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Some questions and Benjamin’s answers...
What are your qualifications and experiences pertinent to the office of Land Commissioner?
Answer: I bring 30 years of professional experience in cybersecurity, risk management, governance, and compliance. These aren't just transferable skills; they're the foundation for transforming how the General Land Office operates.
My career has been built on protecting assets, identifying vulnerabilities, and ensuring organizational accountability. In enterprise cybersecurity and risk management, the stakes are existential: a single governance failure can cost an organization millions of dollars and destroy public trust. I've spent three decades developing frameworks to prevent exactly those failures, analyzing complex systems, implementing controls, ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements, and holding organizations accountable to fiduciary standards. But I've also learned that the best risk management isn't defensive. It's about positioning an organization to seize opportunities others miss because they lack the governance infrastructure to act decisively.
That's what I'm bringing to the GLO isn’t just competence, but a complete reimagining of what this office can be. The Land Commissioner sits atop a $56 billion investment fund, 13 million acres of public land, and critical disaster recovery infrastructure. Under current leadership, these assets are managed reactively and politically. I see them as the foundation for a GLO 2.0 that maximizes value for Texas schools, delivers equitable disaster response, and treats public resources as the intergenerational trust they actually are.
Currently, I serve on Bay City's City Council, where I've gained hands-on experience with municipal governance, public budgeting, and direct constituent services. Council work has reinforced my belief that effective governance isn't about ideology. It's about showing up, listening to residents, making defensible decisions with public money, and being accountable for results.
I also own a small heritage pig operation, which has given me practical experience managing land responsibly (albeit at a small scale), navigating agricultural regulations, and the Texas Right to Farm Act. These are issues directly relevant to the GLO's management of state lands and its relationships with rural Texans.
The incumbent Land Commissioner treats this office as a platform for partisan posturing. I'm offering Texans something fundamentally different – a leader who will rebuild the GLO around its actual mission and unlock the full potential of the assets Texans have entrusted to it.
What is your top priority in office?
Answer: Permanent School Fund Optimization. Implement professional investment management strategies to maximize returns on the $56 billion Permanent School Fund. My analysis indicates that proper diversification and governance reforms could generate up to $825 million more annually for Texas public schools, potentially lowering everyone’s property taxes.
Share any experience that illustrates your understanding of and interest in the needs of the LGBTQ+ community in the General Land Office.
Answer: I've had LGBTQ+ people in my life for as long as I can remember. Neighbors. Roommates. Friends. Colleagues in tech and cybersecurity. I've seen them deal with discrimination at work, barriers to healthcare, and the constant worry about whether the next election would make their lives harder. The GLO runs the Veterans Land Board. LGBTQ+ veterans served this country – many of them while hiding who they were. They deserve full access to land loans, nursing home care, and every benefit it offers. No asterisks. No second-class treatment. I'll make sure the VLB is welcoming to LGBTQ+ veterans and their families, and that the VLB leadership and staff understand that this isn't up for debate.
Why are you running for Land Commissioner?
Answer: I'm running for Texas Land Commissioner because Texans deserve a leader who will maximize returns on the Permanent School Fund rather than pursue partisan distractions. The current administration has left hundreds of millions of dollars on the table through suboptimal investment strategies and politicized decision making. My analysis shows that proper diversification and professional management of PSF assets could generate more revenue for Texas public schools and provide property tax relief. Every dollar we fail to optimize is a dollar taken from Texas classrooms, and that burden falls hardest on under-resourced schools, especially those serving Black and Brown communities.
In which professional organizations are you currently a member, what position(s) do you hold and for how long ?
Answer: With my background in cybersecurity, I am a member of ISACA, ISC2, InfraGard. I hold no officer positions in those. I’m in my third year as a Council Member in Bay City. I also sit at the Bay City Community Development Corporation, the Matagorda County Development Corporation, and have represented Bay City at the Houston-Galveston Area Council for the last two years. I was also the Treasurer for the Texas Democratic Small Business Caucus.
What will you do to counter Trump and Republicans’ anti-people agenda?
Answer: The Land Commissioner has authority over how the GLO operates. I don't need permission from Austin or Washington to run the agency with integrity. I'll make sure disaster recovery funds go to communities that need them, not just politically connected ones. I'll protect the Permanent School Fund from being raided for voucher schemes. I'll keep the GLO focused on serving Texans instead of generating headlines for their culture war nonsense. And I'll be a voice. Statewide Democrats need to push back publicly. I will.
Where do you stand on the highhandedness of ICE and what will you do to counter it?
Answer: As someone who moved from Mexico City in 1996 and became a U.S. citizen in the early 2010s, I understand both the importance of immigration processes and the humanity required in their implementation. In June 2025, I spoke out against ICE overreach from my City Council dais, reminding our local law enforcement officers of their oath and warning that supporting ICE actions would lose the community trust they've worked so hard to earn. ICE raids do nothing to improve our security, they only instill fear. While the GLO has no direct authority over ICE, as Land Commissioner I will use the authority I will have to ensure that state lands under our control aren't used for detention facilities or enforcement activities that violate human dignity, due process or the rule of law. I'll continue using my voice as an elected official to advocate for humane immigration policies and speak out against tactics that tear apart the fabric of our communities.
Would you describe yourself as progressive?
Answer: I support healthcare and broadband internet as rights. Medical decisions should be between patients and their doctors I support THC and psilocybin research for therapeutic use. I oppose guest worker programs that create a permanent underclass without a path to citizenship. Where I might differ from some progressives is on the execution: I'm less interested in messaging and more interested in delivering results. I want to prove progressive governance works by actually making it work, not just talk about it.
Are you committed to freedom of expression, freedom of religion, the freedom to boycott, and to speaking out against human rights abuses around the world and here at home? Are you committed to equitable outcomes for individuals everywhere?
Answer: Yes. All of it. Freedom of expression and religion are foundational. The right to boycott is protected speech. I oppose anti-BDS laws that punish people for their political views. Human rights abuses should be called out wherever they happen, including in our country. Consistency matters. I believe we should provide real opportunities for all Texans to thrive. The General Land Office should serve everyone fairly and, as Land Commissioner, I'll make sure it does.