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Former Denton County Republican Chairman Brent Hagenbuch won the Republican primary runoff to succeed outgoing state Sen. Drew Springer, R-Muenster.
Hagenbuch had a double-digit lead over attorney Jace Yarbrough when he declared victory at 9:20 p.m. As the Republican candidate in a district that is solidly red, Hagenbuch is expected to win the seat in November.
Hagenbuch, a transportation executive and former U.S. Army Corps of Civil Engineers officer, secured the nomination Tuesday after finishing with 36% in the March 5 primary. Yarbrough, a conservative activist and Air Force veteran, came very close in that initial round, earning 34% among the four candidates.
“Serving in the Texas Senate was never something I aspired to do. “It’s God’s time,” Hagenbuch said in a statement.
“I look forward to spending the rest of the year continuing to travel the District and preparing to represent our area’s interests in the Texas Senate. Voters have made clear that border security, education choice, property taxes and economic growth are top priorities. “They will be my focus.”
Both candidates presented themselves as solid conservatives who would support the state’s continued rightward drift on everything from abortion to guns to immigration.
But unlike the case in many GOP primaries, the race fractured alliances between top Republican officials and the rank and file, who rallied to unseat incumbents.
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, leader of the Texas Senate, endorsed Hagenbuch shortly after he entered the race and has been one of his staunchest supporters. Springer, Gov. Greg Abbott, former President Donald Trump also endorsed Hagenbuch, as did Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller, 2022 gubernatorial candidate and former state Sen. Don Huffines, and state Sen. Bob Hall, R-Edgewood.
Among Yarbrough’s supporters were the tea party groups True Texas Project and Grassroots America, and their respective leaders, Julie McCarty and JoAnn Fleming. He was also endorsed by Kyle Rittenhouse, the famous right-wing activist acquitted of the murder of two Black Lives Matter protesters in 2020; incoming Dallas County Republican Party Chairman Allen West, who previously led the Texas Republican Party; outgoing state Rep. Matt Schaefer, who previously chaired the Texas House Freedom Caucus; and Shelley Luther, the former Dallas salon owner who defied Abbott’s pandemic shutdown order and unseated state Rep. Reggie Smith, R-Sherman.
In a statement, Yarbrough agreed and told his followers to stay tuned for what comes next.
“Regardless of what God has planned for the future for me and my family, I plan to continue fighting for the conservative values that our state holds dear,” Yarbrough said. “I have no regrets about the campaign; rather, I am grateful for the opportunity to stand up for the values I believe in.”
Questions about Hagenbuch’s residency and whether he might run in the district overshadowed his primary campaign, and remain unresolved. Third-place primary candidate Carrie De Moor, later joined by Yarbrough, sued Hagenbuch, arguing that her primary residence was in neighboring Senate District 12 rather than the office building listed on her SD campaign filings. 30.
A judge allowed Hagenbuch to continue campaigning while the lawsuit plays out, and there has been no activity in that case since March. Yarbrough revived the issue this weekend at the conclusion of the Texas Republican Convention, when he issued a challenge to the party’s new chairman, Abraham George, to replace Hagenbuch on the general election ticket.
If a court declares Hagenbuch ineligible before the end of August, he could lose his place on the ballot. A Republican Party executive committee, likely precinct chairs in the district, would then choose a replacement candidate. In that case, the runner-up becomes one of the main contenders to be the new nominee.
Hagenbuch has long insisted that he lives in the district and suggested that his rivals are trying to keep him out of the election because they would not be able to defeat him otherwise.
Hagenbuch will face Michael Braxton or Dale Frey in November, who are in the Democratic runoff for SD 30.
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