Rio Grande Guardian
Sept 29, 2026

“We need a watchdog, not just over our money,” Eckhardt said. “We need a watchdog over a one-party rule that thinks it is a proper way. We need watchdogs all across the state, up and down this ticket.”

Daily Texan
Sept 28, 2026

“While the elected officials are hugging it out so that they can hold on to power, the rest of Texans are saying, ‘Holding on to power? You have forgotten what your job is,’” Eckhardt said. “And they’re sick of it. And that’s why we are in a realignment election now.”

Eckhardt said she rejected the idea that Democrats will have to moderate their messaging to win in Texas because of what she perceives as a growing distaste for Republican politicians among the electorate.

“There are no reasonable candidates on the Republican side anymore, and there’s nothing but reasonable candidates on the Democrat side,” Eckhardt said. “I don’t think we need to modulate. We’re the reasonable choice in this environment.”

Texas Tribune
Sept 15, 2026

Noah Betz’s appointment as chief clerk — commonly referred to as deputy comptroller — comes as dozens have left or been pushed out, representing the loss of hundreds of years of institutional knowledge and experience at the agency, in what five former employees described as a chaotic start to Huffines’ temporary tenure. Those workers spoke on the condition of anonymity, out of fear they could be reprimanded by their new employers or that speaking publicly can affect their job prospects.  

“The office is being weaponized,” Eckhardt said. “My concern here is we are seeing the depth of knowledge being routed out of the comptroller’s office.”

Midland Reporter-Telegram
Sept 4, 2026

“If you are serious about being a watchdog for the state taxpayers, you don't fire the top watchdogs in the agency with the expertise to go after corporate tax cheat and uh pay to play contracts in the state of Texas in your first 10 days in office, which is exactly what Don Huffines did,” Eckhardt further criticized. “(But) that’s not surprising from the guy who secretly purchased the Epstein ranch. He is looking to bury the truth in the comptroller's office, similar to burying the truth on a ranch in New Mexico.”

Beaumont Enterprise
Aug 27, 2026

Eckhardt visited Beaumont on Aug. 20 as a guest speaker at the Golden Triangle Minority Business Council’s Building Your Dream Expo, where she outlined her priorities for the comptroller’s office. She said that if elected, her first priorities would include what she called stabilizing the comptroller’s office, auditing the state’s school voucher program and reviewing corporate tax breaks and no-bid contracts.

KVUE
Aug 9, 2026

“He keeps saying he wants to “DOGE Texas,” but I think he really means “dodge taxes,” said Eckhardt. “That means the rest of us are going to pay more while corporate Texans are not going to be paying their fair share. And, he wants to take retribution and build propaganda, much like Ken Paxton did in the AG’s office.” Eckhardt stressed the need for the Comptroller to be a “watchdog, not a lapdog for the rich and powerful” as she described Huffines’ appointment to the Comptroller’s office as an asset instead of a liability for her campaign.

Lone Star Politics
June 30, 2026

Lone Star Politics speaks with Texas Sen. Sarah Eckhardt, D – Austin, about her run for Texas Comptroller. She’s running against conservative businessman and former State Sen. Don Huffines in November. NBC DFW talks to her about her quest to end one-party rule in Texas and the difficulties in separating this race from a more well known race for U.S. Senate.

Mission:Texas Podcast
June 4, 2026

Sarah Eckhardt joined Kate Rumsey, former DOJ prosecutor and Air Force veteran, for the Mission:Texas podcast to discuss what’s at stake for Texas schools and communities with Don Huffines, owner of the Epstein Ranch and MAGA Millionaire who ran to the right of Greg Abbott, on the ballot in November.

Texas Tribune
April 28, 2026

Sarah Eckhardt joined Texas Tribune’s Editor-in-Chief Matthew Watkins for a conversation about the race for Texas Comptroller. Watch her discuss auditing the voucher scheme, standing up for Texas Comptroller employees, and delivering affordability for Texans.

The Daily Texan
March 6, 2026

The comptroller’s office has watchdog functions that can counteract “one-party dictatorship,” she said at the conversation hosted by Evan Smith, a journalist and professor at the LBJ School of Public Affairs. The comptroller functions as the state’s chief financial officer, reporting on economic trends, monitoring appropriations and collecting taxes.

Houston Chronicle Editorial Board
Feb 14, 2026

The Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, says candidate Sarah Eckhardt, 61, is supposed to be a watchdog, protecting Texas taxpayers’ precious dollars. Instead, it’s been a lapdog, snuggling up to the state’s Republican powers-that-be.

We agree. No Democrat has been elected to statewide office since 1994. And it’s been decades since conservative Democratic comptrollers such as John Sharp and Bob Bullock wrote smart reports about Texas money matters, showing strong fiscal leadership independent of the governor’s office and reshaping our state for the better. These days, the comptroller makes news mainly by amplifying the governor’s culture-war hoo-ha.

Texas Tribune
Dec 8, 2025

State Sen. Sarah Eckhardt, D-Austin, on Monday announced she was no longer running for Congress and would instead run for state comptroller.

The pivot, coming on the last day to file for Texas’ 2026 primaries, ends Eckhardt’s roughly monthlong campaign for the 10th Congressional District, a Republican-leaning seat that is being vacated by Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Austin. Eckhardt has served in the Texas Senate since 2020 and was reelected in 2024, meaning she will retain her seat if she loses the comptroller race. Democrats have not won a statewide election in Texas since 1994.