Sam Graves

Samuel Bruce Graves Jr. (born November 7, 1963) is the U.S. Representative for Missouri's 6th congressional district, serving since 2001. He is a member of the Republican Party. The district includes the entire northern third of the state, from the Kansas border to the Illinois border. However, the bulk of its population lives in the northern suburbs of Kansas City.

This article is about the U.S. Representative from Missouri. For the British admiral during the American Revolution, see Samuel Graves.

Sam Graves
Ranking Member of the House Transportation Committee
Assumed office
January 3, 2019
Preceded byPeter DeFazio
Chair of the House Small Business Committee
In office
January 3, 2011 – January 3, 2015
Preceded byNydia Velázquez
Succeeded bySteve Chabot
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Missouri's 6th district
Assumed office
January 3, 2001
Preceded byPat Danner
Member of the Missouri Senate
from the 12th district
In office
January 1995 – January 2001
Preceded byGlen Klippenstein
Succeeded byDavid Klindt
Member of the Missouri House of Representatives
from the 4th district
In office
January 1993 – January 1995
Preceded byPhil Tate[1]
Succeeded byRex Barnett
Personal details
Born
Samuel Bruce Graves Jr.

(1963-11-07) November 7, 1963
Tarkio, Missouri, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)
Lesley Hickok
​
(
m. 1986; div. 2012)
Children3
RelativesTodd Graves (brother)
EducationUniversity of Missouri (BS)

Early life, education and career

Graves was born in Tarkio, Missouri, a small city in the northwestern corner of Missouri not far from the Iowa and Nebraska borders. A lifelong resident of Tarkio,[2] Sam is the son of Janice A. (née Hord) and Samuel Bruce Graves. He graduated from the University of Missouri College of Agriculture in Columbia, Missouri with a degree in Agronomy.[2] He was a member of the Alpha Gamma Sigma fraternity, also known as AG-Sig and was an active member of Ruf-Nex.[3]

Missouri Legislature

Graves was elected to the Missouri House of Representatives in 1992. After only one term, he was elected to the Missouri Senate in 1994, and then reelected in 1998.[2]

U.S. House of Representatives

Committee assignments

Caucus memberships
  • Congressional Cement Caucus

Political positions

Following the economic crisis of Wall Street in September 2008, Graves voted against the proposed bailout of United States financial system, claiming that it "neither 'punished the wrongdoers nor adequately protected the innocent taxpayers, investors and retirees' caught in the Wall Street banking crisis."[4] In January 2014, Graves introduced the TRICARE Family Improvement Act. The bill would allow dependents of military members to stay on their parents' TRICARE health plan after turning age 26. The bill would change current law, which requires those dependents to change to a separate health plan after turning 26.[5] The American Conservative Union gave him an 85% evaluation in 2017. As of 2019, Graves has a 4 percent lifetime score from the League of Conservation Voters.[6]

Todd Graves controversy

Graves is the brother of Todd Graves, former U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri.[7] In October 2008, U.S. Senator Kit Bond apologized to Todd Graves after a U.S. Justice Department report cited Bond forcing Graves out over a disagreement with Representative Graves.[7] Following the report, U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey appointed a special prosecutor to investigate whether former U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and other officials involved in the firings of nine U.S. attorneys broke the law (dismissal of U.S. attorneys controversy).[8]

Ethics investigation

In 2009, the House Ethics Committee began inquiring whether or not Graves used his position on the Small Business Committee to invite Brooks Hurst, a longtime friend and a business partner of his wife, to testify at a committee hearing on the federal regulation of biodiesel and ethanol production. Graves had failed to mention the financial link between Hurst and Lesley Graves at the hearing, which dealt with federal subsidies for renewable fuels. A review by the independent Office of Congressional Ethics found "substantial reason to believe that an appearance of conflict of interest was created."[9] Graves said in a statement, "I look forward to a quick review of the facts and answering any questions that the committee may have. I believe that a speedy review will show that all the rules of the House concerning testimony in front of the Small Business Committee were followed."[10] The Office of Congressional Ethics referred the case to the House Ethics committee, which ended its own investigation in October, and released a report finding no ethical violations, as it asserted there was no standard in place for appearances like Hurst's.[11][12]

Political campaigns
Graves on the left with President George W. Bush at the Ford Kansas City Assembly Plant in Claycomo, Missouri on March 20, 2007

In 2000, Democratic U.S. Representative Pat Danner suddenly retired due to breast cancer. Graves filed within the short period of time left for filing. Graves faced Representative Danner's son, Steve Danner, a former State Senator, in the general election. Graves referred to Danner as a "tax and spend liberal" and won the race with 51% of the vote [13] largely by running up huge margins in the rural areas of the district. He was arguably helped by George W. Bush carrying the district in the 2000 presidential election, a theory known as the coattail effect.

2000
2000 Election for U.S. Representative of Missouri's 6th Congressional District
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Sam Graves 138,925 50.85
Democratic Steve Danner 127,792 46.78
Libertarian Jimmy Dykes 3,696 1.35
Natural Law Marie Richey 2,788 1.02

2002
2002 Election for U.S. Representative of Missouri's 6th Congressional District
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Sam Graves 131,151 63.03
Democratic Cathy Rinehart 73,202 35.18
Libertarian Erik Buck 3,735 1.79

2004
2004 Election for U.S. Representative of Missouri's 6th Congressional District
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Sam Graves 196,516 63.83
Democratic Charles S. Broomfield 106,987 34.75
Libertarian Erik Buck 4,352 1.41

2006
2006 Election for U.S. Representative of Missouri's 6th Congressional District
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Sam Graves 150,882 61.64
Democratic Sara Jo Shettles 87,477 35.73
Libertarian Erik Buck 4,757 1.94
Progressive Party Shirley A. Yurkonis 1,679 0.69

2008

Graves faced a tougher reelection race in 2008 against Democratic nominee and former Kansas City Mayor Kay Barnes. He gained national attention early in the race for running an ad accusing Barnes of promoting "San Francisco values." It was initially considered one of the hottest races in the country; however, Graves won reelection fairly handily, taking 59 percent of the vote to Barnes's 37 percent.

2008 Election for U.S. Representative of Missouri's 6th Congressional District
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Sam Graves 196,526 59.43
Democratic Kay Barnes 121,894 36.86
Libertarian Dave Browning 12,279 3.71

2010
2010 Election for U.S. Representative of Missouri's 6th Congressional District
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Sam Graves 154,103 69.44
Democratic Clint Hylton 67,762 30.54
Write-in Kyle Yarber 47 0.02

2012
2012 Election for U.S. Representative of Missouri's 6th Congressional District
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Sam Graves 216,906 65.00
Democratic Kyle Yarber 108,503 32.52
Libertarian Russ Monchil 8,279 2.48

2014
2014 Election for U.S. Representative of Missouri's 6th Congressional District
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Sam Graves 124,616 66.65
Democratic Bill Hedge 55,157 29.50
Libertarian Russ Monchil 7,197 3.85

2016
2016 Election for U.S. Representative of Missouri's 6th Congressional District
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Sam Graves 238,388 68.0
Democratic David Blackwell 98,588 28.4
Libertarian Russ Monchil 8,123 2.3
Green Mike Diel 4,241 1.2

2018
2018 Election for U.S. Representative of Missouri's 6th Congressional District
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Sam Graves 199,796 65.4
Democratic Henry Martin 97,660 32.0
Libertarian Dan Hogan 7,953 2.6

References
  1. "Our Campaigns - MO State House 004 Race - Nov 03, 1992". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  2. "Meet Sam". Congressman Sam Graves. December 3, 2012. Retrieved August 23, 2018.
  3. "Greek Political Leaders | North-American Interfraternity Conference". nicindy.org. Archived from the original on September 13, 2017. Retrieved August 23, 2018.
  4. "Graves, Boyda vote against $700B bailout in the U.S. House". The News-Press. September 30, 2008. Archived from the original on September 30, 2008. Retrieved May 17, 2007.
  5. "Graves proposes changes to military family health coverage" Archived March 1, 2014, at the Wayback Machine. Ripon Advance. 1/31/14. Retrieved 2/7/14.
  6. https://scorecard.lcv.org/moc/sam-graves
  7. "Kit Bond apologizes for staff's role in firing of federal prosecutor". The News Leader. September 30, 2008. Retrieved May 17, 2007.
  8. "Prosecutor will investigate firings of nine U.S. Attorneys". The Miami Herald. September 29, 2008. Retrieved May 17, 2007.
  10. Margasak, Larry (September 16, 2009). "Ethics panel defers probe on Jesse Jackson Jr". Associated Press. Retrieved September 16, 2009.
  11. Larry Margasak Congressional ethics report leaked, reveals names LARRY MARGASAK, October 30, 2009 Associated Press
  12. "Campaign Legal Center blog: Fault Ethics Committee, Not OCE". Clcblog.org. November 20, 2009. Archived from the original on September 7, 2012. Retrieved August 22, 2010.
  13. "Missouri Secretary of State". Sos.mo.gov. Archived from the original on October 30, 2014. Retrieved March 4, 2016.
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by
Pat Danner		 Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Missouri's 6th congressional district
2001–present		 Incumbent
Preceded by
Nydia Velázquez		 Chair of the House Small Business Committee
2011–2015		 Succeeded by
Steve Chabot
Preceded by
Peter DeFazio		 Ranking Member of the House Transportation Committee
2019–present		 Incumbent
U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial)
Preceded by
Susan Davis		 United States Representatives by seniority
64th		 Succeeded by
Jim Langevin
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