Who is Riley Rodriquez?

Riley Rodriquez is a working-class Texan from Abilene who’s spent most of his life doing the kinds of jobs that actually keep this state running. Rodriquez grew up in West Texas with a ranch-hand father and a probation officer mother, learning early what it means to work hard and stretch a paycheck.

Meet The Candidates: Riley Rodriquez For Texas State Senate District 28

Riley Rodriquez For Texas State Senate District 28 - Lone Star Left

I’ve spent the bulk of my upbringing in the small communities that make up our district, working on ranches working in the oilfield and now building my career as a young Texas entrepreneur with my own two hands. It is those communities that I am fighting for.

Riley Rodriquez — Texas State Senate District 28 Candidate 2026

Before running for office, Rodriquez cowboyed, worked in the oilfield, and eventually started his own small service business in District 28. While building that business, he also continued working toward a degree at Texas Tech.

Riley is an entrepreneur. He previously worked on ranches and in the oilfield and started a small service business in District 28.

Riley is an entrepreneur and performance coach. He previously worked on ranches and in the oilfield and started a small service business in District 28. 

2026 Texas General Election

Q: Do you support a statewide minimum wage increase to at least $15/hour?

Yes, I 2400 a month for 40 hours a week is the least we can do. I recommend an increase in the poverty level limit. Nobody is getting by 35k a year, much less 25k.

Q: Should Texas end tax subsidies and abatements for large corporations?

Yes, if a small business couldn’t afford to pay its full taxes they would be closed down. The same goes for corporations with billions in capital.

Q: What do you see as the most pressing issues facing Senate District 28 and West Texas and how would you address them if elected to the Senate?
A: The most pressing issue for Rural Texans is cost of living from housing to healthcare, it's too damn expensive for working class Texans to get ahead. I would work on practical policy, Home hardening exemptions and grants to bring down homeowners insurance premiums, property tax abatement caps for large corporations and developers buying up large tracts of land that could otherwise be used for farm and ranch land to increase revenue to support rural hospitals, schools and public services, and removing exemptions offered to corporations that directly or indirectly push the cost on to consumers, like the electricity sales tax exemption Data centers receive.

Read Texas Senate District 28 candidate Riley Rodriquez's platforms

Q: Property taxes continue to burden Texas families and businesses. What have you done or what would you do to provide meaningful property tax relief for your constituents?
A: I would stop putting a bandaid on property taxes by using exemptions, it's great that we got another exemption but housing in my district has risen 56% in the last 6 years so in another couple years that bandits gonna fall off, again.

Here's what we need: practical policy, increasing access to funding for grants to working-class homeowners who fortify their homes, fixing their roofs, retrofitting their homes and protecting themselves against the increasingly severe weather patterns in Texas.

Supports increasing Texas' minimum wage to at least $15 per hour.

Supports ending tax subsidies and abatements for large corporations.

Proposes grants to strengthen homes and exemptions to reduce homeowners insurance premiums.

Calls for replacing property-tax exemptions with grants to strengthen homes for working-class homeowners.

- Supports increasing Texas' minimum wage to at least $15 per hour.
- Supports ending tax subsidies and abatements for large corporations.
- Proposes grants to strengthen homes and exemptions to reduce homeowners insurance premiums.
- Calls for replacing property-tax exemptions with grants to strengthen homes for working-class homeowners.

Economy

Q: Should local police be barred from enforcing federal immigration law?

Yes, this sews fear and distrust in the community. If someone is in trouble, they are less likely to call the police.

Supports barring local police from enforcing federal immigration law.

- Supports barring local police from enforcing federal immigration law.

Public Safety

Q: Rural healthcare access remains a critical challenge in West Texas. What is your approach to ensuring residents in SD 28 have access to quality healthcare, and what legislative solutions do you support?
A: My approach to rural healthcare is measured, the way that the federal government has structured Medicare and medicaid, it makes it a challenging process for legislators in general, and in a state like Texas its doubly difficult due to the structure of our legislative t it is going to be difficult to undo the damage the passed legislature has already allowed to be done to rural Texans.

That being said I feel the first approach is to go at costs for these hospitals. It's no secret that running a hospital is expensive; running one in a rural district is no different. First, I would aim to cut administrative costs, subsidizing data software for rural hospitals an added barrier to hiring more doctors due to cost per physician. As well as push for tax credits and grants for doctors, PAs, nurse practitioners and specialists that set up a practice in rural communities.

Plans to subsidize data software for rural hospitals to reduce administrative costs and support physician hiring.

Calls for tax credits and grants for clinicians who establish practices in rural communities.

- Plans to subsidize data software for rural hospitals to reduce administrative costs and support physician hiring.
- Calls for tax credits and grants for clinicians who establish practices in rural communities.

Healthcare

Q: SD 28 has historically been a Republican-leaning district. How would you represent all constituents regardless of party affiliation, and what would you bring to the Senate Is that different from the current representation?

However, I've always been independent-minded and believed that everyone has a voice and a say. I understand the concerns of republican constituents and democratic in District 28 because outside of what FOX News andCNN are squawking about, left or right its plain to see its harder and harder to get by, while a small few get disgustingly wealthy I don't need someone to think exactly I do or agree with me on every issue to want to look out for them, that's not what I was taught as a child, I was taught to look out for my neighbor, period. What makes me different is I haven't and won't sell out my rural district for Big tech corporations, public funding to private schools, and less access to Healthcare options for patients. I'm going to the capitol to do a job for the people not protect profits for the billionaires.

Opposes public funding for private schools.

- Opposes public funding for private schools.

Education

Q: Artificial intelligence and data centers are rapidly expanding in Texas, putting pressure on the energy grid and water resources—both critical to West Texas. How should the state balance technological growth with the needs of traditional industries like agriculture and energy production?
A: We should be working on caps for non-agricultural property tax abatements throughout the state. Remove energy sales tax exemptions for data centers from the data center tax exemption program and increase employment standards.

Create a rural water capture program to protect Texas groundwater from being bought up by data center developers and drained.

It won't just be in Childress or Abilene; there are plans for data centers across the state that are leaving citizens with unanswered questions. What will these facilities truly mean for the water supply, power grid, and the health of our communities?

As the massive buildouts rapidly upend the everyday quality of life for District 28 residents, I am pushing for a better path forward focused on the people of West Texas, and it starts with a moratorium on data center development.

SD-28 Democrat Rodriquez responds to Perry AI data center column

Q: Should Texas end tax breaks and regulatory loopholes for oil and gas companies, including exemptions from emissions reporting and waste disposal standards?

Absolutely, oil companies treat the land and their workers like trash, and it’s time they were held accountable.

Q: Would you support redirecting state subsidies from fossil fuels to fund community-owned solar, wind, and battery projects in low-income and rural areas?

Yes, with tougher accountability towards those industries. More environmental regulations for all of them, as well as mandatory upkeep scheduling, evaluated by third-party experts not involved with the company.

Whether it's oil and gas or green energy, corporations are not to be trusted in any way and should be heavily regulated with penalties up to and including prison time.

Calls for ending data centers' energy sales-tax exemption and raising their employment standards.

Calls for a moratorium on data-center development.

Supports ending oil and gas tax breaks and regulatory exemptions, including emissions-reporting and waste-disposal standards.

Supports redirecting fossil-fuel subsidies to community-owned renewable-energy projects and requiring stronger industry oversight.

Proposes a rural water-capture program to protect Texas groundwater from data-center development.

- Calls for ending data centers' energy sales-tax exemption and raising their employment standards.
- Calls for a moratorium on data-center development.
- Supports ending oil and gas tax breaks and regulatory exemptions, including emissions-reporting and waste-disposal standards.
- Supports redirecting fossil-fuel subsidies to community-owned renewable-energy projects and requiring stronger industry oversight.
- Proposes a rural water-capture program to protect Texas groundwater from data-center development.

Energy & the Environment

As of July 22, 2026, Riley Rodriquez’s website did not contain information on this issue.

Voting & Elections

Riley Rodriquez

- Calls for tax credits and grants for clinicians who establish practices in rural communities.

- Supports ending oil and gas tax breaks and regulatory exemptions, including emissions-reporting and waste-disposal standards.
- Supports redirecting fossil-fuel subsidies to community-owned renewable-energy projects and requiring stronger industry oversight.
- Proposes a rural water-capture program to protect Texas groundwater from data-center development.

Riley Rodriquez is from Abilene, Texas. He has lived in several communities throughout Texas. 

Riley Rodriquez's candidate questionnaire for Texas Senate District 28

Big Country native Riley Rodriquez announces run for Texas Senate

Riley is a strength coach and pool service business owner. He previously worked in the oilfield and cowboyed. 

Riley previously ran for Texas State Senate District 28 in 2022 but did not win.

Riley Rodriguez | BallotReady

Democratic candidate Riley Rodriquez, running for Texas State ...

Said, "I will protect mom and pop businesses from corporate monopolies and private equity firms, through reinvestment and tax relief for Texas small business owners."

Supports closing corporations that cannot pay taxes.

Supports increasing access to funding for grants to working-class homeowners who make improvements to their homes.

Supports removing energy sales tax exemptions for data centers from the data center tax exemption program and increasing employment standards.

Supports creating a rural water capture program to protect Texas groundwater from being bought up by data center developers and drained.

Supports holding oil companies accountable.

Said, "Yes, this sews fear and distrust in the community. If someone is in trouble, they are less likely to call the police."

Supports tax credits and grants for medical professionals who establish practices in rural areas.

Said, "I will protect the public education system and introduce legislation that gives teachers more say in the resources they need, not what the state says they can have. I will also work to establish more higher education support for rural students through grants and scholarships."

Supports stricter environmental regulations and third-party evaluations for industries.

Buket Urgen

Pavel Tantchev

Charles Perry

- Your state senator represents the interests of your district in the Texas State Senate. The State Senate, along with the State House of Representatives, makes up your state lawmaking body: the Texas Legislature.
- Your state senator can author, sponsor, and vote on bills that may become state laws after going through the legislative process.
- There are 31 Texas state senators, each representing a single district with a constituency of around 1 million.
- State senators are elected to 4-year terms and one 2-year term per decade, and there are no term limits.
- They are paid a salary of $7,200/year and a per diem of $221/day.

Your representative and state lawmaker in the Texas State Senate.