Don Huffines is taking his message all across Texas.
DALLAS — Republican former state Sen. Don Huffines has long said he will “DOGE” Texas government to eliminate waste, fraud and abuse if he’s elected Texas Comptroller.
And that, he says, is the biggest difference between him and his Democratic opponent, state Senator Sarah Eckhardt, D-District 14.
“She’s never seen a tax they didn’t like,” Huffines told us on Inside Texas Politics. “Just look at my record. We both have a record. We were both in the Texas Senate. And I can tell you I have a record to cut taxes. I have a long history of being a taxpayer champion. She is the left of the left and she is the most liberal Democrat in Austin by all the rankings.”
Although Huffines says he wants to “DOGE” Texas, referring to the Department of Efficiency set on reducing the federal budget, a CATO Institute analysis of monthly treasury data shows that, in 2025, DOGE didn’t reduce spending. In fact, government spending went up that year compared to 2024.
The Texas Comptroller is one of the most powerful positions in the state as that person serves as the chief financial officer who manages the state’s budget, collects taxes and tells lawmakers how much money they have to spend.
Huffines says he would investigate governments and agencies to find any fraud. On the state level, that includes education and what we’re spending on Operation Lone Star now that there are record low illegal crossings on the southern border of Texas.
Huffines says he’d also focus on the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) because he wonders why it takes so long for roads to be built in the state.
“I think I’m going to find a lot of inefficiencies, I’ll tell you that,” the Republican explained. “Why do they sign contracts where people don’t work seven days a week, 24 hours a day? I mean, why does it take so long to build the road? Are they no bid contracts? And we’re just going to really dig into it and do what’s best.”
The general election will be held Tuesday, Nov. 3.
Early voting will run Oct. 19 – 30.