A clash between two Republicans in a North Texas state senate race ended in defeat for Shelley Luther, who had called coronavirus-related restrictions on businesses “tyrannical” and derided the governor and her opponent State Rep. Drew Springer as creatures of the Austin “swamp.”
The senate runoff election in Senate District 30 follows a September special election that was triggered by the departure of Sen. Pat Fallon, who ascended to a U.S. House seat when it was vacated in August.
Luther, a hair stylist, went to jail in May for contempt of court for defying a court order to close her salon in compliance with local and state pandemic regulations. Had she done so, she would have been allowed to reopen a week later when other hair salons reopened.
She spent a night in jail before the Texas Supreme Court ordered her released. The incident prompted Governor Abbott to amend his pandemic orders to prevent the jailing of violators.
As a senate candidate, Luther ran as a firebrand outsider known principally for her singular act of defiance during the early phase of the pandemic. She had little if any prior political experience and she even drew attacks for having previously voted in Democratic primaries.
Springer, who hails from the tiny town of Muenster near the Oklahoma border, ran on his eight years of experience in the state legislature, his business credentials, and a platform that promised to reduce property taxes, “fully fund” law enforcement, and bolster border security.
Springer also touted his 2019 vote to increase teacher pay, a bipartisan measure that was part of a broader school funding package.
According to the Secretary of State’s website, Springer won 32,599 votes in the December 19 runoff, or 56.5%, compared to Luther’s 25,146 votes, or 43.5.%. The district (SD-30) covers both rural parts of North Texas as well as outlying suburbs of Dallas-Fort Worth.
In mailers, Springer had attacked Luther as irresponsible, saying she “defied lockdown orders despite receiving a cease and desist order,” “ingores science and endangers others,” and “hosts massive rallies against CDC Guidelines” — though Springer himself also held campaign events where he and many of his supporters went unmasked.
Luther had countered that Springer was guilty of spreading “Covid hysteria,” and she called him a RINO, or “Republican in Name Only.” Her campaign gained the support of Tim Dunn, a Midland oilman known for supporting Empower Texans, a Libertarian leaning group. Dunn loaned $1 million to Luther’s campaign before the September special election, then another $700,000 as a direct contribution during the runoff campaign.
Springer drew endorsements from the Texas Cattle Feeders and Cattle Raisers associations, Texas Farm Bureau, Texas Municipal Police Association, Texas Brewers Guild, Governor Greg Abbott, and the National Rifle Association. Abbott’s campaign fund poured hundreds of thousands of dollars into the SD-30 race in a bid to help Springer secure his win.
The outgoing Speaker of the Texas House, Dennis Bonnen, also endorsed Springer. He celebrated his win in a statement December 20, saying, “Your well-deserved victory is a huge triumph over those who seek to destroy the Republican Party and the values of statesmanship, collaboration, and decency held dear by the Texas Legislature.”
Springer himself said, “I will fight to ensure Texas remains the premier place in the nation to do business, so we can unleash the private sector to create jobs and move us out of this recession.”
For her part, Luther congratulated Springer briefly in a statement on Facebook, while also slamming his financial supporters, saying, “Nine months ago, I was just a small business owner with zero political experience. Then Governor Abbott and some Democrats in Dallas put me in jail for opening my salon. Those same politicians spent nearly three million dollars, most of which unfortunately got spent on lies about me in an effort to stop our movement.”
She added defiantly, “What they don’t know is that it only emboldens me more. I won’t back down, and I’m not going anywhere.”
Before joining the legislature, Springer spent 15 years as an accountant and company president for a railcar company, then joined his father’s financial services company, specializing in agricultural managed futures for over a decade.
Currently he’s a senior vice president at Springer Financial Services, based in Weatherford.
