Rep. Chip Roy is a devoted husband and father of two currently serving his third  term in Congress representing Texas's 21st Congressional District—which includes South Austin, North San Antonio, and the Texas Hill Country.

Previously, Rep. Roy served as First Assistant Attorney General of Texas under Ken Paxton, Chief of Staff to Sen. Ted Cruz, senior advisor to Texas Governor Rick Perry, Senate Judiciary Committee staff director under Sen. John Cornyn, and as a federal prosecutor. Prior to the public sector, he worked for nearly three years as an investment banking analyst. 

Rep. Roy holds a B.S. and M.A from the University of Virginia and a J.D. from the University of Texas.  He serves on the House Judiciary, Rules, and Budget Committees and is the Policy Chair of the House Freedom Caucus.

Evan Smith is a senior advisor at Emerson Collective, working closely with journalists and funders around the country to support the local news ecosystem. He’s also an assistant professor of practice at the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin, where he teaches courses on the politics of the election season and media and democracy. He previously spent more than 13 years at The Texas Tribune, which he co-founded and led as CEO, and nearly 18 years at Texas Monthly, including nine years as editor in chief and a year as president. Evan is the host of “Overheard with Evan Smith,” a weekly half-hour interview program that airs on PBS stations. He currently serves on the Karsh Institute of Democracy's Advisory Board, as well as on the boards of St. Stephen’s Episcopal School, the Austin Film Society, and the LBJ Foundation. A native of New York, he's a graduate of Hamilton College, which awarded him an honorary degree in 2023, and Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism, which inducted him into its Hall of Achievement in 2006.