Rick Allen (politician)
American politician (born 1951) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Richard Wayne Allen (born November 7, 1951[1]) is an American politician and businessman who has served as the Republican Party's U.S. representative for Georgia's 12th congressional district since 2015. Georgia's 12th district favors Republicans by seven points according to the 2025 Cook Partisan Voting Index.[2] From 2014 to present, Allen has been re-elected to successive biennial terms.
Rick Allen | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Georgia's 12th district | |
| Assumed office January 3, 2015 | |
| Preceded by | John Barrow |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Richard Wayne Allen November 7, 1951[1] Augusta, Georgia, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Robin Reeve[1] |
| Children | 4 |
| Residence(s) | Augusta, Georgia, U.S. |
| Education | Auburn University (BS) (1973)[1] |
| Website | House website |
Career
Allen attended Auburn University and graduated in 1973 with a Bachelor of Science in building construction.[1][3] While at Auburn he joined Alpha Tau Omega fraternity.[citation needed] He worked for three years as a project manager for a builder before founding R.W. Allen and Associates in 1976, which is an Augusta-based construction company. It is ran by Allen with operations also in Athens.[4]
U.S. House of Representatives
Summarize
Perspective
Georgia's 12 district
Georgia's 12th congressional district favors Republicans by seven points according to the 2025 Cook Partisan Voting Index.[2] It is located in East Central Georgia and includes the cities of Augusta, Statesboro, and Vidalia[2] among many others.[5]
Campaigns
In 2012, Allen ran in the Republican primary for the 12th district against three other candidates. He advanced to the runoff, but lost to state representative Lee Anderson, 49.7% to 50.3%.[6] Anderson went on to lose the general election to incumbent John Barrow.
In 2014, Allen ran again, spending "nearly a million dollars of his own money" and winning a "five-way primary with 54% of the vote," thus making it to the general election.[4] In the general, he defeated the incumbent Blue Dog Democrat[4] Barrow with 54.7% of the vote, a result considered an upset even though the 12th district had been made significantly more Republican by redistricting.[7][8] Barrow was "Georgia’s only remaining white Democrat in the House."[4]
In 2016, Allen was reelected with 61.6% of the vote. He ran against the Democratic candidate Tricia Carpenter McCracken.
In 2018, Allen was reelected with 59.5% of the vote. He ran against the Democratic candidate—a lawyer and pastor—Francys Johnson.[9]
In 2020, Allen was reelected with 58.4% of the vote. He ran against the Democratic candidate Elizabeth Johnson.[10]
In 2022, Allen was reelected with 59.6% of the vote. He ran against the Democratic candidate Elizabeth Johnson.
In 2024, Allen was reelected with 60.3% of the vote. He ran against the Democratic candidate Elizabeth Johnson.
2020 Presidential election results
Given the refusal to accept the 2020 election loss of Donald Trump by allies and supporters, Allen voted to reject the results in both Arizona and Pennsylvania immediately after the January 6th Capitol attack.[11] He was one of 139 Republican House members who objected to certify Biden as president.[11][12]
Committee assignments
For the 118th Congress:[13]
Caucuses
Tenure
LGBT rights
In 2015, Allen cosponsored a resolution to amend the Constitution to ban same-sex marriage.[15] Allen also cosponsored an amendment disagreeing with the Supreme Court ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges, which held that same-sex marriage bans violated the constitution.[16]
During a closed-door Republican meeting about an amendment that prohibited discrimination against LGBT workers, Allen read a Bible verse that says of homosexuals, "they which commit such things are worthy of death."[17] He told the assembled Republicans that they were "going to Hell" if they voted for the amendment.[18]
After the 2016 Orlando nightclub shooting, Allen offered prayers to the families of the victims but did not apologize or retract his past comments.[19][17]
In 2022, Allen voted against H.R.8404—the Respect for Marriage Act—which would codify same-sex and interracial marriages.[20]
In October 2023, Allen said he could not support Speaker of the House candidate Tom Emmer on the grounds that Emmer had previously supported a bill that would offer the same federal protections to same-sex couples as heterosexual couples.[21]
Texas v. Pennsylvania
In December 2020, Allen was one of 126 Republican members of the House of Representatives to sign an amicus brief in support of Texas v. Pennsylvania, a lawsuit filed at the United States Supreme Court contesting the results of the 2020 presidential election, in which Joe Biden defeated[22] incumbent Donald Trump. The Supreme Court declined to hear the case on the basis that Texas lacked standing under Article III of the Constitution to challenge the results of an election held by another state.[23][24][25]
Foreign policy
In 2019, Allen was one of 60 representatives to vote against condemning President Trump's withdrawal from Syria.[26][non-primary source needed]
In 2020, Allen voted against the National Defense Authorization Act of 2021, which would prevent the president from withdrawing soldiers from Afghanistan without congressional approval.[27][non-primary source needed]
Allen voted to provide Israel with support following 2023 Hamas attack on Israel.[28][29] This is in keeping with his view that any opposition to Israel will provoke a curse from God.[30]
Marijuana
Rick Allen has an "F" rating from the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) for his voting history regarding cannabis-related causes.[31]
Apparent STOCK act violations
In September 2021, an analysis by Business Insider found that Allen appeared to have violated the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act of 2012, or STOCK Act, by failing to list on his 2020 financial disclosure form stock holdings in seven companies, worth up to $140,000, that appeared on his 2019 annual financial disclosure form, as well as being about 15 months late in reporting a stock purchase made by his wife in June 2020.[32]
In June 2024, an analysis by Raw Story found that Allen appeared to have violated the STOCK Act by being as much as six-and-a-half years late in reporting 136 stock and other financial transactions, worth up to $8.5 million, on his 2023 financial disclosure form.[33] In response, a spokesperson for Allen blamed the reporting issues on a compliance firm hired by Allen, and stated that Allen had hired a new compliance firm "to ensure all trades have been properly reported."[33]
Personal life
Allen lives in Augusta, Georgia with his wife Robin. Allen has four children and 14 grandchildren. He is a Methodist and "active member" of Trinity on the Hill United Methodist Church.[3] Allen spent almost a million dollars of his own money on the 2014 Georgia Republican primary, which he won.[4] His only son, Andy, has worked as a foreign service officer with the State Department.[34]
See also
References
External links
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