Governor Greg Abbott has reappointed Kenny Marchant and Ajay Thomas to the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs. Their new terms will expire on January 31, 2031.
Kenny Marchant, from Coppell, previously served as a member of the United States House of Representatives for Texas’ 24th District between 2005 and 2021. Before that, he was a member of the Texas House of Representatives from 1987 to 2005 and also held roles as a City Councilman and Mayor in Carrollton, Texas. Marchant’s professional background includes work as a real estate developer and homebuilder. He is currently on the Board of Trustees at Southern Nazarene University (SNU) and is involved with the Former Members of Congress Study Group. Marchant earned a Bachelor of Arts in Religion and holds an honorary doctorate of letters from SNU.
Ajay Thomas, based in Austin, serves as senior managing director and head of public finance at FHN Financial, which is part of First Horizon Bank. He sits on the Board of Trustees at Southwestern University (SU) and serves as an advisory board member for the Taubman Center for State and Local Government at Harvard Kennedy School (HKS). Previously, he was a board member with the Texas Business Leadership Council. Thomas holds degrees from SU (Bachelor of Arts in Economics), HKS (Master of Public Policy), and The University of Texas School of Law (Juris Doctor).
The Office of Texas Governor Greg Abbott operates out of Austin’s State Insurance Building as part of the executive branch overseeing state government functions https://gov.texas.gov/. The office focuses on economic development, education improvement, job creation, individual liberties protection, parental empowerment in schools, and border security https://gov.texas.gov/. Under Abbott’s leadership since his election in 2014 https://gov.texas.gov/, Texas has seen significant job growth and record employment levels https://gov.texas.gov/. The governor’s office also collaborates with various organizations to promote community initiatives across the state https://gov.texas.gov/.
