A big chunk of Rosenthal’s haul came after French’s racist social media comments following a UT-Austin football game went viral.
The debate, which has not been confirmed by French, would be his first major public event since he attracted criticism over racist posts about UT students.
The Railroad Commission candidate is under fire from fellow Republicans for a post that said a picture of college students celebrating a football victory shows “how many Americans have been displaced by foreigners.”
One of the state’s largest oil and gas industry groups condemned French’s comments about South Asian students. They have not pulled their endorsement.
The commission doesn't have anything to do with railroads. It regulates Texas’ oil and gas industry. Here’s where 2026 candidates Bo French, Jon Rosenthal and Arthur DiBianca stand.
Wayne Christian said his agency’s meeting kept him from addressing lawmakers about eliminating some public comments at the Texas Railroad Commission.
In a statement Monday night, university officials indirectly addressed Bo French’s comments, calling students at the game Saturday night “incredible fans.”
Rove, a former adviser to President George W. Bush and longtime Texas GOP political consultant, made the comments at a private lunch in Austin, according to attendees.
The Texas Railroad Commission changed the rules over public comment earlier this month, raising eyebrows from transparency activists and the lawmaker who helped rewrite the state’s open meeting laws.
The agency that regulates the state’s oil and gas industry voted to adopt the new policy before sharing it with the public. It added more “listening sessions” when the public can speak to agency staff.
As the U.S. pushes to reduce reliance on foreign suppliers, Texas companies prepare to capitalize on the state's emerging lithium industry.
As attorney general, Paxton threw unprecedented resources into stopping Biden’s agenda. That record is his sword and shield as he runs for U.S. Senate.
The GOP nominee for the state’s oil and gas commission said Texas should not recognize babies born to immigrant parents as citizens.
By the time the Texas Railroad Commission shut down nearby oilfield injection wells to control the leak, 1.5 million gallons of toxic wastewater had spilled to the surface.
Republican Bo French is keeping Islam, immigration and LGBTQ+ issues at the fore of his campaign for Texas’ oil regulatory agency. Democratic foe Jon Rosenthal is betting on his technical expertise.
John Cornyn is trying to fend off Ken Paxton. Both parties are picking attorney general nominees. And an oil and gas regulatory race has become uncharacteristically costly.
In the GOP runoff for Texas Railroad commissioner, billionaires, big oil companies and trade groups flood the campaign pockets of candidates Jim Wright and Bo French.
The lieutenant governor endorsed state Sen. Mayes Middleton over U.S. Rep. Chip Roy for the Republican attorney general nod. And he backed Railroad Commissioner Jim Wright over challenger Bo French.
The University of Houston survey results were within the margin of error less than a month out from the May 26 election. State Sen. Mayes Middleton had a wider lead in the attorney general primary.
The May 26 runoff pits incumbent Railroad Commissioner Jim Wright, who’s pitching himself as a “proven advocate for Texas energy,” against Bo French, who has cast himself as a “MAGA conservative.”
Jackie Chesnutt, who lives outside San Angelo, is tired of pollution from nearly inactive wells. Experts say Texas rules allow companies to defer plugging wells for far too long.
Government watchdogs raised conflict-of-interests concerns, but Christian said his involvement in the venture is “separate” from his elected position on the Railroad Commission.
The Republican and Democratic primary runoffs are May 26. See the full list of statewide candidates, as well as local races that will be on your ballot.
Tim Dunn and Farris Wilks made their fortune in the oil business. They’ve deployed millions of dollars to pull the Texas GOP and Legislature toward their hardline stances.
French, a former Tarrant County GOP chair, also said Republicans should more openly embrace Islamophobia.
The move of authority to the Texas Railroad Commission from the federal government now makes it easier for energy companies to apply for permits to store carbon underground.
The poll, released Wednesday, also showed Sid Miller and Don Huffines with comfortable leads in their Republican primary bids for agriculture commissioner and comptroller.
The Railroad Commission regulates energy infrastructure across Texas. Here’s a look at who’s running in the 2026 Democratic and Republican primaries and where they stand.
Cleaning up oilfield pollution in arid West Texas is costly and complicated. The bankruptcy process allows companies to move on while the public pays the price.
The EPA handed over power to the Railroad Commission after a two-year review. Critics say the commission has been too lax with the industry.
French will face commission Chair Jim Wright in the Republican primary. The three-person panel is in charge of the agency that oversees Texas’ oil and gas industry.
The day after the four-term Houston lawmaker launched his statewide bid, his former chief of staff, Odus Evbagharu, announced he was running to succeed his former boss in the Texas House.
At least four companies say they are prepared to treat the water well enough to be released into rivers in West Texas. Environmental groups say the state is moving too fast.
Across Texas, abandoned wells are erupting with chemical-infused liquid and some have created massive lakes of contaminated water. Regulators say they need more money to address the problem.
The Texas Legislature has also invested millions in research to clean the fracking wastewater. Critics say it’s not a viable solution to the state’s water crisis.
The legislation would put new requirements on wind and solar companies that oil and gas companies in Texas do not face.
The legislation was written after the state’s largest wildfire scorched more than 1 million acres in the Panhandle last year.
The bill would have set deadlines for the oil and gas industry to plug inactive wells, which can pose a danger to the environment.
Two years after lawmakers created a $10 million program to address leaking wells in rural counties, none of the money has been distributed.
The new rule modernizes some aspects of commercial oilfield waste disposal and recycling. But rules for burying oilfield waste on private property remain limited.
Floresville city officials said Friday that it provided the state railroad commission’s report on a gas line explosion to residents nearly five months after the blast.
After an hour-long executive session on Thursday night, Floresville City Council determined that it will provide waivers and permits for fees to residents impacted by a July 16 explosion.
Oilfield wastewater injected underground is causing earthquakes and blowouts. Now, pilot projects are exploring whether this water could be treated and used to grow crops.
The proposal comes after the state’s oil and gas regulatory agency said it needs more money to plug wells that are in some instances erupting.
The three-member board oversees Texas’ oil and gas industry. The agency has faced criticism over safety concerns linked to fracking, well blowouts and groundwater protection.
Abandoned wells in the Permian Basin are increasingly erupting with briney, polluted water. The Texas Railroad Commission says it needs emergency money to respond.
Incumbent Christi Craddick is touting the health of the Texas energy industry and its impact on the economy. Her top opponent says regulation on the commission is too lax.
While environmentalists say the new rules don’t do enough to protect groundwater, oil and gas operators are contesting stricter requirements for waste pits near wells.
Pecos County rancher Schuyler Wight says the Railroad Commission continues to plug wells. But each time they do, another one starts flowing.
Supporters say developing hydrogen as a fuel is critical to slowing climate change. Critics are concerned that producing it with fossil fuels will prop up the oil and gas industry.
The Texas Railroad Commission is tasked with plugging wells. But the state regulators say their scope is limited.
Critics are calling on federal regulators to increase their scrutiny and oversight of the proposed pipeline, which would send gas from Texas to the Mexican coast for export to other countries.
As oil and gas companies struggle to dispose of their wastewater in the Permian Basin, the city of Midland is challenging applications for disposal wells near one of its drinking water sources.
The 5.2 magnitude earthquake is tied for the fourth strongest in Texas history. It occurred in an area where oilfield companies have long been injecting wastewater from fracking underground.
An exclusive Inside Climate News analysis found that companies have spilled nearly 150 million gallons of toxic, highly saline wastewater in Texas over the last decade.
The effort to update the state’s oilfield waste disposal rules was initiated by Railroad Commissioner Jim Wright, one of the state’s top oil and gas regulators who has investments in the industry.
After losing in a Republican runoff last year, Stogner said she plans to challenge incumbent Chair Christi Craddick as a member of the Forward Party.
Researchers are still studying the chemical makeup of “produced water” from Permian Basin oil fields. But regulators say they’re ready to issue permits to discharge the water into rivers and creeks.
Some Texans who challenge oil and gas waste sites must spend significant sums and time on investigating what they say the Texas Railroad Commission should examine. Will new regulations for handling waste increase oversight or just maintain the status quo?
The garden in the middle of a 35,000-acre former mine is supplying thousands of pounds of fresh produce to families in three counties that have few grocery stores.
Operators pump a sea of “produced water” underground for disposal. Intensifying tremors raise fears that the deep toxic waste pits could intermingle with water used for farming and drinking.
After the snow and ice of February 2021 had melted and power and water service finally returned, catastrophe turned to criticism. Lawmakers and power providers have since gone to work in hopes that it doesn't happen again.
Look up information about every statewide elected official, every member of the Texas Legislature and every Texan in Congress and see who represents you.
Atmos, a major natural gas provider for the state, apologized for last week’s service disruption that left some Texans without heat during freezing weather.
The quake was the third largest in Texas history, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. An increase in seismic activity in Texas has been linked to injecting fracking wastewater underground.
Christian, who’s running for reelection to the Texas Railroad Commission, said he did not realize Warford was Jewish and would stop using the slogan, which he’s used for previous campaigns.
One of three seats on the Texas Railroad Commission, which oversees the oil and gas industry, is up for grabs this election. Democrat Luke Warford is betting his campaign on the issues of electric grid reliability, regulatory enforcement and reducing emissions.
Stogner, who lost in a Republican primary runoff to incumbent Wayne Christian, said she’s endorsing Luke Warford.
Critics are skeptical about whether the new rules by the Railroad Commission will prevent another catastrophe like the power grid disaster in February 2021.
The initial grant will allow Texas to plug a fraction of the state’s approximately 7,400 documented abandoned oil and gas wells.
Power outages are a possibility during any severe weather event. But a local power outage is different from a larger power grid problem.
Christian beat Sarah Stogner in the Republican primary runoff for a seat on the Texas Railroad Commission after she accused him of corruption during the campaign.
Ashley Watt, who owns a 75,000-acre ranch in the Permian Basin, is helping bankroll a substantial TV ad buy in the final two weeks before Stogner faces the Railroad Commission’s chair, Wayne Christian, in the runoff.
Incumbent Wayne Christian and oil and gas lawyer Sarah Stogner pitched voters in Paris, Texas, ahead of the May 24 election. Early voting runs May 16-20.
After last winter’s near-statewide electric blackouts, Texas lawmakers went after regulators they deemed responsible but tiptoed around the Texas Railroad Commission, which regulates oil and gas. Now voters have a chance, if they want it, to send the state a message.
The chair of the Texas Railroad Commission fell short of winning at least 50% of the vote and will face oil and gas attorney Sarah Stogner in May.
The oldest state regulatory agency, in charge of how oil and gas are produced and transported, doesn’t typically attract much attention at election time. This year is different.
In the state’s power grid, electricity and natural gas are co-dependent. Here’s how the winter storm last year broke the system.
One of the five candidates for the Republican Texas Railroad Commission nomination has been killed in a traffic crash while traveling from a West Texas campaign appearance.
Vistra Corp. asked the Railroad Commission of Texas to prevent Energy Transfer LP from cutting off fuel to five of its power plants on Monday. Vistra said the power supply to at least 400,000 homes and businesses could be impacted.
Gov. Greg Abbott says he can "guarantee" there won't be blackouts this winter in Texas after one that knocked out power for some people for four days last February. That's the kind of pre-election prediction that can make a weather forecaster more useful than a political poll.
