Brent Hagenbuch won Tuesday’s Republican primary runoff election for the open Texas Senate District 30 seat over opponent Jace Yarborough, but his eligibility to represent the district remains in question.
Hagenbuch resigned as chairman of the Denton County Republican Party to run for the state senate seat when State Sen. Drew Springer (R–Muenster) announced he would not seek re-election.
He received a flood of high-profile endorsements from outside the district, starting with Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and other senators represented by his political consultant Allen Blakemore (who also represents Hagenbuch), as well as Donald Trump (whose Texas campaign Patrick chairs) and other politicians.
But district residents and other GOP primary candidates said Hagenbuch was not eligible to run for the seat because he didn’t reside in the district.
Both Yarbrough and primary candidate Carrie de Moor, who did not make the runoff, challenged Hagenbush’s eligibility in court.
They cited Hagenbuch’s “tangled web of lies” in claiming to live at an address within SD 30 that turned out to be his then-unfinished office space.
On Saturday, Yarbrough announced that he submitted an administrative challenge to newly elected Republican Party of Texas Chairman Abraham George asking him to declare Hagenbuch ineligible.
“Texas Election Code Section 145.003 gives the state chairman power to fulfill his duty to ensure election integrity by declaring ineligible candidates who do not meet residency requirements as defined by law,” Yarbrough wrote.
Tuesday night, Yarbrough conceded, but said he plans to “keep fighting for the conservative values our state holds dear” and told his supporters to “stay tuned for what comes next.”
If Hagenbuch is declared ineligible, Republican precinct chairs within the Senate District 30 will select a new candidate to run in the November general election.
Assuming he maintains his eligibility status, Hagenbuch will face Democrat Dale Frey in the November general election.
SD 30 includes 11 counties: Archer, Clay, Cooke, Grayson, Jack, Montague, Young, and parts of Collin, Denton, Parker, and Wichita.
