The rift adds new tension inside the GOP as the race heads toward November. Sheets faces Democrat Clayton Tucker, who nearly received Miller's endorsement. "The sitting Republican ad commissioner is campaigning with the Democrat to make sure I don't win," Sheets said.
Sheets also speculated that the Miller-Tucker partnership could be a cover-up tied to work at the Texas Department of Agriculture. He then turned to data centers, saying Tucker wants to use the issue to grab farmers and ranchers and eventually control their land. "We're not going to let that happen in Texas," Sheets said. "I'm not pro data center. I'm pro local decisions, pro local control."
For people in the Panhandle, the pitch landed on the question of who pays attention to rural places. Alex Taylor, a 22-year-old voter, said the commissioner's office directly affects communities like Canyon, and those places often get overlooked. That is why voters in Randall County should get out and meet Sheets, Taylor said.
Sheets' own question hangs over the race: why would Miller blow up a 25-year career?