LUFKIN — In what appears to be one of the largest donations in a Texas legislative primary race this election cycle, a first-time candidate running for state Senate received nearly $2 million from a conservative East Texas businessman with a background in technology hardware.
James Moyer, a Sabine County resident, has almost single-handedly funded Rhonda Ward’s campaign for the state Senate seat that represents East Texas cities such as Nacogdoches, Orange, and Palestine.
The seat was long held by Sen. Robert Nichols, a Jacksonville Republican who announced his retirement last June. State Rep. Trent Ashby, a Lufkin Republican who worked closely with Nichols in Austin and who is Nichols’ preferred successor, announced his intentions to run for the seat on the same day.
