Here are the Democratic primary candidates for Texas Congressional District 25
Two Democrats are on the primary ballot for Texas Congressional District 25. The winner will advance to November to challenge Republican Roger Williams.
Here are the Democrats’ responses to the Star-Telegram’s candidate questionnaire, in the order they’ll appear on your ballot.
William Marks
Age (as of March 3): 51
Campaign website: www.WilliamMarks.com
Best way for voters to reach you: email William@WilliamMarks.com
Occupation: Veteran
Education: U.S. Naval Academy (Bachelor’s Degree), SDSU (Master’s Degree)
Have you run for elected office before? No
Please list the highlights of your civic involvement/activism in Dallas County and Tarrant County.
Only candidate to personally visit all 13 counties of TX-25 during this campaign; Volunteer with Tarrant Area Food Bank, Member of Tarrant County Young Democrats; Founded Operation Caged Bird, a coalition of 1,200 people who defeated a Trump book ban at the U.S. Naval Academy.
Have you ever been arrested, charged with a crime or otherwise been part of a criminal proceeding? No
Have you been involved in a civil lawsuit or bankruptcy proceeding? No
Who are your top three campaign contributors?
Nelson Jones (Navy veteran), Ricardo Rubiano (Navy veteran), Robert White (Arlington resident)
Why are you seeking this office?
I believe there is a better future ahead of us, as long as we fight for it.
I grew up in poverty, moving six times before the age of 15. I see people struggling every day. Hard working Texans just like you. You deserve to put food on the table, you deserve quality healthcare, affordable electricity, and your children deserve top public schools. We can solve affordability problems by making billionaires and corporations pay what they owe.
I’m fighting for my family, for my children, and for all Texans who work hard and deserve a better life. I gave 22 years of my life to this country ... and I’m not going to stop now.
If elected, what would your top 3 policy priorities be?
1) Make life affordable by cutting corporate welfare and making billionaires pay their fair share - then investing those funds to increase your wages and benefits.
2) Expand healthcare for all by removing the billion-dollar corporate middlemen who profit by denying you care and vital services.
3) Bring ethics back to Congress by banning Congressional stock trading, overturning Citizens United and political dark money, ending gerrymandering, and fighting for due process and a legal path to citizenship.
How will you measure your success as a member of Congress?
I will ask voters three questions:
1) Do you believe I am a person of honor, integrity, and a person you can trust?
2) Are you and your family better off since I was elected?
3) Do you feel I’m working in YOUR best interests ... not corporations’ best interests.
Why should voters choose you over your opponents?
I’m giving people someone to vote FOR. I’m giving them someone to believe in again.
I led a briefing team for United Nations Security Council Ambassadors on Middle East intelligence; I led a briefing team for the Vice President on North Korean intelligence; I rolled out a $160 billion budget from the Pentagon; and I received a MacArthur Foundation/United Way Courage Project Award for founding Operation Caged Bird - a coalition of 1,200 people who defeated a Trump book ban.
I’m running on my 22-year career record of service and achievement, built on a foundation or integrity and ethics.
What is the biggest challenge facing Congress? How would you address it if elected?
The political system is broken by illegal gerrymandering, corrupt Citizen’s United funding, corporate lobbyist influence, stock trading, and voter suppression. On Day 1 I will fight to end these practices and give power back to the voters.
I will ensure Congress takes back its power of checks and balances on the presidency - holding Stephen Miller, Kristi Noem, Pam Bondi, Pete Hegseth, Karoline Leavitt, and all others accountable for their actions.
What is the number one challenge your constituents are facing, and how do you plan to resolve it?
Billionaires are getting richer while the working class is suffering. I will end corporate welfare and ensure billionaires pay what they owe, and then invest in rebuilding the working class with better jobs, better wages, improved healthcare, and affordable groceries and housing.
How would you interact and work with members of the opposite party? Are there specific policy ideas where you see opportunities for bipartisanship?
Things we can ALL agree on:
- Gerrymandering is suppressing your voice in politics. We must end it immediately and reset maps so everyone has an equal vote.
- The healthcare system is broken because billion-dollar corporations would rather make a profit than support you and your doctor.
- Billionaires are not paying what they owe. They should pay their fair share like everyone else.
- Corporate welfare is out of control. Corporations are not people - billion-dollar corporations should pay higher wages, cover health care costs, reinvest in their employees, and pay taxes just like you and me.
How would you approach foreign policy as a member of Congress?
As a 22-year combat veteran I know that unilateral use of force by the President only gets us into endless wars. Congress must check the power of the President in using military power. We must stand STRONG against Russia, find a peaceful two-state solution in the Middle East, and PREVENT wars instead of starting them.
What steps, if any, should Congress take regarding artificial intelligence, including regulation and/or safeguards?
AI must be regulated immediately before deepfakes replicate your online identity and you lose control of your image and digital likeness. It must be regulated to ensure that what you are watching is not an AI fake.
What should be prioritized in federal spending and what, if anything, do you believe should receive less budget allocations?
INCREASE: Improve and expand healthcare, lower drug prices, incentivize starter home building, fully fund public schools, add more social services to local governments.
DECREASE: ICE funding, corporate welfare, private school vouchers, wasteful military spending by politicians looking to gouge government funds.
What should Congress do to address healthcare?
We must fix the broken healthcare system that allows billion dollar middlemen corporations to overrule your doctor and make huge profits by denying you care. We will then expand healthcare coverage for all and lower the cost of drug prices. I will also ensure the government doesn’t interfere with a woman’s healthcare decision.
How do you plan to ensure affordability for Texans in the day-to-day as well as in the housing market?
I will bring down the cost of living by breaking up food monopolies that control 70-80% of the grocery market and drive up costs by suppressing competition (Did you know most things in a grocery store are made by just a few companies). I will bring down the cost of housing by incentivizing affordable home building, removing costly tariffs, decreasing property taxes for senior citizens, fixing broken zoning laws, and cutting red tape slowing down home builders.
What should Congress do, if anything, to address security along the U.S.-Mexico border and immigration policy?
I will fix the broken immigration system to reward those who work hard by giving them a clear path to citizenship. I will prosecute anyone convicted of an actual crime, but they will be treated fairly, humanely, and with due process. I will immediately get ICE under control and out of your neighborhood. No more masks, no more paramilitary raids.
Dione Sims
Age (as of March 3): 57
Campaign website: www.dionesimsforcongress.com
Best way for voters to reach you: info@dionesimsforcongress.com
Occupation: Nonprofit Founder / CEO
Education: BBA Information Systems from Texas Wesleyan University
Have you run for elected office before? No
Please list the highlights of your civic involvement/activism in Dallas County and Tarrant County.
For over 25 years I have focused on education, youth opportunity, and strengthening working families though Unity Unlimited, Inc. a Fort Worth-based nonprofit I founded. Since 2015, I have co-produced the Annual Juneteenth Fort Worth Celebration with my grandmother, Dr. Opal Lee, helping grow it into a major civic and cultural event.
I engineered the Opal’s Walk national campaign that helped make Juneteenth a federal holiday, and attended the White House bill signing. Locally, I sponsor Opal’s Farm to address food insecurity and provide agricultural training that builds long-term community sustainability. I have also served in civic leadership, including as past president of the Fort Worth Association of Federated Women’s Clubs and chaplain of the Ethel Ransom Humanitarian and Cultural Club.
Have you ever been arrested, charged with a crime or otherwise been part of a criminal proceeding? NO
Have you been involved in a civil lawsuit or bankruptcy proceeding? NO
Who are your top three campaign contributors?
Joshi Meghal, Joshi Shaivi, Domingo Garcia
Why are you seeking this office?
I am running because freedom to live your best life has to be more than just an abstract concept. It has to show up in real life experiences, in what families can afford, what workers are paid, and whether children have a real shot at a better future. After years of community work, I’ve seen how hard people work and how often the system still leaves them one emergency away from falling behind. I’m running to fight for living wages, affordable health care, strong public schools, and an economy that rewards work, not just wealth.
If elected, what would your top 3 policy priorities be?
My top three priorities would start with affordability built on a living wage. I would fight to raise wages, protect overtime, strengthen protections for workers on the job, and pass policies that lower everyday costs. Second, I would push for affordable health care that does not punish working families. That means protecting and expanding coverage, lowering prescription drug prices, and defending reproductive health care. Third, I would defend opportunity through strong public education and workforce pathways. I will oppose voucher schemes that drain public schools, invest in teachers and career training, and expand registered apprenticeships that lead to good-paying jobs without lifelong debt.
How will you measure your success as a member of Congress?
By outcomes people can feel, not headlines. Are wages rising and costs coming down? Are more families covered by affordable health care with lower drug prices? Are public schools and apprenticeships stronger? If families in TX-25 have more stability, dignity, and opportunity, that’s success.
Why should voters choose you over your opponents?
Voters should choose me because they know where I stand and who I stand for. I’ve spent years in this community solving real problems, not just making promises during election season.
I will be a steady, accessible voice in Congress, focused on lowering costs, raising pay, protecting health care, and strengthening public schools. I’m running to serve, not to build a political career.
What is the biggest challenge facing Congress? How would you address it if elected?
Rebuilding public trust by proving Congress can deliver for working people, not special interests. Congress has lost its power to be the checks and balance on the executive branch, so I will work for strong oversight, ethics adherence and constitutional accountability to replace the chaos being experienced now.
What is the number one challenge your constituents are facing, and how do you plan to resolve it?
Affordability. Paychecks are not keeping up with rising costs. I will fight to raise wages, protect overtime, lower prescription drug and health care costs, expand affordable coverage, and invest in housing and infrastructure so working families can get ahead, not just get by.
How would you interact and work with members of the opposite party? Are there specific policy ideas where you see opportunities for bipartisanship?
I will work with anyone serious about delivering results for working families. I see bipartisan opportunities on lowering drug prices, supporting veterans, expanding apprenticeships, strengthening domestic supply chains, improving infrastructure and broadband, and disaster readiness. I will be firm on values and focused on results, not political theater.
How would you approach foreign policy as a member of Congress?
I will insist on strong congressional oversight, clear authorization, and transparent objectives before military action. I will prioritize diplomacy, strong alliances, and accountability. Our foreign policy should protect American lives, support human rights, and reflect both our security interests and our values.
What steps, if any, should Congress take regarding artificial intelligence, including regulation and/or safeguards?
AI Technology is a tool, but tools used improperly can be destructive. Congress must put enforceable guardrails on AI. I support transparency, independent testing, and accountability for high-risk AI, especially in hiring, housing, health care, lending, and criminal justice. Workers should have notice, the right to human review, and strong privacy protections. AI should raise pay and productivity, not increase surveillance, unemployment, or inequality.
What should be prioritized in federal spending and what, if anything, do you believe should receive less budget allocations?
Federal spending should prioritize what makes a good life possible for working families, and what keeps the country strong long-term. I would prioritize investments in jobs and infrastructure, public education and workforce training, affordable health care (including protecting and strengthening Medicare, Medicaid, and the ACA), Social Security, affordable housing, and public safety that is rooted in prevention, mental health, and community stability. We should also invest in clean energy and grid resilience, and in veterans’ care.
We should allocate less to wasteful subsidies and tax giveaways that reward offshoring, price gouging, and monopoly power, and to contracts that pad profits without delivering results. I would also push to rein in administrative waste and no-bid contracting, so taxpayer dollars go to outcomes, not insiders.
What should Congress do to address healthcare?
Congress should treat health care as a basic right, not a luxury, and use its power to bring costs down while expanding access. I would support protecting and strengthening the ACA, expanding Medicaid, and lowering the Medicare eligibility age. Congress should also let Medicare negotiate lower drug prices more broadly, cap out-of-pocket costs, and crack down on hospital and insurance consolidation that drives up prices. We should protect employer and union health plans, invest in community clinics and rural hospitals, and set safe staffing standards so patients get quality care and health care workers are not burned out. Finally, Congress must defend reproductive health care and access to birth control as essential health care.
How do you plan to ensure affordability for Texans in the day-to-day as well as in the housing market?
Affordability starts with a living wage so one job can cover the basics, stronger overtime protections, and the right to collective protection in the workplace. To lower everyday costs, I will push Medicare drug-price negotiation, stronger antitrust enforcement against corporate price gouging, and relief for child care and energy bills.
On housing, I will expand affordable housing, support first-time homebuyers, incentivize starter homes, not just luxury units, protect against predatory investors, and invest in infrastructure that makes housing development possible. Although property taxes are state-led, families are being priced out, so I will use the federal toolbox to help Texans stay rooted in their communities and build wealth.
What should Congress do, if anything, to address security along the U.S.-Mexico border and immigration policy?
Congress must do both, secure the border and finally fix a broken immigration system. That means smart enforcement focused on drugs and weapons trafficking, modern ports of entry, faster and fair asylum processing with more judges and case processing so asylum claims are resolved quickly and fairly. Congress should strengthen oversight of DHS and reform ICE, with clear standards, transparency, and consequences for abuses, so enforcement is lawful and humane, not performative. I support a pathway to citizenship for long-standing families, protections for Dreamers and TPS holders, and an orderly, humane asylum system. Employers who exploit workers should face serious penalties.