# Flores, Zaffirini Draw Challengers and Other News for August 23 | USLege

> Texas campaign news for August 23, 2019: Flores and Zaffirini face new challengers, HD148 special election updates, and Republican Caucus developments.

Canonical: https://www.uslege.ai/news/flores-zaffirini-draw-challengers-and-other-news-for-august-23

---

[News](/news)/[News](/news)

Archive

# Flores, Zaffirini Draw Challengers and Other News for August 23

TXElects August 23, 2019

This article is preserved from the TXElects archive. For current coverage, read [The Political Spotlight](/newsletters).

**SD19**: San Antonio attorney Xochil Pena Rodriguez established a campaign committee for a potential challenge of Sen. Pete Flores (R-Pleasanton) as a Democrat.

**SD21**: Seguin pastor Frank Pomeroy established a campaign committee for a potential challenge of Sen. Judith Zaffirini (D-Laredo) as a Republican. Pomeroy is the pastor at First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, site of a 2017 mass shooting in which more than two dozen people, including Pomeroy’s daughter Annabelle, were killed.

**HD9**: Rep. Chris Paddie (R-Marshall) announced he would seek re-election to a fifth term.

**HD64**: Rep. Lynn Stucky (R-Sanger) has drawn a primary challenger in Denton financial advisor James Trombley. We previously reported Trombley had established a campaign committee, but we could not identify him at the time. Appraisal district records indicate Trombley has a homestead exemption applied to a home in Frisco, which is outside the district. State law requires representatives to have been a resident of the district for at least one year prior to their election, which would be November 3.

**HD66**: Plano resident Aimee Garza Lopez established a campaign committee for a potential challenge of Rep. Matt Shaheen (R-Plano). We were unable to identify her conclusively.

**HD83**: Gov. Greg Abbott (R) endorsed Rep. Dustin Burrows (R-Lubbock) for re-election less than a week after Burrows resigned as Republican Caucus chair.

**HD106**: Savannah activist Jennifer Skidonenko established a campaign committee for a potential challenge of Rep. Jared Patterson (R-Frisco) as a Democrat. Skidonenko is a volunteer with the Texas chapter of Moms Demand Action, a national group which advocates for public safety measures to combat gun violence.

**HD114**: Gov. Greg Abbott (R) endorsed Republican challenger Luisa del Rosal over Rep. John Turner (D-Dallas).

**HD148 special:** Houston physician Terah Isaacson established a campaign committee for a potential run for the seat being vacated by Rep. Jessica Farrar (D-Houston) as a Democrat.

Houston resident Lui LaRotta established a campaign committee for the race as a Republican. LaRotta chairs the Houston area chapter of the Republican Liberty Caucus.

**Republican Caucus**: Thirty members of the House Republican Caucus signed a letter to Rep. Stephanie Klick (R-Fort Worth), the caucus chair, requesting an in-person meeting to elect a new vice chair. The signatories included all 10 members identified by Empower Texans CEO Michael Quinn Sullivan as being acceptable for his group to target in the primary during a June meeting with Speaker Dennis Bonnen (R-Angleton) and Rep. Dustin Burrows (R-Lubbock), the former caucus chair.

**CD23 open**: San Antonio resident Ben Van Winkle established a campaign committee for a potential run for the seat being vacated by U.S. Rep. Will Hurd (R-San Antonio) as a Republican.

**Bexar Co**.: Kevin Wolff, the lone Republican on the Bexar Co. Commissioners Court, announced he would not seek re-election. He has been a commissioner since 2008.

**Joshua**: Mayor Kenny Robinson resigned just three months into his term, citing stress caused by disagreement with other city leaders over issues of growth and density. Robinson had campaigned on a platform of preserving “country living.”

_©2019 Texas Election Source LLC_

## More from _News._

[TXBIZNEWS Walmart Synthetic Dyes Elimination News October 8, 2025](/news/txbiznews-walmart-u-s-moves-to-eliminate-synthetic-dyes-across-all-private) [TXBIZNEWS Texas Cyber Command Chief Appointed: New Initiatives October 2, 2025](/news/txbiznews-icymi-governor-abbott-appoints-first-texas-cyber-command-chief) [TXBIZNEWS Rice's Arc: Boosting Houston Innovation Corridor September 30, 2025](/news/txbiznews-rice-universitys-arc-to-boost-houston-innovation-corridor)

While you're here

## The platform behind the _coverage._

USLege is the AI legislative intelligence platform for all 50 states plus federal: bill tracking, live hearing video, full transcripts, and cited AI answers.

[Book a demo](/demo)