Sid Miller's Last Stand

The Outgoing Commissioner and the Democrat Who Agrees With Him

Sid Miller has never been mistaken for a political moderate. The three-term Texas agriculture commissioner built his career on MAGA loyalty, Trump endorsements, and a public persona that thrived on confrontation. His announcement that he would share a stage with Clayton Tucker, the Democratic nominee running to replace him, landed accordingly.

The two are scheduled to appear together at a forum on June 11 at the Matagorda County Fairgrounds in Bay City, hosted by Matagorda Against Data Centers, a community-driven organization focused on transparency, responsible growth, environmental stewardship, and public safety in Matagorda County. Residents started the group after learning two data center facilities are planned for the county, with their primary concern being the impact on their rural way of life. Miller said organizers reached out to him before Tucker's involvement was confirmed, and he agreed because so few state officials have publicly expressed concern over data center construction. He was direct about his reasoning: "I'd never endorse a Democrat, I've never campaigned for a Democrat, but this guy, he's right on the issue. I mean, he's right on other issues, too."

Miller frames data center expansion as an existential threat to ranch country throughout the Republican primary and called for a pause on new data center construction. Miller still holds office through the end of his term, and his presence at a forum built around Tucker's signature campaign issue lends that issue a credibility that crosses party lines.

Tucker is a former Lampasas rancher who founded the Texas Progressive Caucus, serves as the Texas Farmers Union's secretary, and previously worked as a water researcher for the National Science Foundation. His campaign centers on opposition to unchecked data center expansion across Texas agricultural land. "It's not about necessarily being anti-data centers," Tucker said. "It's about, I don't want to sacrifice our water. I don't want us being sheep to slaughter just so big tech can have their AI data centers."

A study by the Houston Advanced Research Center and the University of Houston found that data centers in Texas will consume 49 billion gallons of water in 2025, and as much as 399 billion gallons by 2030. Once converted to data center use, these sites rarely return to agricultural production. Tucker frames the economic toll plainly: "We've been treated as sacrificial lambs for economic development that benefits the greedy few: the Wall Street folks, or the Silicon Valley folks or the very folks at the very top, while the rest of us are given either pennies or higher bills."

During Miller's three terms, he faced two Texas Rangers investigations and Texas Ethics Commission fines for misusing state funds on personal travel. His longtime political consultant Todd Smith pleaded guilty to commercial bribery after soliciting tens of thousands of dollars in exchange for hemp licenses regulated by Miller's own agency. Three months after Smith's guilty plea, Miller hired him as chief of staff at the same agency at the center of his case. Miller was never charged with a crime. Abbott said publicly that Miller had a "history of corruption" and that the office required "zero tolerance for criminality."

Nate Sheets, who ousted Miller with the backing of Gov. Greg Abbott and the Texas Farm Bureau, takes a different view on data centers. Sheets argues that the greater agricultural problem in Texas is the continued consolidation of farmland, and that elected officials and communities should pursue collaboration with data center companies rather than opposition. He also frames data center development as a national security issue tied to competition with China over artificial intelligence supremacy. Sheets has not called for a moratorium.

The financial gap between the two November candidates is considerable. Tucker raised $108,000 through the end of 2025, while Sheets raised over $506,000 during the same period. No Democrat has won statewide office in Texas in three decades. None of that changes the fact that a Trump-endorsed Republican commissioner just handed Tucker the most credible crossover endorsement his campaign is likely to see before November.

@Santitos

@salinasmariasantos

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