Michael C. Burgess

Michael C. Burgess (born December 23, 1950) is a physician and politician from the state of Texas, currently representing the state's 26th Congressional district (map) in the United States House of Representatives. In his eventful 2002 campaign to succeed retiring Representative Dick Armey, Burgess defeated Armey's son Scott in the Republican primary and then in the general election defeated Democrat Paul LeBon, who as an infant had been delivered by Burgess in his capacity as an obstetrician.

Political career

Burgess faced Congressman Armey's son, Scott Armey, in the Republican primary, finishing with 23% of the vote to Armey's 45%, but Armey's failure to capture a majority led to a runoff election. Before the runoff was held, The Dallas Morning News reported that Armey used his influence to procure county jobs and contracts for his friends. Burgess was also endorsed by his fellow physicians. In what was considered an upset, Burgess beat Armey by a 55%-45% margin in the runoff, and went on to defend the Republican congressional seat, defeating Democrat Paul LeBon, by a large margin in the general election. Many years prior to this, Dr. Burgess attended at LeBon's birth.

Related Topics:
Runoff election - The Dallas Morning News

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Burgess ran for re-election in 2004 and won by a 2-to-1 margin in his district.

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In April 2005, Burgess was one of only 20 House Members (out of 427 voting) to vote in opposition to the restoration of the House Ethics Committee rule barring indicted members from holding leadership positions in the House http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2005/roll145.xml. His critics have claimed this was due to his ties to then-House Majority Leader Tom DeLay--although DeLay himself had voted in favor of the resolution.

Related Topics:
House Ethics Committee - House Majority Leader - Tom DeLay

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(Another Michael Burgess is a coroner investigating the death of Diana, Princess of Wales)

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(Another Michael Burgess is a British journalist resident in San Diego, California http://byronik.com

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