|
 Official Portrait, 2022 | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromTexas's38th district | |
| Assumed office January 3, 2023 | |
| Preceded by | Constituency established |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Wesley Parish Hunt (1981-11-13)November 13, 1981 (age 44) |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | United States Military Academy (BS) Cornell University (MBA,MPA,MA) |
| Website | House website Campaign website |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Branch/service |  United States Army |
| Years of service | 2004–2012 |
| Rank | Captain |
| Unit | United States Army Aviation Branch |
| Battles/wars | Iraq War |
Wesley Parish Hunt (born November 13, 1981)[1] is an American politician and formerU.S. Army officer serving as theU.S. representative forTexas's 38th congressional district since 2023. He is a member of theRepublican Party.
Hunt announced in October 2025 that he was running in the2026 United States Senate election in Texas.[2]
Hunt was born and raised inHouston to a military family. After graduating fromSt. John's School, he attended theUnited States Military Academy, where he received aBachelor of Science in leadership and management with mechanical engineering in 2004.[3] His West Point class of 2004 classmates include U.S. representativesJohn James andPat Ryan.[4]
Hunt was commissioned into theU.S. Army in 2004[5] and flewApache helicopters in the military.[6] He wasdeployed once to Iraq and was deployed twice toSaudi Arabia as a diplomatic liaison officer.[5] He left the army at the rank ofcaptain in 2012.[5]
After beinghonorably discharged, he attendedCornell University and obtained aMaster of Business Administration,Master of Public Administration,[7] and aMaster of Industrial and Labor Relations.[8]
Hunt ran forTexas's 7th congressional district in the2020 elections. In a field of six candidates, Hunt won the Republican primary election with 61% of the vote.[9] He lost the general election to incumbentDemocratLizzie Fletcher.[10] Hunt conceded to Fletcher a day after the election.[10]
A day after redistricted maps were revealed, Hunt announced his intention to run in the new, solidly Republican38th district.[11] Andrew Schneider ofHouston Public Media wrote that "state GOP lawmakers carved out a new district, Texas' 38th, specifically with [Hunt] in mind." Hunt faced nine opponents in the primary election and received over 55% of the vote.[12] He was endorsed byRepublican Main Street Partnership PAC[13] He defeated the Democratic nominee, Duncan Klussmann, in the November 8 general election, 63% to 35%.[14]
In January 2023, at the beginning of the118th U.S. Congress, Hunt supportedKevin McCarthy forSpeaker of the United States House of Representatives.[15] Hunt is on the HouseJudiciary,[16]Natural Resources[17] andSmall Business[17] Committees. On the Small Business Committee he chairs theRural Development, Energy, and Supply Chains[18]
Hunt endorsedDonald Trump's campaign in the2024 presidential election.[19]
In 2023, Hunt was among 47 Republicans to vote in favor of H.Con.Res. 21, which directed PresidentJoe Biden to remove U.S. troops fromSyria within 180 days.[20][21]
Hunt was among the 71 Republicans who voted against final passage of theFiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 in the House.[22]
Around the time of his arrival in Congress, Hunt's wife, Emily, gave birth to a son, Willie, who was born prematurely and needed time in theneonatal intensive care unit, forcing Hunt to leave theSpeaker of the House election on its fourth day, missing the 12th and 13th ballots before returning the same day.[15]
Hunt is aBaptist. He attended Champion Forest Baptist Church, which he has said shaped his beliefs.[23]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Wesley Hunt | 28,060 | 61.0 | |
| Republican | Cindy Siegel | 12,497 | 27.2 | |
| Republican | Maria Espinoza | 2,716 | 5.9 | |
| Republican | Kyle Preston | 1,363 | 3.0 | |
| Republican | Jim Noteware | 937 | 2.0 | |
| Republican | Laique Rehman | 424 | 0.9 | |
| Total votes | 45,997 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Lizzie Fletcher (incumbent) | 159,529 | 50.8 | |
| Republican | Wesley Hunt | 149,054 | 47.4 | |
| Libertarian | Shawn Kelly | 5,542 | 1.8 | |
| Total votes | 314,125 | 100.0 | ||
| Democratichold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Wesley Hunt | 35,291 | 55.3% | |
| Republican | Mark Ramsey | 19,352 | 30.3% | |
| Republican | David Hogan | 3,125 | 4.9% | |
| Republican | Ronald Lopez | 2,048 | 3.2% | |
| Republican | Brett Guillroy | 1,416 | 2.2% | |
| Republican | Jerry Ford, Sr. | 997 | 1.6% | |
| Republican | Richard Welch | 633 | 1.0% | |
| Republican | Alex Cross | 460 | 0.7% | |
| Republican | Damien Mockus | 249 | 0.4% | |
| Republican | Philip Covarrubias | 228 | 0.4% | |
| Total votes | 63,799 | 100.0% | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Wesley Hunt | 162,992 | 63.00 | ||
| Democratic | Duncan Klussmann | 91,768 | 35.47 | ||
| Independent | Joel Dejean | 3,953 | 1.53 | ||
| Total votes | 258,713 | 100 | |||
| Republicanwin (new seat) | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Wesley Hunt (incumbent) | 214,076 | 62.9 | |
| Democratic | Melissa McDonough | 126,408 | 37.1 | |
| Total votes | 340,484 | 100.0 | ||
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| New constituency | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromTexas's 38th congressional district 2023–present | Incumbent |
| U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial) | ||
| Preceded by | United States representatives by seniority 323rd | Succeeded by |