{{short description|American politician}} {{Infobox officeholder |name= Tom Arpke |state_senate=Kansas |state=Kansas |district=24th |term_start=January 9, 2013 |term_end= January 10, 2017 |preceded=Pete Brungardt |succeeded=Randall Hardy |state_house1 = Kansas |district1 = 69th |term_start1 = January 10, 2011 |term_end1 = January 9, 2013 |preceded1= Deena Horst |succeeded1 = J. R. Claeys |party=Republican |birth_date={{birth date and age|1952|2|6}}<ref>{{cite web|url=https://votesmart.org/candidate/107052/tom-arpke#.W-saVSznbIU|title=Tom Arpke's Political Summary|website=Project Vote Smart|accessdate=November 13, 2018}}</ref> |birth_place=El Paso, Texas, U.S. |death_date= |death_place= |spouse= Beth Arpke |children = 5 |profession=Travel agent, consultant |alma_mater=Florida State University }}
'''Tom Arpke''' (born February 6, 1952) is a former Republican member of the Kansas Senate, representing the 24th district from 2013 to 2017. The American Conservative Union gave him a lifetime rating of 84%.
Arpke is a Salina travel agent and consultant,<ref name=kslegislature>{{cite web|url=http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2013_14/members/sen_arpke_tom_1/|title=Senator Tom Arpke|publisher=Kansas Legislature|accessdate=November 13, 2018}}</ref> and holds a Bachelor of Science degree in microbiology from Florida State University. He and his wife, Beth, have five children including Kellan Arpke, who is a Lieutenant in the United States Navy. Arpke was elected to the Kansas House in 2010 and filed for the Senate race in 2012.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://votesmart.org/candidate/biography/107052/tom-arpke|title=Tom Arpke|website=Project Vote Smart|accessdate=November 13, 2018}}</ref>
==Elections==
===2009=== Arpke was elected to the Salina city commission in 2009, receiving a total of 2,386 votes, winning by 332.
===2010=== Arpke defeated incumbent Deena Horst in the House District 69 Republican primary on August 3, 2010 by a margin of 1,205-898. Horst was seeking her ninth term. He defeated Gerrett Morris (D) in the general election on November 2, 2010, by 3,733 to 2,106 votes.
===2012=== Arpke defeated incumbent Pete Brungardt in the Republican Senate primary on August 7, 2012 by a 5,413-4,354 margin.<ref>[http://www.sos.ks.gov/elections/elections_upcoming_candidate_display.asp ''Kansas Secretary of State'', "Candidates for the 2012 Primary (official),"]</ref><ref>[http://www.kssos.org/elections/12elec/2012%20Primary%20Election%20Results.pdf ''Kansas Secretary of State,'' Official 2012 Primary Results] Retrieved November 13, 2018.</ref> He defeated Democratic nominee Janice Norlin in the 2012 general election.<ref>[http://www.sos.ks.gov/ent/kssos_ent.html ''Kansas Secretary of State'', "2012 Kansas General Election Results,"]</ref>
===2016=== Arpke lost the Republican primary to Randall R. Hardy, when he ran for reelection to the state senate.<ref>[http://www.kssos.org/elections/16elec/2016_Primary_Election_OFFICIAL_Results.pdf ''Kansas Secretary of State'', "2016 Kansas General Election Results,"], Retrieved November 13, 2018.</ref>
==Committee assignments== Sen. Arpke served on these legislative committees: *Ways and Means *Education (vice-chairman) *Natural Resources *Legislative Educational Planning Committee<ref name=kslegislature/>
==Major donors== Some of the top contributors to Arpke's 2012 campaign, according to ''Project Vote Smart'':<ref>[http://votesmart.org/candidate/campaign-finance/107052/tom-arpke Project Vote Smart campaign contributions]</ref> *Kansas Chamber of Commerce, $2,818 *Koch Industries, $2,000 *American Freedom PAC, $2,000
In addition, a number of contributors gave $1,000 each.
==Personal life==
{{Empty section|date=January 2021}}
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== *[http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2013_14/members/sen_arpke_tom_1// Kansas Legislature] *[http://votesmart.org/candidate/biography/107052/tom-arpke/ Project Vote Smart political summary] *[http://votesmart.org/candidate/campaign-finance/107052/tom-arpke Tom Arpke] *[http://www.arpkeforsenate.com/ Tom Arpke campaign website]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Arpke, Tom}} Category:Republican Party Kansas state senators Category:Living people Category:1952 births Category:21st-century members of the Kansas Legislature Category:Republican Party members of the Kansas House of Representatives Category:Florida State University alumni