Pat Dixon wants Texas to stop giving tax breaks to lure big corporations and instead make growth pay for itself.
The Lago Vista small business owner is running as the Libertarian candidate for Texas governor in the Nov. 3 general election. He faces Republican Gov. Greg Abbott and Democrat Gina Hinojosa.
"Three choices is not a crowded ballot," Dixon said in his response to a Vote-USA questionnaire. He added elsewhere in his response: "When it is this important, your choices should not be limited."
Candidate information
- Party: Libertarian
- Age: 62
- Residence: Lago Vista, Texas
- Education: Bachelor's degree in paper science and engineering, Miami University, Oxford, Ohio (1987)
- Occupation: President, DPAS Inc., a small business and engineering consulting firm (1998-present)
- Family: Single
Experience and public service
Dixon served on the Lago Vista City Council from 2005 to 2007 and from 2008 to 2010. He chaired the Libertarian Party of Texas for 10 years and has worked with Republican and Democratic state legislators since 2004, according to his questionnaire responses. He describes himself as a small business owner with professional leadership experience.
He ran as the Libertarian candidate for state Senate District 14 in 2022. According to his BallotReady profile, he also ran for U.S. House District 20 in 2024.
On the issues
Free market sustainability (top priority): Dixon said his opponents give taxpayer money to large corporations to bring them to Texas, leaving residents to bear the costs of growth. His alternative: those who increase demand for water, energy, roads, schools and public safety should pay for those costs. "Texas will not be sustainable if the burden of growth falls solely on you," he said in his questionnaire response.
Electric grid and data centers: Dixon pointed to AI data centers as a prime example of misguided tax policy. According to the state comptroller's office, Texas is projected to forgo roughly $3.2 billion in sales tax revenue over two years because of exemptions for qualifying data centers. "I am the only candidate for governor that is offering a sustainable economic policy," Dixon said.
Property taxes: Dixon said he would focus on cutting state spending before pursuing lower taxes. He cited a $321 billion state budget. Texas passes two-year budgets, and that figure was for the 2024-25 cycle. He cautioned voters to "beware of those who make popular promises with no detail."
Public safety and Robert Roberson: Dixon called for the exoneration of Robert Roberson, who has been on death row since 2003. Dixon noted that 84 Texas House members signed a clemency petition for Roberson in 2024. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals stayed Roberson's execution in October 2025, and a lower court is reviewing whether he should get a new trial. Under the Texas Constitution, the governor can grant clemency only on the recommendation of the Board of Pardons and Paroles. Dixon said he would ask the board to reconsider the case. He also pointed to his council record in Lago Vista, where he said he pushed to increase police pay to attract and retain officers.
Border policy: Dixon said the governor does not make federal border policy but should cooperate in enforcement. He said the Biden administration "failed on this issue." He credited the Trump administration with reducing border crossings but criticized its methods. "Praising Trump for these results while killing and harassing people is like being happy if crime was eliminated by putting everyone in prison," he said.
Education: Dixon said he supports a statewide scholarship that would give every child the same funding to follow them to any school. He also called for removing politically motivated testing mandates and freeing teachers to use their skills.
Water supply: Dixon cited his city council experience with a $6 million property purchase for water plant effluent management. He said he has the experience to find common ground on clean and sustainable water supply.
Dixon also said Abbott "uses the election code to rig elections" and criticized what he called corporate welfare to AI data centers. He criticized Hinojosa's plan to tap the state's rainy day fund for $1,500 household rebates, which he said would cut the reserve to about one month of operating costs, calling it "fiscally irresponsible." According to his campaign website, he supports nonpartisan redistricting.
