With the House District 93 seat vacated by current State Rep. Matt Krause (R–Haslet), former Southlake Mayor Laura Hill and citizen activist Nate Schatzline will compete in the May runoff election for the privilege to represent the district. 

Both candidates met this week at a forum hosted by the Fort Worth Republican Women.

Hill focused largely on fiscal policy issues, championing “local control” as a means of fighting big government. 

Hill described Southlake as the conservative model for city government. She discussed her record of increasing law enforcement spending while also proclaiming her support for term limits—which ended her time as mayor—as necessary for a healthy government. She also claimed she cut the tax rate for Southlake citizens, though she acknowledged rates were not cut below the “no new revenue” rate, leading to increased revenue for the city. Hill even acknowledged going to the state Capitol to testify on multiple occasions against property tax reform legislation because she was concerned about “unintended consequences” and “local control.”

Meanwhile, Schatzline, who works for the anti-human trafficking organization The Justice Reform, focused on border security, personal liberties, and education. 

“This is Texas, and we’re gonna lead the way,” said Schatzline, intent on securing the border without waiting for the federal government because “we are seeing absolutely horrific things go on in our southern border right now.”

Also proclaiming his support for religious liberties and economic freedom, Schatzline said, “Our small businesses should never shut down again. It is time for our mandates to be burned.” Schatzline later called for an end to vaccine mandates in businesses. 

An advocate of school choice and education freedom, Schatzline proclaimed that “we have to take a stand in our schools” and “we have to get power back in the hands of parents.” 

According to Schatzline, “It’s one of the things that I’m fighting for with all of my heart, and I can’t wait to work with other legislators to write bills that are going to fight for that education freedom.”

The national fight against pornographic materials, racist curricula, and woke ideology in schools is also occurring in Texas.    

“I have been through the war in Southlake, Texas, with school districts,” Hill explained. “You want to talk about what goes on in the school district? Try being on call with a bunch of teenagers and Democratic lawyers telling you that you had better take school resource officers out of every single campus. Why? Because it’s giving the kids PTSD. And imagine my response. My first response is, ‘Go to hell.’ My second response was, ‘Over my dead body.’ These are kids. They are not going to tell us what the rules are going to be. I will go to Austin with that fight.”

Schatzline’s campaign, however, has taken aim at Hill for backing school board candidates who have supported critical race theory.

The runoff election is slated for May 24. 

The full candidate forum can be viewed here.

Sydnie Henry

A born and bred Texan, Sydnie serves as the Managing Editor for Texas Scorecard. She graduated from Patrick Henry College with a B.A. in Government and is utilizing her research and writing skills to spread truth to Texans.

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