Republican David Cook and Democrat Amy Martinez-Salas are vying for the vacant Texas Senate District 22 seat in a special election.
Cook, the District 96 state representative who also served as Mansfield mayor, won the Republican primary against opponents Jon Gimble and Rena Schroeder.
Martinez-Salas, an Arlington mother who works as a legal assistant and is a political newcomer, was unopposed in the Democratic primary.
Gov. Greg Abbott ordered the special election to replace former Sen. Brian Birdwell, who resigned to take an appointment with the Pentagon. He serves as assistant secretary of war for sustainment after his confirmation by the U.S. Senate in May. President Donald Trump calls the Department of Defense the Department of War, but Congress must amend such a title for it to be legal.
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Of the five Texas Senate seats that touch Tarrant County, only two are on the ballot: Districts 22 and 9. District 9 covers the majority of Tarrant and drew national attention during a special election and runoff to fill the vacant seat earlier this year.
District 22, which is spread across Central and North Texas, includes a portion of Tarrant County from Euless south to Mansfield.
Cook, managing partner of Harris Cook LLP law firm, said his experience as a state legislator and mayor gives him an advantage.
“My service as Mansfield mayor and three terms in the Texas House have prepared me to be effective on day one, as state senator for Senate District 22,” Cook said in an email to the Fort Worth Report. “As a board-certified family-law attorney, I bring decades of expertise as a mediator, with the ability to build relationships, gain consensus, and deliver results.”
Martinez-Salas said she is a leader in life.
“I’m a mother,” she said in an email to the Report. “I lead a household. I am a leader.”
If elected to the state Senate, Cook said his top priorities include property tax relief, cutting wasteful spending, securing the Texas border with Mexico and making the state affordable for Texans.
Martinez-Salas said she would focus on sustainable water and infrastructure, healthcare accessibility and public education.
“My top priority is securing the Texas Water Fund to modernize aging infrastructure and prevent rural wells from going dry,” she said. “I will fight for a seat at the table to ensure rural counties get their fair share of state resources.
Cook said data centers are the top concern that Texans face because of energy and water demands.
“The proliferation of data centers in rural areas is the biggest challenge facing Senate District 22,” Cook said. “In February I committed to filing legislation next session that will require data centers to address their energy and water demands, provide for meaningful public input, and transparent permitting that protects local property owners and communities.”
Cook said he would pursue a statewide framework that gives affected communities meaningful input on data centers.
“Data centers should transparently report resource use, bring their own power, conserve water through closed-loop systems and other technologies, and not shift utility costs onto local ratepayers,” Cook said.
Martinez-Salas said residents are concerned about the impact of water usage across the state.
“The water crisis is the most critical life-or-death issue facing the families and farmers of District 22,” Martinez-Salas said. “I will move past the wait-and-see approach to aggressively secure the water and infrastructure needed for our survival.”
Cook said he wants to bring property tax relief to residents.
“For too long, promised tax relief has been gobbled up by higher appraisals and wasteful government spending,” he said. “I will fight for lasting property tax relief that actually puts money back in our pockets. I’ve done it before and I will do it again. I co-authored and passed the largest property tax cut in Texas history.”
Martinez-Salas said property tax relief is essential to keeping homeownership affordable for working families and seniors on fixed incomes.
“However, any relief must be balanced with our obligation to fully fund public schools and essential local services that our communities rely on every day,” she said.
Martinez-Salas said she is committed to improving healthcare access.
“Drawing on my nursing background, I aim to bridge the health care gap in rural Texas by increasing access support,” she said. “I believe your ZIP code should never determine the quality of care your family receives.”
Cook said he would fight for lower healthcare costs through price transparency, competition and patient choice.
“I have supported legislation related to itemized medical bills, lower-cost prescription drugs and investments in mental health capacity,” he said.
On education, Martinez-Salas said she would scrutinize policies to determine if “it truly makes life better for our families.”
“My top priorities are eliminating school vouchers that drain funding from our rural communities and ending the high-stakes standardized testing that limits authentic instruction,” Martinez-Salas said. “I will also champion expanded accommodations for students with disabilities to ensure every child has the support they need to thrive.”
Cook said he would support funding for increased teacher pay, special education, school safety and core classroom needs “while giving teachers authority to maintain discipline and parents the power to choose the best education for their children.”
Affordable housing is a challenge many Texans face, the candidates said.
To help, Cook said he supports policies that will fast track homebuilding such as cutting red tape and accelerating permit and inspection approvals.
Martinez-Salas said using strategic tax incentives to jump-start the construction of workforce housing is needed.
“By lowering the tax burden on families and incentivizing smart growth, we can ensure District 22 remains a place where people can both afford to live and afford to stay,” she said.
On banning hemp products, Cook said he supports regulating products with intoxicating levels of THC, the main psychoactive ingredient in cannabis.
Martinez-Salas said she would advocate for a robust regulatory framework that prioritizes patient access and consumer safety on cannabis products.
“Medical experts and major health organizations, including the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine have found substantial evidence that THC is effective in treating chronic pain, chemotherapy-induced nausea, and multiple sclerosis,” she said.
Neither Cook nor Martinez-Salas support legalizing casino gambling in Texas.
“I don’t support the legalization of casinos in Texas because the projected social costs, including increased crime and addiction, far outweigh any potential tax revenue,” Martinez-Salas said.
When it comes to transportation, Cook said he supports high-performing rail projects like the Heartland Flyer, a daily Fort Worth to Oklahoma City passenger train. However, he does not support proposed high-speed rail projects “due to its negative impact to our farming and ranching families through eminent domain.”
Martinez-Salas said she supports high-speed rail projects “only if it respects the property rights of rural landowners and provides clear economic benefits to the communities it passes through.”
“While public transit is vital for our growing state, it must not come at the expense of our rural heritage or lead to the further neglect of our local infrastructure and water needs,” she said.
Cook and Martinez-Salas both said bipartisan collaboration is needed to advance Texas policies.
“I will continue to work across the aisle to the benefit of my constituents without compromising my core principles,” Cook said.
“By finding common ground on nonpartisan lifeline issues like water security and rural hospital access, I believe we can deliver real results for Texas families that transcend party labels,” Martinez-Salas said.
Both candidates have no criminal convictions in Texas or other states, they said.
Cook said he has never filed for bankruptcy.
Martinez-Salas said she filed for bankruptcy in 2017.
“I was one of the people who got scammed by Corinthian Colleges and it landed me in a position where I was in need and the IRS took what I had,” she said.
Cook said his largest political donors are Texans for Lawsuit Reform PAC, Texas REALTORS PAC, Ms. Kathleen Long, A&M PAC and Texas Farm Bureau AGFUND.
From Feb. 22 to June 30, Cook received $193,527.08 in contributions and spent $445,281.67. He has 141,731.58 in cash on hand, according to a filing with the Texas Ethics Commission.
Martinez-Salas did not list any major donors.
From Feb. 22 to June 30, Martinez-Salas received $2,720.12 in contributions and spent $1,437.78. She has $1,654.02 in cash on hand, according to her campaign filing.
Eric E. Garcia is senior business reporter at the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at eric.garcia@fortworthreport.org.
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This article first appeared on Fort Worth Report and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
