WASHINGTON 鈥� In the Republican primary to succeed Rep. in Congress, a contest is brewing between the business-minded pragmatism the 14-term congresswoman was known for and the crusading cultural conservatism that has come to redefine the Republican Party.
Of the five Republicans and two Democrats who have stepped forward to replace Granger, Texas House Republican Caucus chair , R-Fort Worth, is the favorite of the district鈥檚 local political and business leaders. But another Republican, business owner John O鈥橲hea also of Fort Worth, has the backing of Attorney General Ken Paxton 鈥� whom he refers to as a close personal friend.
Paxton is on a tear to take down all of the Texas House Republicans who voted to impeach him this summer. Goldman was among those members, and it remains a major issue for O鈥橲hea, who is fiercely critical of how the impeachment was conducted.
Goldman may have a lead in fundraising and endorsements in the race. But in recent years parts of the district have shown increasing interest and support for more hard-line conservatives, such as the 2022 election of Tarrant County Judge Tim O鈥橦are, who won his primary over former Fort Worth Mayor Betsy Price after accusing her of not being conservative enough.
鈥淚 truly think that this election is one between the current direction we're heading, which to me appears to be full blown cultural neo-Marxism in an authoritarian manner, or we get back to our constitutional roots,鈥� O鈥橲hea said.
Goldman did not respond to multiple requests to be interviewed for this story.
A rare opening
Granger 鈥� who has not endorsed in the race to replace her and did not respond to numerous attempts to contact her 鈥� announced she will retire from Congress after this term, capping a career representing the district since 1997. She has been a formidable force in Washington, leading the Texas Republican delegation in the U.S. House as its most senior member, chairing the House Appropriations Committee and earning profound respect across the delegation and Congress for her willingness to work across the aisle.
She has been a fixture in the city, previously serving as mayor and securing millions of dollars for the local defense industry and public infrastructure.
With Congress growing increasingly divided and new members often using their office as a platform to gain social media attention, some of Fort Worth鈥檚 local leaders say they鈥檙e hoping to replace Granger with a serious lawmaker in her same mold.
As the first Republican woman from Texas in Congress, Granger 鈥渉ad every opportunity to be a talking head鈥� on cable news and create a name for herself, said Mattie Parker, the city鈥檚 mayor. Parker worked for Granger as her district director and campaign manager. 鈥淏ut it was very intentional. She chose not to do that. She was there to do the work on behalf of her district.鈥�
Parker is backing Goldman and said she鈥檚 confident about his prospects. He has built up strong relationships with key stakeholders in the city and is emulating the kind of seriousness Granger was known for, she said.
She also said he鈥檚 a proven conservative. He backed legislation to harden the border, lower property taxes and limit abortion access. He voted of Texas House Republicans in 2023.
鈥淗e will be a serious member of Congress that people will enjoy working with on both sides of the aisle,鈥� Parker said. 鈥淎nd he will also try to follow in the footsteps of Congressman Granger and the interests that are best for CD 12.鈥�
If O鈥橲hea won, he said he would take the office in a different direction than Granger on some of her biggest priorities. While Granger has been an ardent supporter of Ukraine, O鈥橲hea regrets the U.S. getting involved in the first place and hopes for a diplomatic solution that can free up military resources to counter China.
O鈥橲hea said he doesn鈥檛 see himself as a flamethrower, per se, but he does admire some of the biggest disruptors in the House Republican conference. He cites U.S. Rep. Chip Roy 鈥� a deeply principled, far-right congressman who isn鈥檛 afraid to 鈥� as one of his biggest inspirations, adding that he values 鈥減ursuing and trying to advocate the truth, regardless of the personal consequences.鈥�
He most closely aligns with the House Freedom Caucus and said he would seriously consider joining if invited.
O鈥橲hea said he respects a lot of the work Granger has done for the district, including its defense base and the Panther Island project, though he had misgivings about her son鈥檚 involvement. Granger鈥檚 son, JD Granger, spearheaded the development and flood control project, which received millions in federal funding 鈥� and scrutiny for the mother-son pair. JD Granger stepped down from the project in 2022.
Still, he could not stomach Granger鈥檚 votes to pass appropriations packages that continued to expand federal spending amid a ballooning national debt and her as House Speaker.
O鈥橲hea also remains a staunch Paxton defender. Though he admits Paxton is not perfect, he was vehemently opposed to the state House鈥檚 approach to impeachment, which he said was done in secret and went against the will of the voters. Paxton telling voters that Goldman whipped votes to impeach on the House floor.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 think you guys should promote this guy,鈥� Paxton said at a campaign event for O鈥橲hea.
The House 鈥渃onducted a secret investigation without witnesses under oath and spent taxpayer money in a star-chamber process more fitting the former Soviet Union than Texas. You better believe it鈥檚 an issue for me,鈥� O鈥橲hea said in a text message.
Other Republicans running in the primary include Army veteran Clint Dorris, business owner and engineer Shellie Gardner, and retiree Anne Henley. Dorris is running on his national security experience, including in the U.S. Space Force, to tackle issues such as the border and China, he told . Dorris did not respond to a request for an interview. Gardner said in a recent interview that she hopes to bring her business acumen to cut government spending. Henley does not have any public campaign presence online.
None of them have the levels of backing Goldman and O鈥橲hea have.
Goldman is a close ally of Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan and has a long list of endorsements, including former Gov. Rick Perry and all of the district鈥檚 Republican state senators.
He has extensive experience in fundraising, having worked for years on Republican campaigns. Like Granger, Goldman enjoys the support of the Fort Worth business community, which his family has been a part of running a gourmet food and wine store. His campaign announced raising over $500,000 in just over two weeks after officially launching. He raised nearly $1.1 million in 2023, according to FEC filings.
O鈥橲hea, meanwhile, has a distaste for the 鈥渞uling class of professional politicians鈥� and could benefit from grassroots conservatives responsible for recent victories by candidates unafraid to dig into the cultural right wing.
O鈥橲hea said he has raised about $300,000 as of mid-January, though that was before a major fundraiser with Paxton. He started his campaign much earlier, fundraising in April, though he officially
A changing district
The 12th Congressional District includes the western half of Tarrant County, including the the core of downtown Fort Worth, as well as a large share of rural Parker County. It鈥檚 a , home to Lockheed Martin Aeronautics and Fort Worth鈥檚 military base. It also contains Air Force Plant 4, where the F-35 fighter jet is manufactured.
As the highest ranking Republican on the Appropriations committee, Granger routinely fought for the city鈥檚 defense interests. She also clung to an older generation of Republicans who believed in robust investment in U.S. defense and allies overseas. Even as House Republicans began to sour on the war in Ukraine, she was a sustained proponent for helping the cause with U.S.-made military aid.
U.S. Rep. Marc Veasey, D-Fort Worth, who worked across the aisle with Granger on district infrastructure projects said he鈥檚 worried her successor could be more interested in partisan battles.
鈥淜ay put such an emphasis on making sure that we were taken care of locally. And I'm just afraid that the person that's going to succeed her in this heavily Republican seat is going to be more Hannity, and less, you know, four, five, eight and 11,鈥� Veasey said, referring to the city鈥檚 local news stations.
But that kind of bipartisanship is what opened Granger to a challenge from the right in 2020. Chris Putnam, who led a right-flank campaign against Granger in that year鈥檚 primary, cited Granger鈥檚 tepidness on former President Donald Trump鈥檚 border agenda as a reason he was recruited to run. That primary race ended up attracting national attention, with Trump and then-House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy helping Granger win reelection. She won that primary by over 15 points.
O鈥橲hea started fundraising before Granger announced her retirement, essentially setting up a redo of 2020. Putnam warned that the district is shifting, and candidates can鈥檛 rest on their bonafides with Fort Worth鈥檚 city center. Parker County has experienced explosive growth in recent years, adding more voters backing the right flank of the party.
The district has also signaled its support for more hardline conservative candidates recently. The traditionally purple Tarrant County elected O鈥橦are as county judge in 2022. O鈥橦are was previously the county Republican Party鈥檚 chairman and supported Putnam in the 2020 primary. O鈥橦are was thrust into the national spotlight over a decade ago as Farmers Branch mayor for his efforts to target undocumented immigrants, including banning landlords from renting to them. The move was deemed unconstitutional by a federal court.
鈥淧eople want candidates and officeholders to be people that understand, hey, there's a real battle going on for the heart and soul of our country,鈥� O鈥橦are said in a recent interview. 鈥淎 lot of the blame for some of the situations we find ourselves in is our weak Republicans.鈥�
But there are some major differences from 2020. Club for Growth, one of the largest Republican super PACs who has also supported Sen. Ted Cruz, in that cycle but has remained muted in this year鈥檚 primary (the group declined to comment on this race). Trump had interest in endorsing incumbents like Granger to curry favor with old-guard Republicans following his impeachment.
Still, Putnam acknowledges that money will be the biggest indicator of the race. He did not endorse anyone this cycle but said with Goldman鈥檚 fundraising prowess, the race was essentially his to lose.
鈥淩emember, the district is not Tarrant County,鈥� Putnam said. 鈥淚n every town, state and in DC, there's two Republican parties. Well, that's the truth here, too.鈥�
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