Texas House District 63 spans a stretch of Denton County that includes parts of Fort Worth, Flower Mound, Lewisville and Carrollton. The district, redrawn in 2021, is more competitive today than its previous iteration.
The 2024 race pits two familiar faces: the incumbent, Republican Ben Bumgarner, and Democrat Michelle Beckley, a former state representative. Neither one is a good choice in this politically mixed district, and so we offer no recommendation.
Bumgarner won the seat in 2022. The former Flower Mound town council member expressed extreme views at the time, such as wanting to eliminate property taxes. He appears to have moderated that position, stating on his website that he wants to “lower taxes.” He gets credit for passing a bill to create wellness programs for peace officers and one that makes it easier to crack down on illegal spas.
But Bumgarner’s tone is far from bipartisan. He says on his website he won’t let “anyone’s radical agenda threaten our children’s future,” whatever that means. We don’t know his views on important policy matters because he didn’t fill out our Voter Guide or attend our candidate interview.
Beckley was drawn out of her seat in House District 65 during the last round of redistricting. She told us she is running for increased funding for public schools, an issue with consensus across party lines. She also wants a return to the Roe vs. Wade standard on abortion, though she said she would support incremental improvements to Texas’ abortion ban, such as exceptions for victims of rape and incest.
But we failed to hear Beckley make a broader case for how she would appeal to conservative voters. During her tenure in the state Legislature, she was rated one of its most liberal members. And she failed to distinguish herself in policy debates or legislative achievements.
District 65 needs a candidate with cross-party appeal. It doesn’t have one this fall.
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