Chet Edwards For Congress

Congressman Chet Edwards

Congressman Chet Edwards of Waco has served Central Texas in the U.S. House of Representatives for the past 15 years.

During that time he has developed a reputation of working hard and effectively for Texas jobs and federal investments in Ft. Hood, the Central Texas Veterans' Health Care System, the A&M Medical School, L-3, Lockheed Martin, Interstate 35, transportation and water resources, and university research programs at Baylor and Texas A&M Universities.

At the national level, Chet Edwards has played a major leadership role in support of the U.S. Army, military families, veterans and homeland defense programs. In 2003 the Association of the U.S. Army gave Edwards its “Legislator of the Year Award” and in 2004, the American Legion gave Chet its “Unsung Hero Award.”

He is the senior Democrat on the important Veterans Affairs and Military Quality of Life Appropriations Subcommittee and co-chairs the bi-partisan House Army Caucus.

Texas Aggie: Class of '74

Congressman Chet Edwards is one of only four Aggies in the U.S. Congress and has been a loyal supporter of Texas A&M University for 35 years.

At A&M, Chet chaired SCONA XVIII and earned the Earl Rudder/Brown Foundation Award upon his graduation in 1974. One month later Edwards was hired as a Legislative Assistant by Congressman Olin E. "Tiger" Teague, Class of 1932.

Congressman Teague chaired the House Science Committee and represented College Station, so Edwards worked closely with Texas A&M officials for over three years to earmark research funding for Texas A&M and its components, helping make A&M one of the top research institutions in the country.

As a State Senator from 1983-1990, Edwards strongly supported A&M funding issues. He was on the Texas Sunset Commission, which he later chaired, when he, along with Senators Kent Caperton and John Sharp, changed the state law to ensure an A&M representative would serve on the Board overseeing the Permanent University Fund, which is a key component of A&M’s funding.

As a U.S. Congressman since 1991, and as the only Texas Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, Edwards has worked very closely with Texas A&M on numerous appropriations projects.

As the Representative for Fort Hood, the only two-division U.S. Army installation in the world, Edwards has played a key role in bringing together the Army and A&M on important research projects, including the Army’s vital digitization process. Just this year, Edwards received the "Legislator of the Year" Award from the Association of the U.S. Army, headed by retired General Gordon Sullivan, the former Chief of Staff of the Army.