TNP Member and Nurse Practitioner Leader Holly Jeffreys Wins Primary for Texas House District 86

Texas Nurse Practitioners proudly congratulates longtime member and nurse practitioner leader Holly Jeffreys on her decisive primary election victory in the race for Texas House District 86. Jeffreys secured the Republican nomination Tuesday night with 66 percent of the vote, positioning her to advance to the November general election in the race to succeed retiring Rep. John Smithee of Amarillo.

Jeffreys is a highly respected nurse practitioner, educator, and rural health leader whose career has been dedicated to improving access to care across the Texas Panhandle. She currently serves as Dean at West Texas A&M University and owns four rural health clinics serving communities that rely on nurse practitioners and other frontline providers to deliver essential care.

For years, Jeffreys has also been a tireless advocate for patients and the nurse practitioner profession. She has testified numerous times before the Texas Legislature on policies to improve access to care, including efforts to modernize nurse practitioner practice laws. Her leadership extends beyond the classroom and clinic—Jeffreys also serves on the Lieutenant Governor’s Healthcare Advisory Board, where she brings critical frontline insight to statewide policy discussions.

If elected in November, Jeffreys would become the first nurse practitioner ever elected to the Texas Legislature—a historic milestone that would bring a new level of clinical expertise and patient-centered perspective to policymaking at the Capitol. At a time when Texas faces significant healthcare workforce and access challenges, having practicing clinicians in legislative leadership is more important than ever.

Texas Nurse Practitioners celebrates this exciting milestone and looks forward to continuing to support leaders who understand firsthand the needs of patients and the healthcare professionals who serve them.