Rick Tillis

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Rick Tillis
Rick Tillis Tennessee State House Photo.jpg
Member of the Tennessee House of Representatives
from the 92nd district
In office
November 8, 2016 – November 3, 2020
Preceded byBilly Spivey
Succeeded byTodd Warner
Personal details
Born
Thomas Richard Tillis

(1963-09-22) September 22, 1963 (age 58)
Jacksonville, Florida, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)Terry Tillis
RelationsThom Tillis (brother)

Thomas Richard Tillis[1] (born September 22, 1963) is an American politician, who served in the Tennessee House of Representatives from the 92nd district as a member of the Republican Party. His brother is Republican U.S. Senator Thom Tillis.

Early life[]

Thomas Richard Tillis was born on September 22, 1963, to Margie and Thomas Raymond Tillis.[2][3] His brother, Thom Tillis, was later elected as a United States Senator from North Carolina.[4] He received a GED from the Florida Department of Education.[3]

Tennessee House of Representatives[]

2016 election[]

In the 2016 Tennessee House of Representatives election, Tillis defeated Michael Waggoner by 40 votes to win the Republican primary.[5] He went on to defeat the Democratic primary winner, Tamra King, in the general election.[6]

2018 election[]

Tillis was challenged by his predecessor, Billy Spivey, for his seat.[7] Tillis won the Republican primary, and went on to defeat his Democratic opponent, C.S. Coffey, in the general election.[8]

2020 election[]

Rick Tillis' campaign logo

In 2020, Tillis ran for renomination in the Republican primary, but was defeated by Todd Warner.[9] Tillis was given an A rating by the National Rifle Association and the organization endorsed him for reelection.[10]

Tenure[]

In 2017, Tillis introduced his first bill, which attempted to reduce the size of the Tennessee government. It was passed by the Tennessee House of Representatives.[11]

During the 2018 United States Senate election Tillis filed a complaint to the United States Office of Special Counsel calling for an investigation into Phil Bredesen's campaign treasurer, Virginia Lodge, for appearing in a campaign ad. Tillis' complaint alleged that Lodge, who was a board member of the Tennessee Valley Authority, was in violation of the Hatch Act by serving as the treasure of Bredesen's campaign while also serving as a federal employee. He stated that being a treasurer was not in violation of the act, but appearing in advertisements was a violation.[12]

In 2018, Tillis was selected by the Republican caucus to serve as the Majority Whip of the Tennessee House of Representatives.[13]

In August 2019, House Majority Leader William Lamberth and Representative Andy Holt stated that Tillis had admitted to running an account on Twitter which criticized other Republican members of the Tennessee House of Representatives.[14] On August 30, Representative Jeremy Faison, the chairman of the GOP House caucus, announced in an email that Tillis had stepped down as the Majority Whip.[15] On January 27, 2020, Johnny Garrett was selected to replace Tillis as the Majority Whip.[16]

Committee assignments[]

  • Business and Utilities, Tennessee House of Representatives (110th Tennessee General Assembly)
  • Agriculture and Natural Resources, Tennessee House of Representatives (110th Tennessee General Assembly)
  • Finance, Ways, and Means Committee, Tennessee House of Representatives (111th Tennessee General Assembly)
  • Local Government Committee, Tennessee House of Representatives (111th Tennessee General Assembly)
  • State Government Committee, Tennessee House of Representatives (111th Tennessee General Assembly)

Electoral history[]

Tennessee House of Representatives, District 92 Republican Primary (2016)
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Rick Tillis 2,344 50.43%
Republican Michael Waggoner 2,304 49.57%
Total votes 4,648 100.00
Tennessee House of Representatives, District 92 General Election (2016)
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Rick Tillis 16,475 74.32%
Democratic Tamra King 5,693 25.68%
Total votes 22,168 100.00
Republican hold
Tennessee House of Representatives, District 92 Republican Primary (2018)
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Rick Tillis 4,788 57.2%
Republican Billy Spivey 3,586 42.8%
Total votes 8,374 100.00
Tennessee House of Representatives, District 92 General Election (2018)
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Rick Tills 14,249 75.1%
Democratic C.S. Coffey 4,717 24.9%
Total votes 18,966 100.00
Republican hold
Tennessee House of Representatives, District 92 Republican Primary (2020)
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Todd Warner 3,989 47.7%
Republican Rick Tillis 3,304 39.1%
Republican Vincent Cuevas 1,152 13.6%
Total votes 8,445 100.00

References[]

  1. ^ "MULTIPLE Thomas R. Tillises". News & Observer. Archived from the original on April 1, 2012.
  2. ^ "Thom Tillis Is the Strategist". Charlotte Magazine. October 17, 2013. Archived from the original on August 7, 2020. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  3. ^ a b "Rick Tillis' Biography". Vote Smart. Archived from the original on August 7, 2020.
  4. ^ "Rep. Tillis steps down as Tennessee House GOP whip amid anonymous Twitter account controversy". Chattanooga Times Free Press. September 8, 2019. Archived from the original on August 7, 2020. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  5. ^ https://sos-tn-gov-files.s3.amazonaws.com/1%20Republican%20County%20Totals.pdf
  6. ^ http://sos-tn-gov-files.s3.amazonaws.com/TNHousebyCountyNov2016.pdf
  7. ^ https://sos-tn-gov-files.tnsosfiles.com/180802_RepbyOffice.pdf
  8. ^ https://sos-tn-gov-files.tnsosfiles.com/Nov%202018%20General%20Totals.pdf
  9. ^ "Four incumbent state lawmakers lose reelection bids. Here's a look at the primaries with incumbents". The Tennessean. August 6, 2020. Archived from the original on August 7, 2020. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  10. ^ "NRA Endorses Rick Tillis for Tennessee State House". National Rifle Association. July 8, 2020. Archived from the original on August 7, 2020. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  11. ^ "State Rep Rick Tillis passes first legislative bill". Marshall County Tribune. March 17, 2020. Archived from the original on August 7, 2020. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  12. ^ "Lawmaker files complaint against Bredesen treasurer". The Tennessean. November 20, 2018. p. A16. Archived from the original on August 7, 2020. Retrieved August 7, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "Selected as Majority Whip". The Tennessean. November 20, 2018. p. A16. Archived from the original on August 7, 2020. Retrieved August 7, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "Anonymous tweets. A peed-on chair. Control of the caucus campaign committee: The latest House GOP scuffle". The Tennessean. August 22, 2019. Archived from the original on August 7, 2020. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  15. ^ "Rep. Rick Tillis, facing scrutiny for role in anonymous Twitter account, resigns House leadership post". The Tennessean. September 4, 2019. Archived from the original on August 7, 2020. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  16. ^ "Tennessee House GOP Elect New Majority Whip". U.S. News & World Report. January 28, 2020. Archived from the original on August 7, 2020. Retrieved August 7, 2020.

External links[]

Tennessee House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the
Tennessee House of Representatives
from the 92nd district

2017–2021
Succeeded by
Retrieved from ""