{"id":166182,"date":"2026-02-16T00:31:15","date_gmt":"2026-02-16T00:31:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/166182\/"},"modified":"2026-02-16T00:31:15","modified_gmt":"2026-02-16T00:31:15","slug":"doctor-farmer-veteran-donald-may-hopes-voters-send-him-a-self-described-common-citizen-to-serve-in-congress","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/166182\/","title":{"rendered":"Doctor, farmer, veteran Donald May hopes voters send him, a self-described ‘common citizen,’ to serve in Congress"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dr. Donald May \u2013 running for Congress in the 2026 Republican Primary for the seat Jodey Arrington will soon leave \u2013 said he does not consider himself to be a politician.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m just a common citizen who wants to go up there and serve, spend four or five terms up there and come back to West Texas,\u201d May said.<\/p>\n

Ongoing coverage:\u00a0Learn what\u2019s coming as Lubbock Lights kicks off Texas Primary \u201826 coverage<\/a><\/p>\n

May calls himself a sixth generation farmer with a family-owned farm in Illinois.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy dad was a tenant farmer \u2013 quit work when he was 13 \u2026 worked for a dollar a day as a hired man. Mom quit school, worked for 42 cents a day as a clock factory worker,\u201d May said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not going to take my salary. That\u2019s going to be turned into scholarships and other things for local conservative students so we can have next future generations of great leaders,\u201d May said.<\/p>\n

As a kid, he was involved with 4-H In college, he studied nuclear physics and immunochemistry and went to medical school.<\/p>\n

May says he was an early adopter and developer of vitrectomy \u2013 a form of eye surgery \u2013 sometimes even developing his own tools and instruments for the surgeries.<\/p>\n

\u201cI decided that one of the things that I really enjoyed was putting together severely traumatized eyes,\u201d May said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI ended up in San Antonio, Wilford Hall,\u201d May said \u2013 where he treated \u201ctraumatized military personnel and military civilians.\u201d<\/p>\n

May worked for several medical institutions over the years \u2013 coming to the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center in 1989 \u2013 working there as a tenured professor and chair of ophthalmology until 1994.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter 9-11, I started writing for a new publication called TownHall.com \u2026 wrote a 10 or 12-part weekly column called \u2018One Nation Under God,\u2019\u201d May said.<\/p>\n

\u201cBasically, it explained, outlined, why our country is a Christian nation,\u201d May said.<\/p>\n

May described himself as a member of the Military Officers Association of America, the American Legion, the National Rifle Association and Farm Bureau.<\/p>\n

Asked about top priorities<\/p>\n

When asked about top priorities, May started by saying, \u201cWe\u2019ve got prices that people want to get down. We\u2019ve got wages that people want to get up.\u201d<\/p>\n

President Donald Trump is doing a good job with wages and prices, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think people should be more optimistic than they are, but they\u2019re not,\u201d May said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve had trade problems in the past. Other countries would charge us tariffs for the grain we sold,\u201d May said.<\/p>\n

He cited high tariffs, as one example, that Canada historically charged against American farmers.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd Trump, with his tariffs and trade negotiations, is getting China to buy soybeans, and the prices are going up,\u201d May said.<\/p>\n

\u201cBeans today are just about $11 a bushel, which is not superb, but it\u2019s better. Corn, about $4.04 a bushel today, which is better than $3.30 a bushel. It\u2019s not superb, but it\u2019s coming up,\u201d May said.<\/p>\n

Trump is working the cost of \u201cinputs\u201d for farmers \u2013 things like fertilizer and chemicals, he said.<\/p>\n

May thinks Trump has done a really good job of border security. If anything, he wants to see more of it.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe border needs to be closed. We\u2019ve still got still got over 1,000 miles of Texas border that doesn\u2019t have a fence on it. \u2026 We need to know who is coming into this country,\u201d May said.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Corley\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\tCorley says no one should be able to \u2018buy a congressman\u2019 as he pushes for lobbying reform, also inflation, in bid for office<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFebruary 15, 2026\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Barbee\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\tBarbee funding his own campaign \u2013 standing apart from other candidates on taxes, healthcare too<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFebruary 15, 2026\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

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\t\t\t\t\t\tSell hopes experience working with Combest in Congress (emphasizing work on Farm Bill) will sell him to voters<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFebruary 13, 2026\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Roofer\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\tRoofer \u2018Fat Matt\u2019 Smith running for Congress with deep conviction \u2013 viewing everything through lens of Scripture<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFebruary 13, 2026\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Political\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\tPolitical consultant Newton \u2018never expected to run for office,\u2019 but he seeks county\u2019s Precinct 2 seat with focus on budgeting<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFebruary 10, 2026\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Pounds\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\tPounds now running for Precinct 2 commissioner to fund volunteer fire departments, fix roads, buildings<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFebruary 10, 2026\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Martin\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\tMartin supports budget cuts, wants county government to be \u2018boring\u2019 again as he runs for Precinct 2 commissioner<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFebruary 10, 2026\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

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\t\t\t\t\t\tRackler proud about stand on taxes, Expo Center \u2013 wants to continue representing people in county\u2019s Precinct 4<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFebruary 6, 2026\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

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\t\t\t\t\t\tSeay wants his old seat back as Precinct 4 commissioner \u2013 wants to make sure public safety is supported<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFebruary 6, 2026\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

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\t\t\t\t\t\tFormer constable Peterson wants to return to county as Precinct 4 commissioner after navigating life\u2019s ups and downs<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFebruary 6, 2026\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Learn\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\tLearn what\u2019s coming as Lubbock Lights kicks off Texas Primary \u201826 coverage<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFebruary 3, 2026\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Parrish\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\tParrish seeking third term as county judge, lists accomplishments but adds \u2018We\u2019ve got some more work to go\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFebruary 3, 2026\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Houck\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\tHouck moved family back to Texas for way of life, now seeking office as county judge, saying leadership needed<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFebruary 3, 2026\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

The nation\u2019s energy policy should recognize we depend on oil and gas, May said, adding he was not complimentary of the state\u2019s renewable energy performance during the winter storm of February 2021.<\/p>\n

\u201cWindmills stopped working and froze up, the solar panels got covered with snow and ice, and we did not have a backup,\u201d May said.<\/p>\n

He thinks with the growth of A.I. and datacenters, there might be more need for nuclear power.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need to make sure we stay ahead of the Chinese. \u2026 If the Chinese were to get ahead of us in artificial intelligence, our Golden Dome [missile defense system] is going to be based on artificial intelligence,\u201d May said.<\/p>\n

\u201cTerm limits are important because it\u2019s a great temptation to go and to become famous and to become powerful,\u201d May said.<\/p>\n

\n\tRelated\n<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Related posts\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Dr. Donald May \u2013 running for Congress in the 2026 Republican Primary for the seat Jodey Arrington will…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":166183,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[168,170,169],"class_list":["post-166182","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-lubbock","tag-lubbock","tag-lubbock-headlines","tag-lubbock-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/166182","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=166182"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/166182\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/166183"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=166182"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=166182"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=166182"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}