Tarrant Judge Whitley says support of Dem over Lt. Gov. Patrick to get him ‘in trouble’
In a political fracture motivated by disagreement on property taxes, Tarrant County Judge Glen Whitley said he favored Democrat Mike Collier in the race for Texas lieutenant governor.
In an interview broadcast Sunday on the WFAA-TV political podcast “Y’all-itics,” Whitley, a Republican who is retiring, said his support for Collier in the November election over incumbent Republican Dan Patrick will, “get me a little in trouble.”
Whitley suggested the decision was connected to his assessment of a misguided approach on property taxes embraced by Patrick and the conservative political advocacy group Empower Texans.
Patrick has blamed local governments for property tax problems, the county judge said.
Whitley cited Collier’s professional stops at major accounting and oil and gas companies as experiences that merit support.
“Mike is ... he’s a bean-counter like me. He worked for Price Waterhouse. He also worked for Exxon, so he understands the oil business. And I just think he’s someone who understands local control, and that’s what I’m looking for.”
In a tweet, Patrick on Sunday wrote Whitley, “doesn’t get it.”
“People are being taxed out of their homes by big spending local governments,” Patrick wrote. “Collier & Whitley are two-of-a-kind, tax hiking, big spenders.”
Whitley announced in June 2021 that he would not seek reelection in 2022. Whitley has been in the seat since 2007 and on the Commissioners Court since 1997.
This story was originally published September 4, 2022 at 1:19 PM.
