House District 19 includes Gillespie, Kendall, Blanco, and Burnet counties, as well as part of Travis County. Newly created, HD 19 is now located in Central Texas, just west of Austin, but was previously located in East Texas.
The previous HD 19 area was absorbed by other districts following State Rep. James White’s (R–Hillister) candidacy announcement for agriculture commissioner. White lost the bid for agriculture commissioner in the March primary.
The Republican primary runoff sees Ellen Troxclair facing off against Justin Berry, two former allies turned foes.
Justin Berry
An Austin policeman and small-business owner, Berry originally intended to challenge State Rep. Vicki Goodwin for House District 47 after an unsuccessful campaign as the Republican candidate for that seat in 2020. However, the district was redrawn to be more favorable to Democrat candidates during the redistricting process.
According to Transparency USA, Berry has received just over $130,000 in donations with less than $30,000 cash on hand currently. Berry’s top donors include the Protect and Serve PAC, local Austin business owners Brenda and Bob Woody, and the Austin Police Association (of which Berry is a former vice president).
Berry received the endorsement of Gov. Greg Abbott and multiple law enforcement associations. The American Federation of Teachers, the second-largest teachers union in America, also endorsed Berry.
Ellen Troxclair
A former Austin city councilwoman and small-business owner, Troxclair originally intended to run for Senate District 24. However, following redistricting, Troxclair no longer resided in the district and announced for HD 19.
Based on data from Transparency USA, Troxclair has raised just under half a million dollars, with $436,159 currently in cash on hand. Most donations have come from individuals, with the largest from Austin-based billionaire Joe Liemandt. Republican donors Stacy and Joel Hock, as well as Don Dyer, finish out Troxclair’s top three donors.
U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, Texas Right to Life, Texans for Lawsuit Reform, Texas Values Action, Young Conservatives of Texas, Texas Home School Coalition, and Gun Owners of America have all endorsed Troxclair. Troxclair has also signed the Texans for Vaccine Choice pledge to end vaccine mandates.
The Issues
Over the past several weeks, Texas Scorecard has been asking. runoff candidates for their stance on issues important to Republican voters.
Regarding Democrat’s chairing committees in the Texas House, Troxclair supports ending the practice, while Berry did not respond to the inquiry from Texas Scorecard.
On protecting women’s collegiate athletics from men pretending to be women, Troxclair announced her intention to immediately fill a bill to do just that if elected. Berry did not answer the question.
Troxclair supports the Texas Public Policy Foundation’s Lower Taxes, Better Texas plan to eliminate property taxes. Berry declined to provide a stance on the issue.
Protecting parental rights in education is an issue that Troxclair supports, whereas Berry did not answer.
Concerning calling the border crisis an invasion and acting as a state to address the invasion, Troxclair’s support is absolute. Berry declined to answer. However, Berry has publicly announced his support for amnesty for illegal aliens.
Troxclair announced her support for closing the loopholes in Texas obscenity laws that allow for pornographic materials in children’s schools. Berry declined to answer.
This week, Texas Scorecard questioned candidates on ending corporate welfare—taxpayer-funded tax breaks—to large corporations and allowing the free market to determine which businesses succeed in Texas. Berry declined to respond, while Troxclair said there are infinitely better ways to spend taxpayer dollars, such as on property tax relief.
Election Day
Less than three weeks away from Election Day, the May 24 runoff election will determine who will be sent to Austin to represent HD 19. Early voting begins on May 16.
