CQ Voting Studies are an annual analysis of a member's support or opposition to a given position. Interest Group Ratings are based on rankings from groups chosen to represent liberal, conservative, business and labor viewpoints.Voting Participation scores are based on the number of times a member voted "yea" or "nay" on roll call votes (not including quorum calls in the House). CQ Vote Studies Year Presidential Support Party Unity   S* O* S O 1998 29% 70% 23% 75% 1997 27 73 38 61 1996 44 56 29 71 1995 29 71 22 78 1994 54 46 36 62 1993 54 46 54 46 1992 63 37 49 50 1991 66 32 46 51 1990 51 38 39 41 S=Support; O=Oppose
Voting Participation Year % 1998 99 1997 99 1996 99 1995 100 1994 98 1993 99 1992 99 1991 98 1990 81	Interest Groups Year ADA AFL-CIO CCUS ACU 1998 15% n/a 76% 96 % 1997 10 25 80 96 1996 15 18 94 90 1995 10 17 100 76 1994 10 44 92 95 1993 20 33 73 79 1992 40 50 63 76 1991 5 17 80 90 1990 6 20 77 71
Note on Interest Groups: ADA=Americans for Democratic Action; AFL-CIO=American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations; CCUS=Chamber of Commerce of the United States; ACU=American Conservative Union

TEXAS 4 : Northeast - Sherman; part of Tyler

The 4th covers a wide swath of the Red River Valley area north and east of Dallas, which was once represented by former Democratic House Speaker Sam Rayburn but now is increasingly familiar territory for the GOP. The district extends from the Oklahoma border to the oil cities of Tyler and Longview to the east. It has an older, more rural and more blue-collar population than most other Texas districts, and many residents espouse economic conservatism and gun rights.

Voters in the 4th elect conservatives of both parties to local and national offices, but the GOP has made dramatic inroads since the 1980s. The district gave the 1996 Republican presidential nominee 56 percent of the vote, 7 points higher than the state average. Although Democrats have held this seat for decades, experts say the 4th will probably elect a Republican when Rep. Hall steps down.

Many Rockwall County residents commute to jobs in Dallas, while those in other counties farm the land for peanuts and other crops that became popular after the cotton industry's decline. The oil bust in the mid-1980s hurt the economy near Tyler and Longview, but other areas have rebounded with the help of several electronics manufacturing plants located in or near the district. Since the mid-1980s, both the agricultural and manufacturing sectors have posted large gains, offsetting the oil decline.

Major Industry
Health care, electronics manufacturing, agriculture.

Population
567,231 (1990)

Cities
Tyler (pt.), 44,569; Longview (pt.), 37,960 (1990); Sherman, 34,024 (1997)

People
49% rural, 32% urban; 14% age 65+ (ranks fifth of 30 in state; middle third nationally); 63% married couples, 30% married couples with children; 16% college educated (ranks 14 of 30 in state; middle third nationally); 54% white collar (ranks 16 of 30 in state; middle third nationally), 30% blue collar (ranks eighth of 30 in state; top third nationally) (1990)

Race
88% white, 8% black, 0% Asian; 4% Hispanic origin (1990)

Median Household Income
$26,974 (ranks 14 of 30 in state; middle third nationally) (1990)

Unusual Features
Tyler bills itself as the "Rose Capital of the World" and hosts a week-long festival each October; Former House Speaker Rayburn hailed from Bonham, in Fannin County.

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