Dear Plano Republican voters:
Serial politician and current Plano City Council candidate Hayden Padgett has NOT been endorsed by the Republican Party for good reason: He has consistently fought against GOP principles, endorsed progressive causes and orgs such as Black Lives Matter (BLM), supported COVID mandates, authorized frivolous lawsuits against and attacked hard working conservatives in the Party’s youth wing, worked to undermine core conservative priorities, supported Nikki Haley and various NeverTrumper candidates, forged & faked dozens of Republican membership credentials with the California GOP, and presided over the ongoing and continued dissolution of the Young Republican Federation.
For Hayden, serving on City Council would be nothing more than a stepping stone for something great he and his closest supporters believe he is destined for. He would not likely serve out a full term, as he would file for a bigger office as soon as the opportunity arose. At his core, Padgett does not care about local issues. His hope is that you will vote for him because he has been endorsed by a few moderate Republican legislators, to help create the illusion that he has some degree of conservative credibility. He does not have that.
You are best advised to vote for his opponent, Vidal Quintanilla, who has voted in the last two Republican primaries in Texas. Vidal has shown a granular level interest in local issues in Plano for years.
(NOTE: Vidal’s voting record in last section at bottom)
The subsequent entries on this page document the truth about and the distractions of Hayden Padgett, a public figure running for Plano City Council.
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
I. Padgett’s support for BLM
II. Padgett fails to secure GOP endorsement
III. Padgett’s frivolous trademark lawsuit
IV. Padgett forges Republican rosters and credentials
V. Padgett’s record of socially progressive positions
VI. Analysis
As BLM and Antifah rioters were destroying property and burning inner blue cities across America in 2020, Young Republican national leader, serial politician, and current Plano City Council candidate Hayden Padgett made this video because he thought he was getting ahead of the issue, and also, frankly because he a is a progressive Republican. In the video, and in various conversations and speeches, Padgett has blamed Republican policies for harming race relations.
This kind of pandering, pseudo race-baiting language does not help the conservative cause. John Walker of The Lone Star Ledger wrote this piece on the topic.
https://lonestarledger.substack.com/p/plano-city-council-candidate-hayden
Padgett fails to secure GOP endorsement.
The Republican Party of Texas declined to endorse Hayden Padgett in March, because of his track record. Padgett’s application for endorsement was overwhelmingly rejected by the committee, True Texas Project and other conservative groups have also refused to endorse or recommend him for Plano City Council.
Unfortunately, there are a few groups that did not get the memo in time (or did not research thoroughly enough), including a handful of Plano precinct chairs, and candidate vetting persons within the Collin County GOP.
We don’t fault volunteer republican activists for not knowing enough about a candidate in time, BUT collectively, we as Republicans must do a better job of being informed, vetting and preparing our candidates for nonpartisan local races.
Frivolous Trademark Lawsuit.
Padgett authorized and gave the green light to Texas Young Republican leaders to launch a frivolous trademark lawsuit against breakaway Young Republican clubs that wanted to form a more conservative coalition of that would be partnered with the RPT, embrace MAGA, and America First and conservative Texas priorities.
You can read the lawsuit and see the court actions here: (you may need to copy/paste)
https://courtsportal.dallascounty.org/DALLASPROD/Home/Dashboard/29
Type in Case Number: DC-2318308
For a full report on Padgett’s role in the frivolous trademark lawsuit against conservative leaders, and Padgett’s role at the Young Republican National Federation, please see the “Background of the Lawsuit” tab in the top right.
Fabricated and forged credentials in the California GOP
In the previous decade, when Hayden Padgett was a young leader in the California Young Republicans, he led a scheme to forge and fake Republican membership credentials with the California Young Republican Federation and the California GOP. The names of the people he submitted were either registered Democrats, not real people, or denied involvement in his organization.
You can read the full letter from former GOP officials concerning the scheme and the tens of thousands of dollars in legal bills that resulted from the shenanigans. Hayden was subsequently forced out of the California GOP. You can read the full letter here.
(Note: Some names have been redacted, of individuals who have embraced MAGA and conservative values, and also done some good works for the cause in recent times)
Social moderate, progressive positions, strange donations from out of state
Hayden Padgett has been a tremendous supporter of marriage equality and the Log Cabin Republicans.
We are continuing to document Padgett’s history of supporting liberal and progressive causes. Obviously, being a serial candidate, he has scrubbed much of it from his social media. Many of such topics might not be as relevant in local nonpartisan races, but they tell the tale of his deception through his various candidacies. He has scrubbed much of his social media.
In a 2020 press release, Padgett also called for January 6ers to be thrown in jail and prosecuted to the “fullest extent of the law”.
Additionally, Padgett’s campaign appears to be financed in part by a large number of political donations from out of state. In fact, most of his donors are from out of state. Why has Padgett sought or been so reliant on campaign donations from people outside of North Texas to finance his campaign? Is it to give the appearance that he has broad support from a lot of small donors in the grassroots?
If so, then why couldn’t he find those small dollar amount donors in Collin County?
Are all of the small donors real people??
ANALYSIS
The speculation from seasoned observers and others in the know is that Hayden doesn’t truly care about local issues and is unfamiliar with the city. He has spoken only vaguely about things like local infrastructure, public safety, the green parks in the area, but his few speeches have been devoid of substance and Hayden has never demonstrated knowhow and experience in tackling city problems the way his opponent has. Other candidates running for city council in Plano have spoken with granular detail about addressing local problems.
Padgett’s deception relies on speaking to people in vague generalities, and an avoidance of detailing solutions. Those who know him have said that he is more interested in running for state house or congress or US Senate, and that if he were serving in a nonpartisan office at the city level, he would not likely serve out a full term, and would file to run for a higher office the first opportunity he got.
Republican voters are better off voting for Hayden’s opponent, Vidal Quintanilla, for Plano City Council Place 8 in the nonpartisan May 3rd municipal elections. As seen in the images in the section below under additional information, Vidal has voted in the last two Republican primaries in Texas. Vidal has shown a street level interest in local, street level issues in Plano for years.
A vote for Hayden Padgett equates to helping prop up another aspiring career politician who will NOT embrace the cause of, nor fight for the agenda of the conservative grassroot in the long term.
Additional information:
Hayden’s opponent is Vidal Quintanilla. His voting record shows he voted in the last two Republican primaries in Texas. (The red icon in 2022 and 2024 indicates Republican primary)
