TYLER, Texas (KLTV) - Lindale resident and Green Party nominee for Texas lieutenant governor Kevin McCormick said Texas needs a new direction.

“It needs new orientation towards the people of Texas as opposed to the state government’s orientation now, which is serving Wall Street,” he said Monday.

KLTV
By Leo Quevedo
October 12, 2026

McCormick criticized Gov. Greg Abbott’s property tax proposals, saying taxes have practically doubled during Abbott’s tenure. He proposed assessing property based on rental value and area income.

He opposes Texas’ school voucher program, arguing it could weaken public education by subsidizing private school for higher-income families.

“Because you have the upper class, which kind of controls things, having their education subsidized in their private schools that they want, so they can neglect public schools even more,” he said.

If retained, McCormick said, vouchers could be means-tested for lower-income families whose public schools are inadequate and who have another school option.

For rural investment, McCormick proposed favorable loans for family farms to build greenhouses, support for hemp and regenerative agriculture, and more funding for county roads and bridges.

He also supports Medicaid expansion and a drug policy focused on treatment, prevention and rehabilitation rather than criminal justice.

“I think that the public support is there,” McCormick said. “There’s just nobody advocating for it at the state level.”

He proposed directing 10% of state transportation spending to urban bus service. He supports high-speed rail in principle, but said the Texas Constitution would need to be amended to support rail infrastructure.

“The Texas Constitution specifically says that the Texas Department of Transportation can only do highways,” McCormick explained. “It’s not allowed to do anything else, so that would need to be amended.”

He is running for election Nov. 3.