Gonzales County voters choose Matias, Schoolcraft in GOP primary runoff
Gonzales County residents cast their ballots in the May 28 Republican Primary Runoff Election and chose Anton “Tony” Matias to be the new Gonzales County Precinct 1 Commissioner and former state Rep. Alan Schoolcraft to be the next Texas House District 44 Representative, defeating incumbent John Kuempel in complete but unofficial returns.
Precinct 1 Commissioner
Matias won the runoff by 81 votes over fellow candidate Ryan Mills, outgaining the latter by a total of 633-552. Without a Democratic opponent in the November general election, Matias is set to take over the duties of the job on Jan. 1, 2025.
He will succeed incumbent Precinct 1 Commissioner K.O. “Dell” Whiddon, who did not seek re-election. Matias has been the supervisor for six years under Whiddon’s Precinct 1 Road and Bridge crew.
Matias said he was very pleased with both the end result and the turnout, which saw a little over 17 percent of the county’s eligible voters go to the polls. Of the county’s 13,0002 registered voters, 2,235 cast ballots, which includes 1,531 during early voting and 594 on election day. Of those total ballots, 1,185 came from Precinct 1 alone.
“First of all, I would like to thank God and my voters for coming out on their busy schedules,” Matias said. “And most of all, all my family and friends. I want to say, from the bottom of my heart, thank you, and God bless. I am going to work hard for the taxpayers’ money. Like I said, my phone is always on. See you at the polls in November, and in four years, I will run again.”
“Although this journey did not have the outcome we had hoped for, I can honestly say I wanted the best for Gonzales,” Mills said. “A lot was learned and, throughout it all, we, as a family, maintained the high road and ran our campaign with integrity.
“I would like to say thank you to everyone that asked for a sign, offered and gave support, and most importantly went out and voted. We are grateful and humbled by the support that was shown.”
House District 44
Schoolcraft won Gonzales County by 271 votes, 1,202 to 931, and won Guadalupe County by nearly 1,500 votes — 7,696 to 6,198. A total of 13,894 votes were cast, or about 11 percent of all eligible voters in the two counties combined.
The challenger is a former state representative who was supported by several top Republicans, including Gov. Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton, both of whom had targeted Kuempel due to the incumbent’s votes against Abbott’s school voucher plan and for his vote to impeach Paxton last year.
“I am grateful to the voters of HD-44 and for the support I’ve received from countless conservative champions and state leaders including President Donald Trump, Governor Greg Abbott, and Senator Ted Cruz,” said Schoolcraft.
“There is nothing more important tonight than the future of conservative values for our district and for Texas. I am looking forward to rolling up my sleeves and getting to work for the people of this district on closing the border, empowering parents, and protecting family values.”
Schoolcraft isn’t elected just yet, however. He will now face the sole Democrat candidate, Eric Norman, in the November general election.
Comments