Over 4,000 Texas Republicans assembled at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston late last week for the Republican Party of Texas State Convention. Delegates heard messages of unity from elected leaders, elected new Party leadership, and voted on the Party’s rules, platform, and legislative priorities for the next two years.
Here are a few highlights from the convention:
Randall Ousts George to Become Next State Chairman
Texas GOP Vice-Chair D’Rinda Randall unseated incumbent Chairman Abraham George in an overwhelming manner, carrying 25 of the State’s 31 Senate District caucuses. George won just three Senate District caucuses. Sandra Whitten, a conservative activist and former Congressional candidate from Laredo, also earned the support of three Senate Districts.
In his concession message, George congratulated Randall and her Vice-Chair running mate, former State Republican Executive Committee member David Covey, and encouraged Republicans to work together.
“While this race has come to an end, our mission continues. Now is the time to come together, unite behind our Republican nominees, support the entire Republican ticket in November, advance our legislative priorities in the next session, and continue standing firmly for the conservative principles outlined in our platform.
I am grateful to everyone who supported our campaign, and I remain committed to serving our Party and fighting for the values that make Texas strong,” said George.
Upon her election as State Chairman, Randall thanked Delegates for their support and encouraged them to get to work to achieve victory in November.
“We are going to work hard, but you’re going to also have to work very hard, too. Because we have the midterms coming up. We have the 250th birthday right around the corner. We have to do a lot in South Texas to keep it red. We also want to do a lot with our youth. We have big plans, but I know with the Texans that I’ve met across this state, I know we can get it done. And I’m excited to do that for you to put in the work. But you better be ready, because I’m going to call you,” remarked Randall.
Abbott Vows to “Destroy Those Radical Democrats”
In a fiery speech to the Convention, Texas Governor Greg Abbott vowed to “destroy those radical Democrats” in November and reiterated his commitment to spending at least $25 million in Harris County.
Abbott pointed to numerous legislative victories for conservatives in recent years, including the passage of a school choice program, increased penalties for election fraud and election integrity safeguards, banning DEI in schools, protecting children from sex change surgeries, banning boys from playing in girls’ sports, and the passage of landmark pro-life legislation.
The Governor also addressed the issue of closed primaries.
“We are going to make clear that, in the future, only Republicans vote in Republican Primaries,” said Abbott. The Republican Party of Texas filed a lawsuit last year against the Texas Secretary of State to allow the Party to implement a closed Primary. The lawsuit is currently pending in a Federal Court in Amarillo.
When discussing border security, Abbott aimed at Democrats who claim to support border security but voted for open-border policies.
“All these Democrats running for office right now, they embraced Joe Biden’s open border policies. But now they’re facing their own political deathbed. They’re suddenly converting, saying they want secure borders. That’s bullshit,” exclaimed Abbott.
The Governor also touted several items that he supports for the next state legislative session, including a reduction of the property tax appraisal cap from 10% to 3%, abolishing school district property taxes on homesteads, improving public safety, banning Sharia law, ending the abuse of H-1B visas, and banning taxpayer-funded lobbying.
Abbott closed his speech by urging Republican unity going into November.
“When we Republicans unite, we are unbeatable. That unity is going to drive victory this November, and no one does a better job than you all at turning out that vote. Together, we are going to demolish the Democrats. Together, we are going to win this November, and together we are going to keep Texas, Texas,” he said.
Elected Leaders Contrast GOP Results with Democrat Extremism
In addition to Abbott, other elected Republican leaders emphasized the high stakes of the upcoming election in their speeches and frequently highlighted the extremism of Democrat candidates on the ballot.
“The Democrats have always wanted to flip the Lone Star State, and they’re gaining some momentum, but they are running the most radical slate of candidates ever,” said Texas House Speaker Dustin Burrows, who also described Democrats as “full-blown cultural extremists.”
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who defeated incumbent Senator John Cornyn after a contentious Primary, had strong words for his opponent, Democrat State Representative James Talarico.
“The Democrats have always wanted to flip the Lone Star State, and they’re gaining some momentum, but they are running the most radical slate of candidates ever,” Paxton told the audience. Paxton also made clear that he hoped to earn the support of all Republicans.
“I want everyone to know, no matter who you supported in the primary, I will work every day to earn your support, because right now the stakes could not be higher,” he said.
Lt. Governor Dan Patrick warned of the influx of money into Texas to support James Talarico and other Democrats.
“Make no mistake, their target is Texas. Their target are your values, your family,” said Patrick.
“The Democrat party has turned into a group of socialists, leftists, communists, and idiots.”
Delegates Vote on Changes to Party Rules, Platform, and Legislative Priorities
Other business at the convention included debates and votes on the Party’s rules, platform, and legislative priorities.
Among the changes to Party rules adopted by the convention is a new prohibition on campaign professionals and lobbyists from serving on the State Republican Executive Committee (SREC).
The new language states, “Any individual who is a compensated employee of the Republican Party of Texas or a partner or affiliate of the Republican Party of Texas may not serve as an SREC Committeeman or Committeewoman. No person shall be eligible to serve as a member of the SREC while employed by, contracted with, or receiving compensation from any political campaign for public office, nor may any member of the SREC serve as an employed lobbyist.”
Other changes to the rules include a requirement that video recordings of all public SREC meetings be made available online, a prohibition on convicted felons under the Texas Penal Code from holding Party office for 20 years after the completion of their punishment, and clarification on the use of State Convention delegate information.
Delegates also voted on adopting the Party’s platform and legislative priorities. The results of that voting, which was conducted on paper ballots at the conclusion of the convention, are expected to be announced by Party officials in the coming days.
