In 1978 George W. Bush ran for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives in Texas against Kent Hance, who was able to gain traction by pointing out that Bush had not been a Texas resident for very long. Hance, a lawyer who also had taught law at Texas Tech, said that Bush was “not a real Texan.” This argument worked especially well in rural Texas, and Bush lost the election. It was this loss that propelled Bush into the private sector for some time. But this was the only election that George W. Bush ever lost.