An attorney representing Senate District 1, Quitman native Bryan Hughes is in his third term in a district that encompasses 19 counties in the northeastern part of Texas.
“Senator Hughes promotes individual opportunity and personal liberty so that everyone can experience the American Dream,” his website reads. “He has also been named Defender of the American Dream by Americans for Prosperity and Guardian of Small Business by the National Federation of Independent Business. Mothers Against Drunk Driving honored Senator Hughes as 2017 Legislator of the Year, and the American Conservative Union consistently has given him their highest rating.”
Hughes, a Republican, was a state representative for District 5 from 2003 to 2017. He won the election in December 2016 to take office for the first time as a state senator.
He is a member of the Finance, Health & Human Services, Economic Development, Nominations, and Natural Resources committees, as well as chairman of the Senate Committee on State Affairs and Senate Committee on Jurisprudence.
“He has been honored as Baylor Young Lawyer of the Year and Outstanding Alumnus of both Tyler Junior College and the University of Texas at Tyler,” his campaign website shows. “For his service in the Legislature, Senator Hughes has received the Taxpayer Champion Award, the Visionary Leader Award from Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas, and the Horizon Award from Texas Right to Life.”
Hughes has pushed anti-abortion policies and authored SB 8, known as the Texas Heartbeat Bill. He also authored legislation barring critical race theory from being taught in public schools.
He led a rewrite of election law that spooked Democrats so much they left Texas for weeks — a move that delayed passage of Senate Bill 1, The Dallas Morning News reported. According to The Texas Tribune, Gov. Greg Abbott signed the bill into law in Tyler, the largest city in East Texas, about 90 minutes from Dallas, in Hughes’ district.
Abbott credited Hughes as the “lead advocate from the very beginning” for the elections overhaul bill, adding, “In his district is the right place to sign SB 1 into law in Texas.”
The governor also promoted in Tyler a bill championed by Hughes that prevented social media companies from banning users based on political views. All of the bills were priorities for Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, according to the Tribune.
Senate District 1 includes Paris, Bonham, Clarksville, Mount Pleasant, Atlanta, Pittsburg, Gilmer, Mineola, Lindale, Longview, Tyler, Kilgore, Whitehouse, Henderson, and Carthage.