Happy Post Election Euphoria!

What a night we had on Nov 5th!  I'm seeing smiles all around everywhere I go.  It's all very exciting and I'm especially looking forward to the 89th Texas legislature.  But now that the celebrations are over, we have to get back to work.  Someone asked me this week if we couldn't have just one day to celebrate and not focus on the next thing.  I said "NO", there's work to be done.

Many of you have asked about the status of the speaker’s race in the Texas House. The final Caucus vote takes place on December 7^th, and the final vote takes place on the House floor on January 14^th.  The addition of two new Republican members makes the math even more difficult for Dade Phelan.  In January, we will have 88 Republican members and 62 Democrats

 Right now, the chances of Dade Phelan winning the speaker race are pretty slim.  We don't see any path for him to win the Republican caucus vote in December.  Of course, he can try to take it to a floor vote, but even if all Democrats voted for him (which they probably won't because a Democrat is also running and she will pull a few votes) he would still need 15 Republicans to win.  It's still possible but not likely.  At an October fundraiser, he was only able to find 9 other House representatives to stand with him.  And at this point, we’re not even sure about these 9.

As for who else might become speaker - the Republican caucus did a straw poll vote a few weeks ago and supported David Cook.  That too could change before the caucus vote in December, but right now, he is the favorite to win the caucus vote.  We're not sure how resolute Cook would be as speaker, (he's still a fairly new representative, with only 2 terms under his belt) but he has given his fellow Republicans his pledge to the reforms they are demanding, including no Democrat chairs, and all 12 of the issues on the Contract with Texas.

Brandon Waltens with Texas Scorecard has written a great article about the speaker race which you can read here.  And if you’re curious about the process and how it all works, Texas Policy Research has the answer for you.  Check out “Inside the Process and Republican Caucus Rules”.

 Actions that can be taken include contacting House members to tell them that Texas Republicans demand reforms that will support the will of Texas Republicans, and not the special interests and Democrats.  It is ultimately up to them to cast that vote on Jan 14, 2025.

Please contact your Representative or Representative-elect and let them know you expect them to support a speaker of the House who supports the reforms.

Stay Engaged!

Fran Rhodes, President