This week, President Donald Trump endorsed Beth Van Duyne in the contested Republican primary for the 24th Congressional District in North Texas.
The former Irving mayor and Trump administration official is in a five-way primary race for the open seat being vacated by retiring Republican incumbent Kenny Marchant.
Trump tweeted his endorsement on Wednesday:
.@BethVanDuyne did Great things as Mayor of Irving, Texas, with my Administration. She is a Strong Conservative who supports Border Security, Loves our Military, Vets, and supports your #2A. Beth has my Full Endorsement for Congress! https://t.co/0cUYANBzj0
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 12, 2020
As mayor of Irving from 2011 to 2017, Van Duyne reined in out-of-control city spending and property taxes and implemented policies to increase transparency and accountability.
In May 2017, Trump appointed Van Duyne to serve as regional administrator for the Fort Worth office of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. She left that position in August of last year to run for Congress.
Since then, she has significantly outraised her primary opponents. The latest campaign finance reports show Van Duyne receiving $590,000 in contributions as of December 31.
Also on the GOP primary ballot are Sunny Chaparala, a Dallas-area realtor and first-generation immigrant from India (the second-highest fundraiser at $326,000); David Fegan, a Colleyville activist who works in commercial real estate; Jeron Liverman, a real estate investor from Bedford; and Desi Maes, a 20-year Army veteran and businessman.
All five Republican candidates participated in two recent forums held in Coppell and Grapevine.
Seven candidates are competing in the Democrat primary for a spot on the November ballot. Both primaries are likely to result in runoffs.
Van Duyne is one of three Texas Republicans endorsed by Trump on Wednesday who are in contested congressional primaries without GOP incumbents.
Early voting in the March 3 primary starts February 18.
