Most Texans probably know who Dan Patrick is.
Vikki Goodwin is another matter.
In the latest Texas A&M Bush School/ReconMR poll, Goodwin led Patrick 48% to 46% among likely voters. That is within the poll’s margin of error, so statistically it is a tie. Another recent poll has Patrick ahead.
But here is the remarkable number: 56% of likely voters said they did not know enough about Vikki Goodwin to have an opinion about her.
The woman most Texans don’t know is running even with one of the most powerful politicians in Texas.
So let’s put them next to each other.
VIKKI GOODWIN
Four-Term Legislator
Goodwin was first elected to the Texas House in 2018, defeating Republican incumbent Paul Workman. She is now serving her fourth term representing western Travis County.
She Actually Studied Government
Goodwin earned a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Texas and then a Master of Public Affairs from UT’s LBJ School of Public Affairs.
She also runs a residential real-estate business with her husband.
That may sound boring.
For lieutenant governor, boring may be a qualification.
She Has Passed Legislation
Goodwin’s legislative record includes Cati’s Act, intended to prevent child drownings at child-care centers, and the Natalia Cox Act, strengthening the response to domestic violence.
Her record also includes legislation involving mental-health and recovery services and Texas food-system resiliency.
Her Issues Are Not Complicated
Goodwin’s major campaign priorities are public schools, clean water, affordable housing and healthcare.
She opposes the state’s private-school voucher program and argues that Texas should put more money into public education.
Those issues may not generate as much television outrage as bathrooms, DEI or the Ten Commandments.
They do, however, affect people’s lives.
Temperament
The Houston Chronicle editorial board described Goodwin as disciplined, hardworking, fact-focused and substantive.
There is nothing particularly flashy about Vikki Goodwin.
That may be precisely the contrast she is offering.
DAN PATRICK
Patrick has been in public life long enough that his side could fill several pages.
There is no reason to make readers suffer through all of them.
1986 — Bankruptcy
Before politics, Patrick was a Houston television personality and businessman who invested in sports bars.
The businesses collapsed during the Houston oil bust, and Patrick filed personal bankruptcy with roughly $800,000 in debt.
People fail in business. Bankruptcy is legal.
It is simply part of the biography of a politician who later built a career lecturing government about fiscal responsibility.
2004 — Dannie Goeb Becomes Dan Goeb Patrick
Patrick had used “Dan Patrick” professionally for years, but his legal surname remained Goeb.
Then Republicans approached him about running for Congress.
Patrick tells the story himself. He learned that he would have to appear on the ballot under his legal name and concluded:
“No one would have a clue who Dan Goeb was on the ballot.”
He legally changed his name to Dan Goeb Patrick.
No accusation is necessary.
Just remember the date and his explanation.
Immigration — Then and Now
A former employee, Miguel Andrade, said he worked without legal status at one of Patrick’s sports bars in the 1980s and remembered Patrick treating immigrant workers compassionately.
Patrick denied knowingly employing undocumented workers or offering Andrade assistance crossing the border.
Patrick later made hard-line opposition to illegal immigration one of the foundations of his political career.
Readers can decide what to make of the chronology.
2019 — Doctors Save Patrick’s Life
In August 2019, Patrick experienced significant chest pain. Doctors continued testing, discovered a dangerous heart blockage and inserted a stent.
March 2020 — Grandparents Should Take a Chance
Seven months later, as COVID-19 spread across the country, Patrick said senior citizens like himself should be willing to “take a chance on your survival” rather than allow efforts to stop the virus to destroy the economy for their children and grandchildren.
He said he believed “lots of grandparents” felt the same way.
April 2020
“There are more important things than living.”
No editorial comment is necessary.
2023 — $3 Million While Preparing to Preside Over Paxton’s Trial
When Attorney General Ken Paxton was impeached by the Texas House, Patrick was preparing to preside over the Senate impeachment trial.
During that period, the pro-Paxton Defend Texas Liberty PAC gave Patrick’s campaign $1 million and loaned it another $2 million.
The organization was actively fighting Paxton’s impeachment.
The contributions were legal.
They were also extraordinary enough to raise an obvious question about appearances when the man receiving the money was about to preside over the trial.
That is enough skeletons for one article.
There are more.
David, Goliath and $35 Million
There is one more side-by-side comparison that tells you what Goodwin faces.
Patrick reported approximately $35 million in campaign cash on hand after the first half of 2026.
Goodwin raised less than $1 million during the same period.
Patrick has money, statewide recognition, control of the Texas Senate and more than a decade of power behind him.
Goodwin has something very different.
Most Texans haven’t made up their minds about her because most Texans still don’t know who she is.
Normally that would be a terrible problem for a statewide candidate.
But a candidate whom 56% of likely voters say they don’t know well enough to judge is nevertheless receiving 48% against Dan Patrick in one current poll.
Perhaps those voters are voting for Goodwin.
Perhaps some are simply voting against Patrick.
Either way, Dan Patrick has a problem he has not faced in a long time.
Vikki Goodwin does not have to introduce Texans to Dan Patrick.
She only has to introduce Texans to Vikki Goodwin.