Ray Hutchison

Elton Ray Hutchison
Texas State Representative from District 33-Q in Dallas County
In office 1973 – 1977
Preceded by	New district
Succeeded by	Lee Jackson
State Chairman of the Texas Republican Party
In office 1976 – 1977
Succeeded by	Ray Barnhart
Personal details
Born	1932
Nationality	American
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	(1) (2) Kay Bailey Hutchison
Children	Children from first marriage Two adopted children from second marriage
Residence	Dallas, Texas
Alma mater	Southern Methodist University
Occupation	Attorney partner in Vinson and Elkins

Elton Ray Hutchison, known as Ray Hutchison (born September 1932), is an attorney in Dallas, Texas, who served as a Republican in the Texas House of Representatives from District 33-Q in Dallas County from 1973 to 1977. He is the second husband of Republican U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas.

In 1957, Hutchison graduated with honors from Southern Methodist University in Dallas. In 1959, he obtained his J.D. degree, cum laude, from the same institution.

Hutchison is a partner in the firm Vinson and Elkins, based in the Trammel Crow Building. His principal area of practice is public finance. For more than forty years, he has been counsel to state and local governments.

The 1978 gubernatorial primary

In 1976, Hutchison became chairman of the Texas Republican Party, but he left the nonsalaried position in 1977 to pursue his gubernatorial campaign. In the spring of 1978, he lost his party's nomination to Bill Clements, an industrialist also from Dallas, by a lopsided vote of 115,345 (72.8 percent) to 38,268 (24.2 percent). (Another 4,790 votes or 3 percent went to Charles Thompson.) Clements went on to win the general election by defeating the Democrat John Luke Hill and hence became the first Republican governor of Texas since Reconstruction.

Hutchison met his wife, then known as Kay Bailey, when both were state legislators, he from Dallas and she from Houston. Hutchison resides with his wife in Dallas. They adopted two infant children in 2001, a son and a daughter. Both Hutchisons have been previously married. Ray Hutchison has grown children from his first marriage. They also own a home in Nacogdoches, Texas.

Further reading

• Ray Hutchison, Vinson & Elkins LLP

Preceded by New district	Member of the Texas House of Representatives from District 33-Q (Dallas) 1973–1977	Succeeded by Lee Jackson
Preceded by Missing	Chairman of the Texas Republican Party Elton Ray Hutchison 1976–1977	Succeeded by Ray Barnhart