Former El Paso resident Jay Kleberg faces Dawn Buckingham in race for land commissioner

The Texas land commissioner might not be a household name, but the office handles key issues from disaster relief to veterans’ affairs.

This November, Texans will elect a new leader of the General Land Office to replace George P. Bush, who ran unsuccessfully for Texas attorney general in the Republican primary. Democratic conservationist and businessman Jay Kleberg is facing Republican state Sen. Dawn Buckingham, an ophthalmologist from Lakeway.

Kleberg, a former El Paso resident, is counting on his extensive experience in conservation issues to appeal to voters in the down ballot race.

Kleberg said he decided to run for office after seeing the impacts of natural disasters, including the 2006 floods in El Paso and Hurricane Harvey in 2017, which inspired him to want to improve relief and mitigation across Texas.

“We've got billions of dollars in unspent natural disaster relief funds from Housing and Urban Development,” Kleberg said. “And I think that every Texan, regardless of their political affiliation, should want those communities to be protected against the next storm and recover from the last one.”

Buckingham held a donors-only campaign event in El Paso on Thursday. Her campaign did not respond to multiple requests for an interview.

What does the land commissioner do?

The General Land Officer's primary role is to manage Texas’ 13 million acres of publicly owned lands. Royalties from energy production and proceeds from land sales are funneled into the state’s $48 billion Permanent School Fund. The land commissioner also administers billions in state and federal disaster recovery and mitigation funding.

The land the office manages spans from the West Texas desert to the Gulf Coast. According to Kleberg, the office's land holdings include 200,000 acres in El Paso County. The office also operates the Texas Veterans Land Board, which runs veterans homes, including the Ambrosio Guillen Texas State Veterans Home in El Paso.

George P. Bush was elected land commissioner in 2014. Bush left his seat up for grabs when he launched a campaign for Texas attorney general this year.

As land commissioner, Bush came under scrutiny for the distribution of funds following Hurricane Harvey, when the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development found the office discriminated against people of color for not giving aid to Harris County. Bush's redevelopment plans around the Alamo in San Antonio also sparked controversy.

Kleberg defeated Sandragrace Martinez in the Democratic primary, while Buckingham defeated Tim Westley to become the Republican candidate.

A September poll from the Texas Hispanic Policy Foundation found that Buckingham led Kleberg 46% to 38% among likely voters.

According to campaign finance reports, Kleberg brought in $878,000 in contributions from July through September, well above Buckingham's total of $565,000.

Kleberg touts conservation background to court Democrats and Republicans

Both candidates come from deep Texas roots. Kleberg is the great-great-great-grandson of Robert Kleberg, who founded the legendary King Ranch in South Texas. Kleberg is not involved in day-to-day operations at the ranch, which includes parts of Kleberg County. Buckingham on the other hand is a seventh-generation Texan who grew up on the Texas Coast and in Central Texas.

Kleberg said his interest in conservation dates back living in Brazil in the early 2000s. He then moved to El Paso to work for a real estate trust, where he met El Pasoans including Beto O'Rourke and Veronica Escobar as they were beginning their political careers. He ran as a Republican candidate for state representative for House District 78 in 2010, losing to Dee Margo in the primary. Margo went on to unseat Democrat Joe Moody in the general election.

Kleberg went on to earn a Master of Business Administration at the University of Texas at Austin and work at the Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation. He also has experience as a documentary producer with two films, "The River and the Wall" and "Deep in the Heart: A Texas Wildlife Story." He launched his campaign as a Democrat this time around.

“Since my time in El Paso, after that run, I have aligned more with the Democratic Party, primarily on environmental issues, but certainly on social issues,” Kleberg said. “So, it was an easy decision for me to run as a Democrat.”

Kleberg, who now lives in Austin, has made climate change a centerpiece of his campaign and called for more renewable energy production on state lands.

"The communities most impacted by the current Land Commissioner’s inaction and denial of the science behind climate change are the ones who can least afford it," his website states. "Being unprepared for more extreme weather will lead to loss of life, livelihoods, and economic damage."

Kleberg also advocates for disaster funding for Hurricane Harvey's aftermath to be more equitably distributed.

"In the first 90 days, we would come up with a plan that would ideally distribute 50% of the $4 billion in mitigation funding to the city of Houston and Harris County," he said.

Kleberg has visited Texas communities, including Longview and Amarillo, in his Dancehall Tour of Texas. He said even in strongly conservative areas, residents connected with his vision for the General Land Office. The tour came through El Paso's Love Buzz bar on Oct. 6.

“Our strategy to win the seat is to get people in a space where we can talk about those shared values: stewardship, value in education, and in service,” Kleberg said. “Especially in a place like El Paso, with those who have honored us with their military service. Those are very much Texan values.”

The candidate said his experience in conservation and land management sets him apart from Buckingham. He also speculated that she would use the office as a political steppingstone.

"It is very clear to me ‒ and to her colleagues that I've talked to ‒ that she intends to run for something else," he said. "This is just a parking spot."

More:Meet the candidates: El Paso County Judge

Buckingham campaign talks inflation, energy production

Buckingham's campaign website lists top priorities including "Fighting Biden's inflation," "Unleashing Texas energy" and "Protecting Texas families." Former President Donald Trump and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, have both endorsed her.

Her campaign site says she will "support robust energy development that fuels jobs, funds public education, and powers our grid while being good stewards of our precious public lands." The site does not mention climate change.

In an interview with the conservative media outlet Texas Scorecard, Buckingham said she considers the General Land Office "the tip of the spear to defend our border."

"We look forward to doing everything that we can to get the wall up on state lands," she said.

In reference to plans for the Alamo, she said, "There will be no reimagining Texas history under my watch."

Buckingham's website also states she supports more coastal infrastructure and helping Texans after disasters.

While both Kleberg and Buckingham have deep Texas roots, the two candidates put forward vastly different visions for the office. Kleberg remains optimistic the seat is within reach for a Democrat.

“A lot of people have never heard of the office, or they don't really think that it matters," he said. "But when you start breaking it down, people really start to pay attention.”

More:The 2022 Texas midterm elections are Nov. 8. Here's what you need to know

Staff writer Martha Pskowski may be reached at mpskowski@elpasotimes.com and @psskow on Twitter.

This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Ex-El Pasoan Jay Kleberg faces Dawn Buckingham for land commissioner