The Bush name may have lost its sparkle in the state of Texas.
Pierce Bush, the grandson of the late George H.W. Bush, was the first candidate carrying the Bush last name to lose an election in Texas in more than 40 years. The younger Bush was a congressional candidate running to fill the seat his grandfather once held, which will be vacated by retiring Republican Rep. Pete Olson.
Pierce Bush, 34, raised more money than the 14 other Republicans in the primary and earned Olson’s endorsement, but that couldn’t carry him to victory. He lost to Troy Nehls and Kathaleen Wall, who will face off in a runoff election in May given that neither candidate earned more than 50% of the vote. Nehls, the sheriff of Fort Bend County, earned 40.5% of the vote. Wall, a technology consultant, earned 19.4%. Pierce Bush landed in third with 15.4% of the vote.
The last time a member of the Bush family lost an election in Texas was in 1978, when George W. Bush lost a bid for Congress. He went on to become governor of Texas. George P. Bush, the son of Jeb Bush, was the last member of the family to win a statewide race, winning the nomination for state land commissioner in 2014 and 2018.
Pierce Bush, an executive for a nonprofit group, is the son of businessman Neil Bush. His competitors Nehls and Wall are both staunch supporters of President Trump. The Bush family has distanced itself from Trump following his harsh treatment of Jeb Bush during the 2016 election.
