Texas Ballot Compare

General election · Tuesday, November 3, 2026

Nonpartisan voter guide · Texas

State Representative, District 56

Race · November 3, 2026 general election

State of Texas
Vote for oneResearched · fact-checked
Pat CurryPat CurryRepublican Incumbent
Ashley Bean ThorntonAshley Bean ThorntonDemocratic
On ballot as
Pat Curry
Ashley Bean Thornton
Current role
State Representative, Texas House District 56 (since November 18, 2024)
Retired; Democratic nominee for Texas House District 56
Background
  • BBA in finance, Texas A&M (per campaign)
  • Businessman
  • Former owner, Rabroker A/C and Plumbing, Hewitt (per campaign)
  • Built and managed Miracle-Ear centers (per campaign)
  • Farmer and rancher; lives on a ranch in Bruceville (per campaign)
  • Born and raised in Waco (per campaign)
  • Attended Baylor (per campaign)
  • Teaching certificate, Southwest Texas State University (per campaign)
  • Former high school teacher and corporate trainer
  • Former Baylor employee, training and planning, 20 years (per candidate)
  • Former Transformation Waco employee, afterschool program (per candidate)
Show all 7
  • Retired in 2023 (per candidate)
  • Family settled in Baytown (per campaign)
Experience
  • Won vacant District 56 seat November 5, 2024 (special and regular elections)
  • Led the revitalization of Central Freight Lines in the mid-1990s (per campaign)
  • Republican primary (March 3, 2026): won, 69% over Ralph Patterson
  • Chaired the City of Waco's Poverty Solutions Steering Committee (per candidate)
  • Served on the Waco Transit Advisory Board (per candidate)
  • Co-founder, Waco Walks (2016) (per candidate)
  • Founder, Act Locally Waco newsletter (2008) (per candidate)
  • Democratic primary (March 3, 2026): won, about 56% over Janessa Givens
Top priorities
  • "Securing the Border"
  • "Protecting McLennan County's Water Supply"
  • "Lowering Property Taxes"
  • "Protecting Agriculture & Private Property Owner Rights"
  • "Defending the Second Amendment"
Show all 7
  • "Protecting Life and our Conservative Christian Values"
  • "Improving Teacher Pay and Public Education"
  • "Strong Public Schools Make us ALL stronger."
  • "The Texas Economy should work for ALL of us."
  • "We work best when we work TOGETHER"
  • "Educating children in public schools should be our highest priority."
  • "Texas can be business-friendly and worker-friendly."
Tidbits
  • Abortion: Campaign site (text unchanged since his 2024 campaign): "Pat is PRO LIFE!" and believes that "life begins at conception"
  • Border and immigration: Campaign site (text unchanged since his 2024 campaign): "Pat will fight for additional fencing, manpower and technology along the border"
  • Guns: Campaign site (text unchanged since his 2024 campaign): "He will fight stricter control measures" and calls himself a "life-long gun owner"
  • Public schools and vouchers: Campaign site (text unchanged since his 2024 campaign): "Pat will fight to improve public education, increase teacher pay, and take care of our retired educators"
  • Property taxes: Campaign site (text unchanged since his 2024 campaign): favors "lowering appraisal caps" and "developing a long-term plan to eliminate property taxes once and for all"
  • Abortion: No public statement found
  • Border and immigration: No public statement found
  • Guns: No public statement found
  • Public schools and vouchers: Campaign site: says legislators "were willing to spend a billion dollars on a voucher program, even though voucher programs have not shown they serve the students who need the most help"
  • Property taxes: In an October 2025 campaign blog post on property tax ballot measures: "if we give an exemption to one group, that means all the other folks have to pay a little more"
Endorsements
  • Texas Home School Coalition
  • Texans for Lawsuit Reform PAC
  • Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas (CLEAT) PAC
  • TEXPAC (Texas Medical Association Political Action Committee)
  • Texas Alliance for Life
Show all 11
  • NFIB Texas PAC (primary)
  • TruckPAC (Texas Trucking Association) (primary)
  • President Donald J. Trump (listed by campaign)
  • Senator Ted Cruz (listed by campaign)
  • Governor Greg Abbott (listed by campaign)
  • Woodway City Councilman David Russel (listed by campaign)
  • Texas AFL-CIO
  • Texas AFT
Campaign website
patcurry.com
ashleybeanthornton.com
Pat Curry

Pat Curry

Republican Incumbent
On ballot as
Pat Curry
Current role
State Representative, Texas House District 56 (since November 18, 2024)
Background
  • BBA in finance, Texas A&M (per campaign)
  • Businessman
  • Former owner, Rabroker A/C and Plumbing, Hewitt (per campaign)
  • Built and managed Miracle-Ear centers (per campaign)
  • Farmer and rancher; lives on a ranch in Bruceville (per campaign)
  • Born and raised in Waco (per campaign)
Experience
  • Won vacant District 56 seat November 5, 2024 (special and regular elections)
  • Led the revitalization of Central Freight Lines in the mid-1990s (per campaign)
  • Republican primary (March 3, 2026): won, 69% over Ralph Patterson
Top priorities
  • "Securing the Border"
  • "Protecting McLennan County's Water Supply"
  • "Lowering Property Taxes"
  • "Protecting Agriculture & Private Property Owner Rights"
  • "Defending the Second Amendment"
Show all 7
  • "Protecting Life and our Conservative Christian Values"
  • "Improving Teacher Pay and Public Education"
Tidbits
  • Abortion: Campaign site (text unchanged since his 2024 campaign): "Pat is PRO LIFE!" and believes that "life begins at conception"
  • Border and immigration: Campaign site (text unchanged since his 2024 campaign): "Pat will fight for additional fencing, manpower and technology along the border"
  • Guns: Campaign site (text unchanged since his 2024 campaign): "He will fight stricter control measures" and calls himself a "life-long gun owner"
  • Public schools and vouchers: Campaign site (text unchanged since his 2024 campaign): "Pat will fight to improve public education, increase teacher pay, and take care of our retired educators"
  • Property taxes: Campaign site (text unchanged since his 2024 campaign): favors "lowering appraisal caps" and "developing a long-term plan to eliminate property taxes once and for all"
Endorsements
  • Texas Home School Coalition
  • Texans for Lawsuit Reform PAC
  • Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas (CLEAT) PAC
  • TEXPAC (Texas Medical Association Political Action Committee)
  • Texas Alliance for Life
Show all 11
  • NFIB Texas PAC (primary)
  • TruckPAC (Texas Trucking Association) (primary)
  • President Donald J. Trump (listed by campaign)
  • Senator Ted Cruz (listed by campaign)
  • Governor Greg Abbott (listed by campaign)
  • Woodway City Councilman David Russel (listed by campaign)
Campaign website
patcurry.com
Ashley Bean Thornton

Ashley Bean Thornton

Democratic
On ballot as
Ashley Bean Thornton
Current role
Retired; Democratic nominee for Texas House District 56
Background
  • Attended Baylor (per campaign)
  • Teaching certificate, Southwest Texas State University (per campaign)
  • Former high school teacher and corporate trainer
  • Former Baylor employee, training and planning, 20 years (per candidate)
  • Former Transformation Waco employee, afterschool program (per candidate)
Show all 7
  • Retired in 2023 (per candidate)
  • Family settled in Baytown (per campaign)
Experience
  • Chaired the City of Waco's Poverty Solutions Steering Committee (per candidate)
  • Served on the Waco Transit Advisory Board (per candidate)
  • Co-founder, Waco Walks (2016) (per candidate)
  • Founder, Act Locally Waco newsletter (2008) (per candidate)
  • Democratic primary (March 3, 2026): won, about 56% over Janessa Givens
Top priorities
  • "Strong Public Schools Make us ALL stronger."
  • "The Texas Economy should work for ALL of us."
  • "We work best when we work TOGETHER"
  • "Educating children in public schools should be our highest priority."
  • "Texas can be business-friendly and worker-friendly."
Tidbits
  • Abortion: No public statement found
  • Border and immigration: No public statement found
  • Guns: No public statement found
  • Public schools and vouchers: Campaign site: says legislators "were willing to spend a billion dollars on a voucher program, even though voucher programs have not shown they serve the students who need the most help"
  • Property taxes: In an October 2025 campaign blog post on property tax ballot measures: "if we give an exemption to one group, that means all the other folks have to pay a little more"
Endorsements
  • Texas AFL-CIO
  • Texas AFT
Campaign website
ashleybeanthornton.com

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