Prather announced his intention to seek the office last July after Abbott issued a statewide mask mandate, but launched his campaign on Friday at Washington-on-the-Brazos.
“This is the area where it all started, [. . .] where the Texas Declaration was signed in this region,” said Prather during an interview in Brenham. “And I think it’s time for Texas once again to be able to step up and declare that we’re governing ourselves, and not the 2.5 million bureaucrats that are unelected in Washington, D.C.”
“The goal is to make Texas great and keep it great,” said Prather.
In an interview with the BlazeTV’s Stu Burguiere, Prather said that he was running because, “Greg Abbott has never been opposed by anybody on the right, his entire political career in Texas.”
“And I’m not convinced the guy is really, truly a conservative. I think he’s bought out by big business,” said Prather. “I just think somebody’s got to get out there and stir the conversation.”
Prather rose to popularity in 2015 after his humorist rant “Unapologetically Southern” went viral on YouTube.
Since then, he has also become a BlazeTV host for the Chad Prather Show.
Prather’s run against the governor in the 2022 GOP primary will be an uphill battle, though, since Abbott has a widespread name ID, a campaign war chest of $40 million, and a high voter approval rating among Republicans.
Nonetheless, there has been discontent among some Republicans with Abbott, particularly over the past year with respect to his pandemic response.
Several Republican county executive committees censured Abbott and pushed for censure from the statewide party ahead of its convention last year, though those ambitions were pushed aside during the chaotic virtual convention pulled together at the last minute.
Abbott has also faced consistent tension with the Texas GOP chairman elected at that convention, Allen West, who has himself been rumored to be considering a challenge for the gubernatorial position.
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Daniel Friend
Daniel Friend is the Marketing and Media Manager for The Texan. After graduating with a double-major in Political Science and Humanities, he wrote for The Texan as a reporter through June 2022. In his spare time, you're likely to find him working on The Testimony of Calvin Lewis, an Abolition of Man-inspired novel and theatrical podcast.
