Jones is a former Democrat. He served in the legislature from 1964-1973 before being beaten for renomination by, you guessed it, Pete Laney, in 1972. He made a comeback as a Republican 16 years later and still remains to this day.
I did not know that Laney had once defeated Jones. Now it all starts to make sense. Jones is a true RINO, but Lubbock voters don't know that!