4 of 8 Republican state Reps. with ‘F’ grades for fiscal voting records head to runoffs

(The Center Square) – Four out of eight incumbent Republicans who received F grades for their voting record on fiscal issues are heading to a May 24 runoff election after received less than 50% of the vote in Tuesday’s primary. Four won despite facing multiple challengers.

Every year, Texans for Fiscal Responsibility publishes a Fiscal Responsibility Index, which grades state lawmakers on how they vote on core budget issues, the size and role of government, free enterprise and other fiscal matters.

Incumbent Republican state representatives who received F grades for their votes on fiscal issues in at least the last legislative session all faced challengers in the primary election – in districts 11, 12, 14, 18, 60, 61, 85 and 91.

In districts 12, 60, 85 and 91, the top two Republican vote-getters are facing runoff elections. None, except for the Republican winner of HD 85, will face a Democratic challenger in November.

In HD 12, encompassing Waco, Bryan and College Station, five-term Rep. Kyle Kacal received 47.21%; his top challenger, Ben Bius, received 41.57%.

Kacal “has consistently been one of the worst scoring lawmakers in the Texas House, often scoring dead last among Republicans,” Texans for Fiscal Responsibility argues. “This last legislative session was no exception, he came in dead last among his Republican colleagues with an embarrassing” score of 28 out of 100.

Kacal says he represents “rural Texas values” and that the last legislative session “has been touted as one of the most conservative in Texas history.” He opposes school choice.

The Texas Federation for Children PAC actively opposed him in the primary.

Bius pledges to “eliminate unnecessary and excessive spending, promote economic growth and job creation, and lower property taxes.” His platform doesn’t include eventually eliminating property taxes, as some conservatives have proposed by moving to a consumption tax model. His platform also doesn’t include ending taxpayer-funded lobbying.

In HD 60, a rural area west of Fort Worth encompassing eight counties, first-term Rep. Glenn Rogers received 43.69%; his top challenger, Mike Olcott, received 36%.

Rogers says he’s “worked hard to deliver results for all of our communities” and pledges “to deliver conservative results.” But he’s also received an F grade, scoring 45 out of 100 last year, “voting against taxpayers the vast majority of the time during the 2021 session,” Texans for Fiscal Responsibility notes.

Mike Olcott, an outspoken critic of Rogers, argues, “Texans should not have to rent their home from the government by paying higher and higher property taxes. I will fight to lower or eliminate property taxes, so homeowners can keep more of what they earn. No homeowner should be under the threat of losing their home once their mortgage is paid off.” He also pledges to ban taxpayer-funded lobbying.

In HD 85, Rep. Phil Stephenson received 39.99%; his top challenger, Stan Kitzman, received 34.52%.

HD 85, a newly drawn district, encompasses Austin, Colorado, Fayette, part of Fort Bend, Waller, and Wharton counties.

Stephenson, who’s a business owner, CPA and self-described conservative, “was rated one of the most fiscally irresponsible Republican lawmakers on TFR’s Fiscal Index and has an ‘F’ Career Rating,” Texans for Fiscal Responsibility notes.

Kitzman, who’s been endorsed by a range of conservative groups, says he won’t “participate in the Crisis Cronyism that has plagued our nation.” Under Gov. Greg Abbott and the Republican-controlled state legislature, illegal immigrant housing facilities are being built throughout Texas. One is planned to be opened in Colorado County in HD 85, which Kitzman opposes.

“It’s time we demand transparency on these facilities and shut them down if they are not beyond reproach,” he said. “We need representation that will fight the spread of facilities that financially fuel the crisis at the border.”

In HD 91, encompassing part of the Dallas-Fort Worth area, five-term Rep. Stephanie Klick received 48.96% of the vote; her top challenger, David Lowe, received 39%.

While she champions a list of “effective, conservative accomplishments,” she also received an F grade for her voting record last year, according to the Index.

“Klick is an example of an all-too-common trend in candidates that campaign as conservatives and stay in the legislature for an extended time,” Texans for Fiscal Responsibility says. “Though she was considered a ‘Taxpayer Champion’ in her very first legislative session,” she scored a 54 out of 100 last session.

David Lowe argues “the donor class is ruining Texas and sending the needs of ordinary Texans to the end of the line.” Among the many platform issues he lists, to provide immediate tax relief, he suggests “a ban on the unfair annual appraisal system, instead, appraising the value when the home is purchased.”

Incumbent Republicans who received F grades for their voting records won their primary elections in HD 11, 14, 18 and 62. None have Democratic challengers in November.

In HD 11, in east Texas encompassing Nacogdoches, five-term Rep. Travis Clardy won 52% of the vote. Clardy, who claims to be a “strong independent conservative voice for East Texas,” has received an F grade for his voting record in every legislative session he’s served. Last session, he scored a 38 out of 100, according to the Index.

In HD 14, encompassing Bryan and College Station, five-term Rep. John Raney defeated his challenger John Slocum by a vote of 57% to 42.9%. Raney, who says he’s “dedicated his life to building the Republican Party and strengthening the conservative movement in Texas,” has received an F grade for his voting record every legislative session he’s served. Last session, he scored a 37 out of 100.

In HD 18, which encompasses the northeast greater Houston area, three-term Rep. Ernest Bailes won 56% of the vote. He says he is a conservative, but has received an F grade for his voting record in every legislative session he’s served. Last session, he scored a 39 out of 100.

In HD 62, encompassing an area north of Dallas-Fort Worth, two-term Rep. Reggie Smith says he’s “been a consistent champion for common sense reforms that reduce burdensome regulations on small businesses and [he] spearheaded efforts to cut wasteful government programs so that individuals and families can keep more of what they earn.”

But he’s also received an F grade in the 2019 and 2021 legislative sessions, according to the Index.

His challenger, salon owner Shelley Luther, made national news for defying Abbott’s order designating her business as nonessential and went to jail for it. “Are you tired of empty promises from our elected officials?” she asked. “Tired of tax increases? Tired of our wide-open border? Tired of government mandates?” She hoped to do something about this but ultimately lost to Smith by a vote of 58.67% to 41.33%.

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