A majority of Republican Primary runoff voters chose Bo French over Jim Wright as the party’s nominee for the Texas Railroad Commission.
Both men were the top vote-getters in the March Primary, but Wright underperformed with just 32.1 percent of the vote. French won 31.8 percent. With neither scoring a majority in the five-way race, both were thrust into the May 26 runoff.
Established in 1891, state law transitioned the Railroad Commission of Texas into a state agency with oil and gas oversight in 1917, with the last of its railroad oversight transferred to the Texas Department of Transportation in 2005. Currently, the Railroad Commission has primary regulatory jurisdiction and enforcement over the oil and natural gas industry and is responsible for both state and federal compliance.
Three elected commissioners oversee the agency. Each serves a six-year term, with one seat up every two years. The commissioners decide among themselves who will be commission chairman—a position currently held by outgoing commissioner Wright.
Wright first won election in 2020 and is finishing out his first term.
French, former chairman of the Tarrant County GOP, criticized Wright for what he called DEI initiatives inside the Railroad Commission and Wright’s past donations to Democrat officeholders.
Wright criticized French for comments on Islam and calls for mass deportations, saying the focus should be on the commission’s actual duties.
French will face Democrat nominee Jon Rosenthal and Libertarian candidate Arthur DiBianca in the November General Election.
