Morgan Simmons wins Area FFA

Two candidates have filed with the Texas Republican Party to fill the seat that state Sen. Drew Springer, R-Muenster, will vacate in 2024. Sen. Springer was the first incumbent to announce that he would not seek a second term as Olney’s state senator after a bruising fight over whether to vote to impeach Attorney General Ken Paxton. Sen. Springer faced heavy pressure from both sides, with Paxton’s supporters threatening to recruit a primary opponent for District 30. The seat has drawn several would-be candidates, who would face off in the GOP primary on March 5, 2024.

Carrie de Moor, an emergency room physician from Frisco, was the first to announce last month that she would run for Sen. Springer’s seat. Congressman Pat Fallon, R-Sherman, was next to announce his intention to recapture the seat he held for two years before being elected to Congress in 2020. Twenty-four hours after announcing his state Senate run, Congressman Fallon changed his mind and confirmed that he will seek reelection to Texas’ 4th Congressional District. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick endorsed Mr. Fallon’s return to the state Senate.

Most recently, Brent Hagenbach, the Denton County GOP Chairman and CEO owner of Titus Transport filed as a candidate for Senate District 30.

“We have a critical need for a qualified, conservative Republican to step up and represent the citizens of Senate District 30,” Mr. Hagenbuch said in a statement. He added that, like former President Donald Trump, he believes that “bringing a true business approach to government should be followed in Texas.”

“The Texas border, law and order, parents’ rights in schools, and a full-throttle on oil in Texas are just some of the tasks that would greatly benefit from a business approach,” he said. “My top priority will be the Texas border. Without question, public safety deserves the full attention of state government.”

Mr. Hagenbuch is an engineering graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, earned a master’s in civil engineering from Stanford University, and completed an MBA from UCLA. He was an associate at McKinsey, Director of Planning at Frito Lay, CEO of CompX International and President of Transport Industries.

In 2006 Hagenbuch founded Titus Transport and has built the trucking company to a $170 million dollar per year operation.

Hagenbuch describes himself as “a Christian who is strongly pro-life, pro-gun and pro-family.”

Mr. Hagenbuch and his wife have two children and three grandchildren.