State Rep. Lyle Larson (R–San Antonio), who elected not to run for re-election to his Bexar County seat, has long been considered the most liberal Republican in the Texas House, consistently receiving low rankings from the Young Conservatives of Texas, Texas Right to Life, and Texans for Fiscal Responsibility.
Campaign finance donations reveal liberal Republicans could be attempting to hold the seat in the upcoming election.
Four Republican candidates are currently battling it out in the primary for the House District 122 seat—Mark Cuthbert, a banking executive and Air Force veteran; Mark Dorazio, former Bexar County GOP chairman and State Republican Executive Committeeman; businessman Adam Blanchard; and former San Antonio City Councilwoman Elisa Chan.
Adam Blanchard is currently under scrutiny for some of his past political donations and forcing Republican voters to question if he will be another “Liberal Lyle,” as Gov. Greg Abbott once called the current officeholder.
In July of 2021, Blanchard donated $2,500 to far-left Democrat State Rep. Ray Lopez and even hosted a fundraiser for him just before quorum-busting Lopez fled the state with fellow Texas Democrats to avoid passing an election integrity bill.
Lopez also walked out of the Capitol in May on the second-to-last day of the regular session to break quorum for the election integrity bill, begging the question of whether Blanchard truly supports election integrity, as his campaign website claims.
In the past two years, Blanchard has also donated to House Speaker Dade Phelan, Gov. Greg Abbott, and moderate Republican State Reps. Steve Allison (R–San Antonio), John Lujan (R–San Antonio), and Jeff Leach (R–Allen). In 2012, Blanchard also donated to State Sen. Kel Seliger (R–Amarillo), who is widely considered to be the most liberal Republican in the state Senate.
The pro-amnesty LIBRE Initiative has also thrown its support behind Blanchard, despite Blanchard’s campaign website stating, “[T]hose immigrating to the United States need to follow the rules and come here the right way, legally.”
Though some of the LIBRE Initiative’s endorsees have rejected the group’s support, Blanchard has so far remained silent.
As of publishing, Blanchard’s campaign has not responded to Texas Scorecard’s request for comment.
Republican Elisa Chan, running for the same seat, also has an interesting giving history that includes a $500 donation to Hillary Clinton in 2006. However, Chan’s donations have become increasingly conservative over the years, with funds going to U.S. Reps. Chip Roy, Troy Nehls, and Tony Gonzales.
