Chris Bell | |
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Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas's 25th district |
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In office January 3, 2003 – January 3, 2005 |
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Preceded by | Ken Bentsen |
Succeeded by | Lloyd Doggett |
Member of the Houston City Council for At-Large Position 4 |
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In office February 15, 1997 – January 2, 2002 |
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Preceded by | John Peavy |
Succeeded by | Michael Berry |
Personal details | |
Born |
Robert Christopher Bell November 23, 1959 Abilene, Texas, U.S. |
Political party | Democratic |
Spouse(s) | Alison Ayres |
Children | Atlee Connally |
Alma mater |
University of Texas, Austin South Texas College of Law |
Religion | Episcopalianism |
Robert Christopher "Chris" Bell (born November 23, 1959) is an American politician, attorney, and former journalist. He is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin and South Texas College of Law. Bell served five years on the Houston City Council from 1997 to 2001, followed by one term in the United States House of Representatives from Texas' 25th Congressional District in Houston from 2003 to 2005. He was then the Democratic nominee in the 2006 election for the office of Governor of Texas, losing to Republican incumbent Gov. Rick Perry by 406,450 votes (Perry 39% versus Bell 30%) in a fractured general election campaign that also drew in two significant independent challengers. Bell, a member of the Democratic Party, is currently an attorney specializing in many forms of litigation, including commercial disputes, copyright infringement, and securities disputes. Prior to practicing law, Bell had been a prominent radio journalist in Texas. On January 25, 2015, he announced his candidacy for the non-partisan position of mayor of Houston, telling supporters: "I know my competitors will do their best to try and define me. They might even talk about some of the political races that I have run and lost. And that's fair game — because if it's necessary, I'll talk about the races they've run and lost."
Chris Bell was born in Abilene, the seat of Taylor County in West Texas. He was reared in Dallas and moved to Austin when he was accepted to the University of Texas at Austin. As a student, Bell was a member of Phi Delta Theta, and served as president of the Interfraternity Council, and also spearheaded a successful effort to reinstate student government. In 1982, he graduated with a journalism degree and began work as a television and radio journalist, first in Ardmore, Oklahoma and later in Amarillo. He then moved to Houston, working as a Harris County court radio reporter while taking night classes at South Texas College of Law.