Jerry Patterson

Jerry Emmett Patterson
27th Commissioner of the Texas General Land Office
In office January 21, 2003 – January 2, 2015
Preceded by	David Dewhurst
Succeeded by	George P. Bush
Texas State Senator for District 11
In office 1993–1999
Succeeded by	Mike Jackson
Born	November 15, 1946 Houston, Texas
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	(1) Divorced (2) Jennifer Patterson Children: From first marriage: Emily Patterson Travis Patterson From second marriage: Twins Samantha and Cole Patterson Parents: Jerry and Georgia Lee Scheaffer Patterson
Residence	Austin, Texas
Alma mater	Texas A&M University
Occupation	Businessman United States Marine Corps (1971-1993) Highest rank: Lieutenant Colonel Service in the Vietnam War

Jerry Emmett Patterson (born November 15, 1946) is a Texas businessman who is the former Commissioner of the General Land in the capital city of Austin. He unsuccessfully sought a comeback to that position in the Republican primary election held on March 6, 2018. Patterson finished second in the balloting as he sought to unseat his one-term predecessor, George P. Bush, son of Moderate Republican former Governor Jeb Bush of Florida. Patterson and two other Bush intra-party opponents, Davey Edwards and Rick Range, based much of their campaign efforts on preserving the historical integrity of The Alamo, the cradle of Texas liberty located in downtown San Antonio. The Alamo will undergo renovation that many conservatives fear will become an exercise in political correctness. Bush calls the renovation plans "RE-IMAGINE THE ALAMO." It is unclear if the cenotaph dedicated to the fallen defenders will be moved to another nearby location to allow more changes to the front of The Alamo.

Patterson was land commissioner for three terms from 2003 to 2015. In 2002, he defeated the more conservative Kenn George to gain the Republican for land commissioner. In 2010, in his last election as land commissioner, Patterson defeated the Democrat Hector Uribe, a former member of both houses of the Texas legislature. Patterson succeeded David Dewhurst, another Moderate Republican, as land commissioner. Dewhurst had defeated Patterson for land commissioner in the 1998 Republican primary, and Patterson won the seat in 2002, when Dewhurst was instead elected lieutenant governor. In 2014, Dewhurst was unseated as lieutenant governor by fellow Republican Dan Patrick, a conservative. Patterson did not seek a fourth term as land commissioner in 2014 but instead ran unsuccessfully in the lieutenant governor primary that year.

From 1993 to 1999, Patterson represented Texas Senate District 11, based in the area about his native Houston.

In 1984, when Ronald W. Reagan was re-elected as President, Patterson ran for a seat in the United States House of Representatives for Texas' largely blue collar 25th congressional district but was defeated by the freshman Democratic Representative Michael A. Andrews, 64 to 36 percent.

Early returns in 2018 showed Patterson with nearly 31 percent of the ballots in the Republican primary, compared to nearly 57 percent for George P. Bush.

On his Facebook page, Patterson announced that he, Davey Edwards, Rick Range, and David Watts -- all opponents of George P. Bush in the 2014 and 2018 primaries -- were supporting the Democratic nominee for land commissioner, Miguel Suazo, in the November 6 general election. An energy attorney, Suazo is a former aide to former U.S. Senators Pete Domenici and Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico. Patterson said that the decision is based on Suazo's commitment to preserve the historical integrity of The Alamo and the cenotaph.

In another Facebook posting late in 2018, Patterson engaged in a verbal attack on U.S. President Donald Trump, whom he accused of falsely claiming that Russia, Iran, and Syria ... are "not happy about the U.S. leaving Syria, when in fact Putin and the Russian foreign ministry called the U.S. departure "a welcome move" and "the right decision". Trump is delusional."