District 14 Candidate First Look: Bob Yancy

The third Republican running to represent District 14 in the Texas House of Representatives is Bob Yancy, the founder and owner of MEMdata which uses innovation and technology to save hospitals money in the procurement of equipment. According to his campaign web site, Yancy is “so committed to combating wasteful spending and promoting free market competition, he built a business on these principles.”

Yancy says that the “problem in Austin isn’t that we’re not taxing and spending enough. Instead, I believe we’re not being as efficient and effective as we must be with public spending, most especially in these tough economic times.” His platform includes keeping taxes low, cutting wasteful spending, and promoting economic growth.

In an interview with the Bryan-College Station Eagle, Yancy described himself as a “I am a mainstream, pro-business, Ronald Reagan conservative and I intend to represent those values that I believe are the values of Brazos County.” According the interview Yancy’s campaign has focused much on reforming the state’s procurement code to allow for more competitive bidding on government contracts, which he claims will create a significant amount of savings for the state.

Yancy’s claims of creating health care savings for patients was challenges at a recent candidate forum by fellow Republican Rebecca Boenigk. As the Eagle reported Boenigk claimed that he only brings down cost for hospitals and not for patients, while Yancy countered saying that helping hospitals solicit competitive bids for equipment saves money that is passed on to the customer. "It is economics 101."

Yancy released the results of a poll via his Facebook page, that showed Yancy leading among voters surveyed with 35% and Democratic candidate Judy LeUnes with 26%. The poll was conducted by the Texas Association of Realtors and surveyed 330 likely voters, and had a margin of error of plus or minus 5.4%.