'Wish you well:' Nelson will not seek re-election for Texas Senate

State Rep. Armando Walle (D-Houston) gave his well wishes to State Sen. Jane Nelson as she announces her decision not to seek re-election in 2022.

Nelson has served for 28 years and is currently in her 10th term, which is the most for any Senate Republican, said a press release from Nelson's office.  

"Appreciate working with you, Sen. Nelson during the last two budgets and wish you well in your next endeavor," Walle said in a Twitter post. 

In 1992 she became the 10th woman and the third Republican woman elected to the Senate, Nelson said in a press release. 

Six years later, she became the first Republican woman to chair a standing Senate committee when then-Lieutenant Gov. Rick Perry named her chair of the Senate Health Committee, the press release stated.

In 2020, she was re-elected with the most votes any Texas Senate candidate has ever received, said the press release. 

"It has been a great honor to represent our community in the Texas Senate," Nelson said in a statement. "I promised to listen, work hard and deliver results and have strived to fulfill that pledge. Our accomplishments have improved the lives of Texans, which makes me proud. I love my constituents, my staff and my colleagues in the Senate and owe them, as well as my family, a debt of gratitude. As this chapter closes, you can count on me to keep working to build a better Texas." 

Nelson is a former teacher and a businesswoman who served two terms on the State Board of Education, said the press release. She represents District 12, which include parts of Denton and Tarrant counties. 

She and her husband, J. Michael Nelson, have five children and 12 grandchildren, said the press release.