Don McLaughlin

Donald Edward McLaughlin Jr. (born September 20, 1961) is an American businessman and politician who is a member of the Texas House of Representatives from the 80th district. A Republican, he previously served as mayor of Uvalde from 2014 to 2024, and was in office during the Uvalde school shooting in 2022.

Early life McLaughlin was born on September 20, 1961 in Austin, Texas to Don McLaughlin Sr., a football star at the University of Texas, and Barbara Ann Neal, who was a winner of Miss Travis County. His parents had married a mere six days after their first date. When McLaughlin was a toddler, the family moved to Uvalde, Texas where his father was a football coach and worked in the pipe business. McLaughlin attended Texas State University and then Angelo State University before returning to Uvalde prior to graduation to work with his father. In 2000, McLaughlin and his father opened DKM Enterprises, which is a pipe business with 92 employees.

During his mayorship, McLaughlin, a Republican, made several media appearances on Fox News. In September 2021, he appeared on Tucker Carlson Tonight and described the Biden administration's border policies a "clown show", and he has also expressed on the network that the Hispanic community, which composes 72% of Uvalde's population, was "fed up" with Title 42. McLaughlin has been critical of Texas Governor Greg Abbott, calling him a "fraud" on the website The Texan, and endorsed Abbott's 2022 Republican primary opponent Don Huffines. He also has been critical of Senator Ted Cruz and Senator John Cornyn because he has had trouble contacting them as an elected official.

In an interview with The Washington Post, McLaughlin said he frantically rushed to Hillcrest Funeral Home, located across the street from Robb Elementary School, where the shooting occurred, about 15 minutes after the first 9-1-1 call was made. Upon arrival, he describes having encountered a negotiator who was trying to call the shooter on the phone to no avail. McLaughlin reports not having known about the 9-1-1 calls being made by children in the school nor did he hear gunshots from his location across the street.

Following the shooting, McLaughlin appeared on Good Morning America and said that the issue was with mental health and not gun control; he said, "the city donated land. We’ve been trying to get this mental health hospital built here," but added, "when we have kids that are suicidal or kids that have thoughts like this or even adults, we have no place to take them."

In July 2023, McLaughlin criticized local media releasing surveillance footage of the shooting before parents could see it. He described the situation as "one of the most chicken things I’ve ever seen".

McLaughlin has been critical of the state's response to the shooting and has accused the Texas Department of Public Safety, including its director Stephen McCraw, of providing a one-sided and incomplete account, in order to scapegoat local law enforcement as part of a coverup of the state's response. In 2022, a report was released by the Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training Center (ALERRT) at Texas State University saying that a Uvalde city police officer had the shooter in his crosshair, but waited to gain permission from a supervisor, who either did not hear the request or responded to late. McLaughlin subsequently released a statement saying that "no Uvalde police officers had any opportunity to take a shot at the gunman"; furthermore, he added, a "Uvalde Police Department officer saw someone outside but was unsure of who he saw and observed children in the area as well" and that it "ultimately, it was a coach with children on the playground, not the shooter". McLaughlin has said that DPS officers were already on scene when the gunman entered the classroom where the victims were killed and stated, "the May 24 Department of Public Safety (DPS)/Texas Rangers investigation is a disservice to families who lost children or parents because the true facts need to come out once all investigations/reviews, which the City expects will be thorough and fair, are complete". A later legislative report found no evidence for the claim made about the Uvalde Police Department.

Texas House of Representatives 2024 election On July 14, 2023, McLaughlin announced he was resigning from his office as mayor to run for district 80 of the Texas House of Representatives soon after incumbent Tracy King, a moderate Democrat, announced his retirement. McLaughlin described his decision to run as a "no brainer" and added, "out of touch members of the establishment class have been ignoring the concerns of everyday Texans". Issues he cited as important to him were property tax relief, school choice, border security, and land ownership by noncitizens. His campaign was backed by Donald Trump and Abbott. McLaughlin attended the 2024 Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin as a delegate, voting for Trump and approving the party platform.

McLaughlin would go on to defeat Democratic challenger Cecilia Castellano by a wide margin. Since he has aligned himself with the most rightward wing of the Texas GOP, McLaughlin's victory was seen as another vote for Abbott's private school voucher plan and another vote against then-Speaker Dade Phelan.

Tenure McLaughlin's state legislative career was formed in the foreshadow of Uvalde shooting; as such, among his first legislative proposal's was a bill he dubbed the "Uvalde Strong Act" which is aimed toward addressing law enforcement shortcomings on that day. In contrast to his predecessor Tracy King, McLaughlin opposes raising the age to purchase semi-automatic rifles from 18 to 21.

Personal life McLauglin and his wife of over 30 years, Karen, have two adult sons, and are active church-goers. He lives in Uvalde.