Nate Shatzline defeats former Southlake mayor in Republican runoff for House District 93

First-time candidate and anti-human trafficking activist Nate Schatzline defeated former Southlake Mayor Laura Hill in the Republican runoff for the House District 93 seat.

With all 152 vote centers reporting Tuesday, Shatzline had 64.99% of the vote, according to unofficial results.

Schatzline will face Democrat KC Chowdhury in the general election on Nov. 8. Chowdhury ran unopposed in the Democratic primary.

The winner will replace Matt Krause, who is leaving the state Legislature to run for Tarrant County district attorney. The district covers parts of north Fort Worth and Saginaw, as well as Haslet and Blue Mound

Schatzline surprised many political observers in the March 1 primary by getting the largest share of the votes in a race with Hill and former Fort Worth city council member Cary Moon. Schatzline got 43% of the vote compared to 37% for Hill and 20% for Moon.

“I feel like we shocked the world a bit,” Shatzline said at the time, reacting to his early vote lead in the March 1 primary.

Schatzline positioned himself as the most conservative candidate. His campaign focused on stopping the spread of so-called “critical race theory” in public school curriculum, and being a voice for Christian conservatives.

He’s received support from Mercy Culture church pastors Heather and Landon Schott, and Schatzline’s faith-based political action group, For Liberty and Justice, is connected to the church through its anti-human trafficking non-profit Justice Reform.

Hill pointed to her previous government experience to argue she is the best candidate to address the district’s needs when it comes to addressing growth and the effect of rising property taxes.

She received the endorsement of Gov. Greg Abbott, who said in a recorded video message that Hill would help the governor secure the border, keep fentanyl off Texas streets, and support a pro-police agenda.

But Schatzline received endorsements from high profile Republicans like Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and Republican nominee for Tarrant County Judge Tim O’Hare.

“I am certain we in HD93 will be well taken care by Nate Schatzline and I wish him nothing but the best,” Hill wrote in her Facebook post.