{{Short description|American politician (born 1952)}} {{Use mdy dates|date=September 2015}} {{Infobox person | name = Stephen Broden | image = Stephen Broden (16405782316) (cropped).jpg | caption = Broden in 2015 | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1952|04|11}} | alma_mater = {{ubl|University of Michigan (BA, MA)|Dallas Theological Seminary (MA)}} | occupation = {{hlist|Political activist|businessman|pastor}} | political_party = Independent (since 2025)<br>Constitution (2024–2025)<br>Republican (before 2024) | spouse = Donna | children = 3 }}
'''Stephen Edward Broden''' (born April 11, 1952){{citation needed|date=April 2024}} is an American businessman, pastor, political activist, broadcaster, and former professor from the state of Texas. In 2010, he was the Republican nominee for {{ushr|Texas|30|Texas's 30th congressional district}} for the United States House of Representatives.<ref>[http://www.brodenforcongress.com/ Broden for Congress Official Site]</ref><ref>{{C-SPAN|95182}}{{Dead link|date=March 2022}}</ref> He was defeated by Democratic incumbent Eddie Bernice Johnson. He was the Constitution Party's candidate for vice president in the 2024 United States presidential election.
==Education== Broden graduated from the University of Michigan with a Bachelor of Arts and then a Master of Arts degree in communication, and he later studied at the Dallas Theological Seminary, where he received a Master of Arts in Bible studies.<ref name="Life and Liberty">{{cite web |title=Pastor Stephen Broden: Life and Liberty |url=http://lifeandliberty.org/about-life-and-liberty/pastor-browden |access-date=September 11, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100525110256/http://lifeandliberty.org/about-life-and-liberty/pastor-browden |archive-date=May 25, 2010 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref>
He served as an adjunct professor at Dallas Baptist University from 1990 to 1992 and spent 10 years in the private sector at Atlantic Richfield Company (ARCO) in human resources. He has been a business owner of several self-serve car wash facilities, and has also worked as a newscaster, disc jockey, and radio broadcaster, co-hosting ''Life and Liberty'' on KSKY-AM and presenting One-Minute "thought of the day" commentaries on this station.<ref name="Life and Liberty" />
==Career== Broden founded the Fair Park Bible Fellowship Church in 1987 and became its senior pastor.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.fpbfellowshipchurch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4&Itemid=4 |title=Note from the Pastor at Fair Park Bible Fellowship Church |access-date=September 8, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100921052724/http://fpbfellowshipchurch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4&Itemid=4 |archive-date=September 21, 2010 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref> He has also served as president of the Fair Park Friendship Center as its executive director.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.pointofview.net/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=9225 |title=Point of View Radio Talk Show |access-date=September 8, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101204063850/http://www.pointofview.net/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=9225 |archive-date=December 4, 2010 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref> The center provides assistance to the community's "inner-city" families, including a clothing store and back-to-school rally where children from neighborhood families are provided with donated school supplies and family counseling.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.crossroadsbible.org/STW/Outreach/communityoutreach/fairparkfc.htm |title=Fair Park Friendship Center/After School Program |access-date=September 8, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100627035052/http://www.crossroadsbible.org/STW/Outreach/communityoutreach/fairparkfc.htm |archive-date=June 27, 2010 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref>
Broden advocates in the Fair Park and South Dallas areas for economic opportunity, improved access to education, and against abortion. He is a spokesman for the black anti-abortion movement in Dallas and a contributor to blackprolifemovement.blogspot.com. He is a founder of Ebony Berean, an organization whose mission includes informing African-American Pastors of the "culture war".<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.dallasyr.org/2010/02/congressional-district-30-candidate-forum-pastor-stephen-broden-sheldon-goldstein-and-charles-lingerfelt/ |title=Dallas County Young Republicans Official Site |access-date=September 8, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110725215318/http://www.dallasyr.org/2010/02/congressional-district-30-candidate-forum-pastor-stephen-broden-sheldon-goldstein-and-charles-lingerfelt/ |archive-date=July 25, 2011 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref>
He was affiliated with the Tea Party movement.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.kewego.com/video/iLyROoafMLPv.html |title=Stephen Broden Inspired Tea Party Express Patriots |access-date=September 8, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110723155548/http://www.kewego.com/video/iLyROoafMLPv.html |archive-date=July 23, 2011 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref><ref>[http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/city/rockwallrowlett/stories/DN-protests_12met.ART.State.Edition1.4c1f76b.html 9/12, Tea Party Groups Plan Rallies Throughout Dallas Area]</ref>
Broden has been a recurring political commentator on Fox News Channel, including appearances on the Glenn Beck show.<ref>[https://www.foxnews.com/story/glenn-beck-issues-challenge-to-americas-pastors Glenn Beck Issues Challenge to America's Pastors]</ref><ref>[https://www.foxnews.com/story/glenn-beck Glenn Beck: What Would Martin Luther King Think of America Today?]</ref>
He was awarded "Champion of the Republican Party" by the NRCC Business Advisory Council Texas and has also received the Ronald Reagan Gold Medal Award. From 1999 to 2002 he served as Republican Precinct Chairman in DeSoto, Texas.<ref>[http://www.votesmart.org/bio.php?can_id=117504 Project Vote Smart]</ref>
===2010 U.S. House election=== thumb|Broden in 2010 On March 2, 2010, Broden won the plurality of votes, in a three-way Republican primary election for the U.S. House in Texas's 30th congressional district, with 46.6%.<ref>[http://enr.sos.state.tx.us/enr/results/mar02_148_state.htm Office of the Secretary of State 2010 Republican Party Primary Election Night Returns]{{dead link|date=July 2016 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> On April 13, 2010 he won the Republican Primary runoff election, with 67.5% of the votes, and became the 2010 Republican candidate for the November general election.<ref>[http://www.texastribune.org/texas-election-results/texas-2010-election-primary-runoff/ 2010 Primary Runoff Elections]</ref>
In October 2010, Broden was accused of saying that the current federal government was "tyrannical" and suggested violent overthrow could not be ruled out if there was not a "change in leadership" resulting from the November elections during an interview with a local Dallas Television Station.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/texassouthwest/stories/DN-broden_22tex.ART0.State.Edition1.33278a9.html |title=Republican congressional candidate says violent overthrow of government is 'on the table' |first=Melanie |last=Mason |work=The Dallas Morning News |date=2010-10-22}}</ref>
Johnson ended up defeating Broden by a margin of over 54%. Johnson had the largest margin of victory of any Democrat running for the U.S. House in Texas in 2010.
===Marlise Muñoz=== Broden argued<ref name="usatoday.com">{{cite news |title=Family cries as judge rules Munoz off life support |url=https://www.usatoday.com/videos/news/2014/01/25/4896973/ |access-date=January 25, 2014 |newspaper=USA Today}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=HANKINS |first=LAMAR |title=Freethought San Marcos: Religion corrupts advance directives and medical care |url=http://smmercury.com/2014/01/15/freethought-san-marcos-religion-corrupts-advance-directives-and-medical-care/ |archive-url=https://archive.today/20140126114502/http://smmercury.com/2014/01/15/freethought-san-marcos-religion-corrupts-advance-directives-and-medical-care/ |url-status=usurped |archive-date=January 26, 2014 |access-date=January 25, 2014 |newspaper=San Marcos Mercury |date=January 15, 2014}}</ref> for continuation of artificial life support for the body of Marlise Muñoz and led a vigil outside the Texas hospital where her body was kept on artificial life support. She was 14 weeks pregnant when her husband found her unconscious in November, possibly from a blood clot and subsequently died from brain death.<ref>{{cite news |last=Dart |first=Tom |title=Texas hospital acknowledges brain-dead status of pregnant woman |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jan/24/texas-hospital-acknowledges-brain-dead-pregnant-woman |access-date=January 25, 2014 |newspaper=The Guardian |date=January 24, 2014}}</ref> Prior to her death she had indicated that she would not like to be kept artificially alive if brain dead.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Luscombe |first=Belinda |title=Why the Dad Has No Say in Tragic Texas Brain Death Case |url=https://healthland.time.com/2014/01/10/why-the-dad-has-no-say-in-dismal-texas-brain-death-case/ |magazine=Time |date=January 10, 2014 |access-date=January 25, 2014}}</ref> The fetus had suffered from oxygen deprivation and was suspected to be non-viable. The fetus' lower extremities were deformed to the extent that the gender could not be determined. The unborn child also had fluid building up inside the skull (Hydrocephalus) and possibly had a heart problem.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Bazelon |first=Emily |title=Brain-Dead Marlise Munoz's Fetus Is "Distinctly Abnormal." Please, Texas, Let This Nightmare End |journal=Slate |date=January 23, 2014 |url=http://www.slate.com/blogs/xx_factor/2014/01/23/marlise_munoz_case_the_fetus_of_a_brain_dead_texas_woman_is_said_to_be_distinctly.html |publisher=Slate.com |access-date=January 25, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Brain-dead Tarrant woman's fetus is 'distinctly abnormal,' attorneys say |url=http://www.dallasnews.com/news/20140122-fetus-in-brain-dead-tarrant-woman-distinctly-abnormal-attorneys-say.ece |access-date=January 25, 2014 |newspaper=The Associated Press/ The Dallas Morning News}}</ref> A 2002 study estimated the cost for an ICU bed in an average U.S. hospital is $2,000 to $3,000 per day.<ref>{{cite journal |last=JOHN M. LUCE, GORDON D. RUBENFELD |title=Can Health Care Costs Be Reduced by Limiting Intensive Care at the End of Life? |journal=American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine |year=2002 |volume=165 |issue=6 |pages=750–754 |doi=10.1164/ajrccm.165.6.2109045 |pmid=11897638 |url=http://www.atsjournals.org/doi/full/10.1164/ajrccm.165.6.2109045#.UtlFJmRDuYR |access-date=January 25, 2014|url-access=subscription }}</ref> An attorney who had helped rewrite the Texas state law being used to keep her body on life support at John Peter Smith Hospital said that there was a problem with the application of the law to a patient that was no longer alive.<ref>{{cite news |last=Max B. Baker and Elizabeth Campbell |title=Texas law didn't anticipate Muñoz case, drafters say |url=http://www.star-telegram.com/2014/01/23/5509944/texas-law-didnt-anticipate-dead.html |access-date=January 25, 2014 |newspaper=star telegram}}</ref> Her husband Erick, with the support of her family, successfully petitioned a court to order termination of life support.<ref name="usatoday.com"/>
===2024 presidential election=== In 2024, Broden was selected as Randall Terry's vice presidential running mate for the Constitution Party's ticket.<ref>{{cite news|url = https://ballot-access.org/2024/04/27/constitution-party-vice-presidential-nominee-is-stephen-e-broden/|title = Constitution Party Vice-Presidential Nominee is Stephen E. Broden|last = Winger|first = Richard|authorlink = Richard Winger|work = Ballot Access News|date = April 27, 2024|accessdate = April 27, 2024}}</ref>
==Personal life== Broden and his wife, Donna, have three children.<ref>{{cite news|url = https://irvingrepublicanwomen.com/stephen-broden|title = Pastor Stephen Broden|date = February 13, 2017|accessdate = April 27, 2024|work = Irving Republican Women}}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
{{2024 United States presidential election}} {{Constitution Party (United States)}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Broden, Stephen}} Category:1952 births Category:20th-century African-American politicians Category:21st-century African-American politicians Category:20th-century American clergy Category:21st-century American clergy Category:2024 United States vice-presidential candidates Category:Activists from Texas Category:African-American candidates for Vice President of the United States Category:African-American people in Texas politics Category:American anti-abortion activists Category:Black conservatism in the United States Category:Candidates in the 2010 United States elections Category:Christians from Texas Category:Constitution Party (United States) vice presidential nominees Category:Living people Category:People from DeSoto, Texas Category:Politicians from Dallas Category:Radio personalities from Dallas Category:Tea Party movement activists Category:Texas Republicans Category:University of Michigan alumni Category:Candidates in the 2025 United States elections