My name is Darren Hamilton, and I am running to represent central Denton County in the Texas House of Representatives. I am primarily driven by my sense of service to my family, to my country, and to my community, and I am committed to taking that dedication to Austin.

I moved with my family to Houston at the age of 14. It was there that I learned the value of service, a consistent work ethic, and a respect for others, but most of all for liberty. These are all principles that I still carry with me today. Like many others from Texas throughout the years, I chose to serve in the armed forces and enlisted in the United States Marine Corps at 19. After concluding eight years of active duty service with the Marines, I eventually returned to Texas.

If there is one thing that I learned from my time in the Marines, it's how we fight for a cause that we hold sacred. For me, that cause has changed several times over the years since leaving the military, but the commitment and dedication that I learned as a Marine has allowed me to overcome several personal tragedies and turn them into successes. Having recently returned to Denton County, my family and I - along with a few individuals and a couple of community groups - have continued our previous efforts to serve the needs of the unsheltered in and around Denton. The unsheltered are still people, and they deserve to be treated with the same dignity and respect with which we should treat anyone else.

I believe that people should decide the laws, not government agents or political parties. I believe that, as long as people are not harming others, they should be free to live their own lives and pursue their own interests free from intrusion or interference by the government. I am running for House District 57 because I believe that it is long past time for there to be a consistent voice for liberty and accountability in Austin.