Erwin Cain
Encyclopedia
Erwin Alfred Cain is an attorney and businessman from Sulphur Springs
, Texas
, who is a freshman Republican
member of the Texas House of Representatives
from District 3 (Delta, Franklin
, Hopkins
, Lamar, Red River, and Titus
counties. Prior to his election to the state House, the conservative Cain had served as the chairman of the Hopkins County Republican Party. He also launched and chaired the Northeast Texas GOP Chairmen’s Coalition.
from Kilgore Junior College in Kilgore
, Texas. He graduated in 1985 from Texas A&M University at Texarkana with a Bachelor of Science
degree in management and marketing. In 1988, Cain earned his law degree from the University of Arkansas Law School in Fayetteville
, Arkansas
. Cain and his wife, the former Hope Hunter, reside in Como
outside Sulphur Springs, with their three children, Hunter, Averi, and Honour. He is active in the First Baptist
Church of Sulphur Springs.
In 2008, Cain was narrowly defeated in a race for the 62nd Judicial District state judgeship. With 17,479 votes (48 percent), he lost to the incumbent Democrat Judge Scott McDowell, who received 18,977 votes (52 percent). Cain carried carried Delta, Hopkins, and Rains
counties, but McDowell's winnng margin is attributed to Lamar County. It was after this judicial race that Cain assumed the Hopkins County Republican chairmanship.
, the county seat
of Lamar County in northeast Texas, who trailed with 4,689 (39.9 percent). In the ensuing general election
on November 2, 2010, Cain unseated the six-term Democratic
Representative Mark S. Homer, also of Paris. Homer had narrowly won reelection in 2008 over the Republican Kirby Hollingsworth of Mount Vernon
. Cain received 19,974 votes (56.6 percent) to 14,645 (41.5 percent). The remaining 665 ballots (1.9 percent) went to the Libertarian
nominee, J. Douglas Froneberger.
Prior to his election, Cain had listed his legislative priorities as the reduction of state spending and taxation, protection of property and Second Amendment
rights, halting illegal immigration, the passage of a voter identification bill, and the creation of new jobs economic development. Cain serves on the House Correctons and Government Efficiency & Reform committees.
Late in 2010, even before Cain took office, Representative Bryan Hughes
of Mineola
in Wood County
, claimed that Larry Phillips
, a lawmaker from Sherman
, told Hughes that the conservative Cain and neighboring Representative Dan Flynn of Van
, Texas, would be redistricted
for the 2012 elections because they had declined to commit to the second-term reelection of Speaker
Joe Straus
, a moderate Republican from San Antonio
. In a hearing before the House Ethics Committee, chaired by another East Texas representative, Chuck Hopson
of Jacksonville
, an ally of Speaker Straus, Phillips denied having made such a claim to Hughes. Neither Hughes nor Phillips taped the conversation. No judgment was made by the committee because of the lack of corroborating witnesses.
Sulphur Springs, Texas
Sulphur Springs is a city in Hopkins County, Texas, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 14,551. It is the county seat of Hopkins County.-Geography:Sulphur Springs is located at ....
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, who is a freshman Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
member of the Texas House of Representatives
Texas House of Representatives
The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the Texas Legislature. The House is composed of 150 members elected from single-member districts across the state. The average district has about 150,000 people. Representatives are elected to two-year terms with no term limits...
from District 3 (Delta, Franklin
Franklin County, Texas
As of the census of 2000, there were 9,458 people, 3,754 households, and 2,732 families residing in the county. The population density was 33 people per square mile . There were 5,132 housing units at an average density of 18 per square mile...
, Hopkins
Hopkins County, Texas
*Brashear*Dike*Como*Cumby*Gafford*Pickton*Saltillo*Sulphur Bluff*Sulphur Springs*Tira-See also:*National Register of Historic Places listings in Hopkins County, Texas-External links:*...
, Lamar, Red River, and Titus
Titus County, Texas
As of the census of 2000, there were 28,118 people, 9,552 households, and 7,154 families residing in the county. The population density was 68 people per square mile . There were 10,675 housing units at an average density of 26 per square mile...
counties. Prior to his election to the state House, the conservative Cain had served as the chairman of the Hopkins County Republican Party. He also launched and chaired the Northeast Texas GOP Chairmen’s Coalition.
Background
Cain is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Edison Cain, Sr. In 1982, he received an associate's degreeAssociate's degree
An associate degree is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by community colleges, junior colleges, technical colleges, and bachelor's degree-granting colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study usually lasting two years...
from Kilgore Junior College in Kilgore
Kilgore, Texas
Kilgore is a city in Gregg and Rusk Counties in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the home of Kilgore College, and was also the childhood home of famous classical pianist Van Cliburn...
, Texas. He graduated in 1985 from Texas A&M University at Texarkana with a Bachelor of Science
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...
degree in management and marketing. In 1988, Cain earned his law degree from the University of Arkansas Law School in Fayetteville
Fayetteville, Arkansas
Fayetteville is the county seat of Washington County, and the third largest city in Arkansas. The city is centrally located within the county and is home to the University of Arkansas. Fayetteville is also deep in the Boston Mountains, a subset of The Ozarks...
, Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
. Cain and his wife, the former Hope Hunter, reside in Como
Como, Texas
Como is a town in Hopkins County, Texas, United States. The population was 621 at the 2000 census.Texas politician Marshall Formby was born in Como in 1911...
outside Sulphur Springs, with their three children, Hunter, Averi, and Honour. He is active in the First Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
Church of Sulphur Springs.
In 2008, Cain was narrowly defeated in a race for the 62nd Judicial District state judgeship. With 17,479 votes (48 percent), he lost to the incumbent Democrat Judge Scott McDowell, who received 18,977 votes (52 percent). Cain carried carried Delta, Hopkins, and Rains
Rains County, Texas
*Alba*East Tawakoni*Emory*Point*Dougherty-See also:*National Register of Historic Places listings in Rains County, Texas-External links:*...
counties, but McDowell's winnng margin is attributed to Lamar County. It was after this judicial race that Cain assumed the Hopkins County Republican chairmanship.
Legislative matters
With 7,074 votes (60.1 percent), Cain won the Republican nomination for the District 3 House seat on March 2, 2010, by defeating Holland Harper of ParisParis, Texas
Paris, Texas is a city located northeast of the Dallas–Fort Worth Metroplex in Lamar County, Texas, in the United States. It is situated in Northeast Texas at the western edge of the Piney Woods. Physiographically, these regions are part of the West Gulf Coastal Plain. In 1900, 9,358 people lived...
, the county seat
County seat
A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....
of Lamar County in northeast Texas, who trailed with 4,689 (39.9 percent). In the ensuing general election
General election
In a parliamentary political system, a general election is an election in which all or most members of a given political body are chosen. The term is usually used to refer to elections held for a nation's primary legislative body, as distinguished from by-elections and local elections.The term...
on November 2, 2010, Cain unseated the six-term Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
Representative Mark S. Homer, also of Paris. Homer had narrowly won reelection in 2008 over the Republican Kirby Hollingsworth of Mount Vernon
Mount Vernon, Texas
Mount Vernon is a town in Franklin County, Texas, United States. It is the Franklin County seat, and the population was 2,286 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Mount Vernon is located at ....
. Cain received 19,974 votes (56.6 percent) to 14,645 (41.5 percent). The remaining 665 ballots (1.9 percent) went to the Libertarian
Libertarian Party (United States)
The Libertarian Party is the third largest and fastest growing political party in the United States. The political platform of the Libertarian Party reflects its brand of libertarianism, favoring minimally regulated, laissez-faire markets, strong civil liberties, minimally regulated migration...
nominee, J. Douglas Froneberger.
Prior to his election, Cain had listed his legislative priorities as the reduction of state spending and taxation, protection of property and Second Amendment
Second Amendment to the United States Constitution
The Second Amendment to the United States Constitution is the part of the United States Bill of Rights that protects the right of the people to keep and bear arms. It was adopted on December 15, 1791, along with the rest of the Bill of Rights.In 2008 and 2010, the Supreme Court issued two Second...
rights, halting illegal immigration, the passage of a voter identification bill, and the creation of new jobs economic development. Cain serves on the House Correctons and Government Efficiency & Reform committees.
Late in 2010, even before Cain took office, Representative Bryan Hughes
Bryan Hughes (Texas politician)
Douglas Bryan Hughes, known as Bryan Hughes , is an attorney in Mineola, Texas, who has been since 2003 a Republican member of the Texas House of Representatives from District 5, which includes Camp, Harrison, Upshur, and Wood counties in the northeastern section of his state.-Background:Hughes...
of Mineola
Mineola, Texas
Mineola is a city in Wood County, Texas, United States. It lies at the junction of U.S. highways 69 and 80, eighty miles east of Dallas in southwestern Wood County...
in Wood County
Wood County, Texas
As of the census of 2000, there were 36,752 people, 14,583 households, and 10,645 families residing in the county. The population density was 56 people per square mile . There were 17,939 housing units at an average density of 28 per square mile...
, claimed that Larry Phillips
Larry Phillips (Texas politician)
Lawrence A. Phillips, known as Larry Phillips , is an attorney from Sherman, Texas, who is a Republican member of the Texas House of Representatives from District 62 ....
, a lawmaker from Sherman
Sherman, Texas
Sherman is a city in and the county seat of Grayson County, Texas, United States. The city's estimated population as of 2009 was 38,407. It is also one of two principal cities in the Sherman-Denison Metropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...
, told Hughes that the conservative Cain and neighboring Representative Dan Flynn of Van
Van, Texas
Van is a city in Van Zandt County, Texas, United States. The population was 2,362 at the 2000 census. According to a 2006 estimate from the U.S...
, Texas, would be redistricted
Redistricting
Redistricting is the process of drawing United States electoral district boundaries, often in response to population changes determined by the results of the decennial census. In 36 states, the state legislature has primary responsibility for creating a redistricting plan, in many cases subject to...
for the 2012 elections because they had declined to commit to the second-term reelection of Speaker
Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives
The Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives is the presiding officer of the Texas House of Representatives. The Speaker's main duties are to conduct meetings of the House, appoint committees, and enforce the Rules of the House...
Joe Straus
Joe Straus
Joseph R. Straus, III, known as Joe Straus , is the current Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives. He represents District 121, which comprises northeastern Bexar County, including part of San Antonio, Texas, and several surrounding communities...
, a moderate Republican from San Antonio
San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
. In a hearing before the House Ethics Committee, chaired by another East Texas representative, Chuck Hopson
Chuck Hopson
Charles L. Hopson, II, known as Chuck Hopson , is a pharmacist and businessman in Jacksonville, Texas, who has been since 2001 a member of the Texas House of Representatives from District 11, which includes Cherokee, Houston, Panola and Rusk counties in the northeastern portion of his...
of Jacksonville
Jacksonville, Texas
Jacksonville is located in Cherokee County, Texas, United States. The population was 13,868 at the 2000 census. It is the principal city of the Jacksonville Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Cherokee County and part of the larger Tyler-Jacksonville Combined Statistical...
, an ally of Speaker Straus, Phillips denied having made such a claim to Hughes. Neither Hughes nor Phillips taped the conversation. No judgment was made by the committee because of the lack of corroborating witnesses.