Washington, D.C. – Happy New Year and beginning of the 118th Congress. A lot of attention has been drawn to the election of the Speaker of the House of Representatives and I wanted to take a moment to explain how the process works. Before elected members can be sworn into Congress, the House has to vote on a quorum to show a majority of members-elect are present and then a Speaker must be elected. 

To be elected Speaker, a candidate must receive an absolute majority of the votes cast for a candidate – if a member votes “Present” that reduces the threshold for a Speaker to be elected. Without a Speaker, the House cannot pass bills, have committee meetings or even pass our own rules. So, if no candidate receives the absolute majority, the roll call is repeated until a Speaker is elected, which is why the process continues. The House has voted 13 times so far on the Speaker – the most since 1859. 

I believe we will come to a consensus soon and I’m eager to get to work to hold this Administration accountable, advance priorities for North Texas, and do the peoples’ work.

On Tuesday, we officially opened our new office in Longworth House Office Building, where we hosted many guests throughout the day to share excitement for the beginning of a new Congress.

I apologize for a false link in our New Years Email sent on Monday. We will be resending the email this coming Monday. If you would like to take our survey in advance, please click here. I look forward to seeing your answers and getting to work on our top priorities this Congress.

Thanks to the Republican Majority, the People's House is now reopen. If you're planning a trip to DC, please don't hesitate to reach out to my office to schedule additional tours.

As a reminder, in Texas-24, my District Office is currently in a transitional process to comply with House Rules that pertain to redistricting. The District Office at 3100 Olympus Blvd in Dallas is closed and will be relocating in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex area. During this time, our District Staff is currently working to transition to the new office space and walk-ins will not be available until the new office is open. Additionally, please know the Texas-24 district has changed and we encourage you to view the boundaries of the new Congressional District by visiting Who Represents Me. You can view your updated congressional district at the bottom in red after searching your address. Cases currently being handled by our Constituent Services staff will continue to be seen through until their completion. However, if you are in a new District, we encourage you to reach out to that congressional office or our Senators.

Our Hometown Hero this week is Shraavya Pydisetti, a Coppell High School student who has helped over 23,000 healthcare professionals, teachers, and essential workers through her nonprofit, Project Querencia. Thank you, Shraavya, for going above and beyond for our community.

You can watch the entire interview by clicking here.

You can watch the entire interview by clicking here.

You can watch the interview by clicking here.