David Counts (politician)
American politician (1936–2023)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Walter David Counts Jr. (July 14, 1936 – August 18, 2023) was an American politician. He served as a Democratic member for the 70th and 78th district of the Texas House of Representatives.[3]
July 14, 1936
David Counts | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Texas House of Representatives from the 78th district | |
| In office November 29, 1988 – January 12, 1993 | |
| Member of the Texas House of Representatives from the 70th district | |
| In office January 12, 1993 – January 14, 2003 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Walter David Counts Jr. July 14, 1936 Munday, Texas, U.S. |
| Died | August 18, 2023 (aged 87) Midland, Texas, U.S. |
| Party | Democratic[1][2] |
| Education | West Texas State University North Texas State University |
Life and career
Walter David Counts Jr. was born July 14, 1936 in Munday, Texas, to Walter and Alma Counts.[4] He attended West Texas State University and North Texas State University.[4] In July 1956 at the age of 20 he married Mary Mullins with whom he had two children.[4]
Counts joined the Texas Army National Guard in 1953 and served for 32 years retiring as Colonel and later being awarded the rank of Brigadier General with a brevet promotion.[4] Counts founded two businesses, the Counts Insurance Agency and Counts Real Estate.[4]
In September 1988 Counts was certified as the Democratic candidate to run against Republican Rod Waller for house district 78 to replace Democrat Steve Carriker who moved to the senate.[5] He stood on a platform for better education for all, support of rural Texas, support for the elderly, getting criminals off the street and not raising taxes.[6] Counts won 18,649 votes to 12,583 taking ten out of the twelve district counties.[7] Counts served in the Texas House of Representatives from 1988 to 2003 representing district 78 three times and then district 70 five times.[3] He served on several committees including being the chair of Auto Theft and Uninsured Motorists, Special, Insurance Subcommittee on Budget and Oversight and Natural Resources five times.[3]
Counts died at his home in Midland, Texas on August 18, 2023, at the age of 87.[4][8]
