Don Huffines, GOP nominee for comptroller, says he’ll withhold state funding from agencies over DEI violations
By Alejandro Serrano, The Texas Tribune
April 13, 2026
Don Huffines, the GOP nominee for Texas comptroller, on Tuesday said that he would withhold state funds from agencies or universities engaging in diversity, equity and inclusion policies, or DEI, if he wins office this November.
“I’ve got a fiduciary responsibility to the taxpayer, period,” Huffines said during a Texas Tribune event. “They expect me to step in.”
Asked how he defined a DEI violation, Huffines said he would study relevant laws and should it still be unclear he would ask the Legislature.
In an interview with Texas Tribune Editor-in-Chief Matthew Watkins, the former state senator did not rule out blocking money from other parts of government, such as schools or state leaders, should he discover financial misconduct, and he said he expected to use his “bully pulpit” to bring attention to issues.
Huffines won his primary last month outright in an expensive race that included acting Comptroller Kelly Hancock, who carried the backing of Gov. Greg Abbott.
On Tuesday, Huffines said that he and the governor — who he unsuccessfully tried to unseat in 2022 — were “aligned on many issues” and will work together. Despite a contentious gubernatorial primary where Huffines was deeply critical of the governor’s politics, Abbott invited Huffines and his wife for dinner, he said, where they spoke for three hours after the election.
“It’s really critical that we do,” Huffines said. “I’m going to work with the governor.”
The comptroller’s office is responsible for estimating the state’s revenue, which instructs the Legislature’s budget writing, collecting taxes, overseeing state agencies’ contract procurement and implementing the state’s new $1 billion plan to offer parents vouchers they can use to send their kids to private schools.
Huffines also said he predicts that the Legislature will expand the voucher program to meet the demand in the next legislative session.
Among those in attendance was state Sen. Sarah Eckhardt, an Austin Democrat, who will face Huffines in the November general election. The Tribune will host Eckhardt for her own one-on-one interview on April 29.
Democrats hope to capture their first statewide victory since 1994 by riding a wave of energy against President Donald Trump’s policies.
Huffines said he’s not worried about his contest this November or others in the GOP. Last week Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said that Republicans will “have a tough time” holding control of the Texas House, which prompted Speaker Dustin Burrows, of Lubbock, to push back.
“It’s not even gonna be close,” Huffines said. “This is Texas. Our culture is unique. We’re special.”.
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This article first appeared on The Texas Tribune.