Texas governor picks veteran GOP lawmaker for elections job

FILE - Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, front center, is flanked by state Sen. Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, front left, and Rep. Greg Bonnen, R-Friendswood, front right, with others looking on as he signs a bill that provides additional funding for security at the U.S.-Mexico border on Sept. 17, 2021, in Fort Worth, Texas. Abbott on Tuesday, Dec. 6, 2022, named Nelson, a longtime GOP lawmaker with a record of bipartisan appeal, as his choice to become the state's new election chief after facing blowback and scrutiny over his past picks to oversee voting. (AP Photo/LM Otero, File)

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Gov. Greg Abbott on Tuesday tapped a longtime Republican lawmaker to be Texas' new elections chief, a pick who could enjoy a smoother confirmation process following the blowback and scrutiny his two previous picks faced.

Jane Nelson, a state senator who didn't seek reelection last month, hasn't been a divisive figure in the Legislature and gives Abbott a candidate with a strong path to confirmation in the state Senate chamber where she served for 30 years.

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