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Texas Legislature Monthly Report December 2018 STATEWIDE: GENERAL ELECTION RESULTS: STATEWIDE - Republicans again won all statewide offices on the ballot. Democrats have not won a statewide office in Texas since 1994. This is a non- Presidential election year but most of the statewide offices were on the ballot including races for: U.S. Senate (Ted Cruz), Governor (Greg Abbott), Lt. Governor (Dan Patrick), Attorney General (Ken Paxton), Comptroller (Glenn Hegar), Agriculture Commissioner (Sid Miller), Land Commissioner (George P. Bush), Railroad Commissioner (Christi Craddick), three Texas Supreme Court Justices (Jimmy Blacklock, John Devine, and Jeff Brown), and two Court of Criminal Appeals Justices (Sharon Keller and Barbara Parker Hervey). Voter Turnout - 52.72% of registered voters (8,326,216 voters) cast ballots. That compares to 59.16% (8,934,718 voters) in 2016; and 33% (4,708,556 voters) in 2014. This year’s turnout is in the range of typical turnout for presidential elections and is the highest non-presidential turnout this decade by over 10 points. TEXAS SENATE - The Texas Senate has 31 members. Since Senate members serve staggered four-year terms, only 15 of the 31 Senate members were up for re-election in 2018. Partisan Makeup: The Texas Senate currently has 21 Republicans and 10 Democrats. The Democrats picked up two seats (Senate Districts 10 and 16) in the General Election. In 2019, the partisan makeup of the Texas Senate will be 19 Republicans and 12 Democrats. One Incumbent Senate Member Did Not Seek Re-election: • Van Taylor (R-Plano) in Senate District 8 One incumbent Senate Member Was Defeated in the Primary Election: • Senator Craig Estes (R-Wichita Falls) in Senate District 30 2 incumbent Senate Members were Defeated in the General Election: • Konni Burton (R-Colleyville) in Senate District 10 • Don Huffines (R-Dallas) in Senate District 16 New Members of the Texas Senate in 2019: • Senate District 6: Winner of the December 11th Special Election • Senate District 8: Angela Paxton (R-McKinney) • Senate District 10: Beverly Powell (D-Burleson) • Senate District 16: Nathan Johnson (D-Dallas) • Senate District 19: Peter P. Flores (R-Pleasanton) - he was sworn into the Senate on October 12, 2018 • Senate District 30: Pat Fallon (R-Prosper) 1 Note: Democrat Sylvia Garcia of Houston won Congressional District 29. She resigned from the Texas Senate necessitating a special election in Senate District 6. TEXAS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES - There are 150 House members. All 150 members of the House were up for re-election in 2018. Partisan Makeup: The Texas House currently has 95 Republicans and 55 Democrats. The Democrats picked up 12 seats in the General Election. In 2019, the House will have 83 Republicans and 67 Democrats. 13 Incumbent House Members Did Not Seek Re-election: • Cindy Burkett (R-Sunnyvale) in House District 113 • Byron Cook (R-Corsicana) in House District 8 • Pat Fallon (R-Frisco) in House District 106 • Helen Giddings (D-Dallas) in House District 109 • Larry Gonzales (R-Round Rock) in House District 52 • Lance Gooden (R-Terrell) in House District 4 • Jason Isaac (R-Dripping Springs) in House District 45 • Mark Keough (R-The Woodlands) in House District 15 • Jodie Laubenberg (R-Wylie) in House District 89 • Larry Phillips (R-Sherman) in House District 62 • Kevin Roberts (R-Houston) in House District 126 • Leighton Schubert (R-Caldwell) in House District 13 • Joe Straus (R-San Antonio) in House District 121 6 Incumbent House Members Were Defeated in the Primary Elections: • Wayne Faircloth (R-Dickinson) in House District 23 • Dawnna Dukes (D-Austin) in House District 46 • Roberto Alonzo (D-Dallas) in House District 104 • Jason Villalba (R-Dallas) in House District 114 • Diana Arevalo (D-San Antonio) in House District 116 • Tomas Uresti (D-San Antonio) in House District 118 2 Incumbent House Members Were Defeated in the Run-off Elections: • Rene Oliveira (D-Brownsville) in House District 37 • Scott Cosper (R-Killeen) in House District 54 8 Incumbent House Members Were Defeated in the General Election: • Paul Workman (R-Austin) in House District 47 • Ron Simmons (R-Carrollton) in House District 65 • Linda Koop (R-Dallas) in House District 102 • Rodney Anderson (R-Grand Prairie) in House District 105 • Matt Rinaldi (R-Irving) in House District 115 • Mike Schofield (R-Katy) in House District 132 • Gary Elkins (R-Houston) in House District 135 • Tony Dale (R-Cedar Park) in House District 136 27 New Members of the Texas House in 2019: • House District 4 – Keith Bell (R-Forney) • House District 8 – Cody Harris (R-Palestine) 2 • House District 13 – Ben Leman (R-Brenham) – he is already a member of the Texas House filling the unexpired term of Representative Leighton Schubert • House District 23 – Mayes Middleton (R-Wallisville) • House District 37 – Alex Dominguez (D-Brownsville) • House District 45 – Erin Zwiener (D-Driftwood) • House District 46 – Sheryl Cole (D-Austin) • House District 47 – Vikki Goodwin (D-Austin) • House District 52 – James Talarico (D-Round Rock) • House District 54 – Brad Buckley (R-Killeen) • House District 62 – Reggie Smith (R-Sherman) • House District 65 – Michelle Beckley (D-Carrollton) • House District 89 – Candy Noble (R-Allen) • House District 102 – Ana-Maria Ramos (D-Richardson) • House District 104 – Jessica Gonzalez (D-Dallas) • House District 105 – Terry Meza (D-Irving) • House District 106 – Jared Patterson (R-Frisco) • House District 109 – Carl Sherman, Sr. (D-Dallas) • House District 113 – Rhetta Andrews Bowers (D-Rowlett) • House District 114 – John Turner (D-Dallas) • House District 115 – Julie Johnson (D-Carrollton) • House District 118 – Leo Pacheco (D-San Antonio) • House District 121 – Stephen Allison (R-San Antonio) • House District 126 – Sam Harless (R-Spring) • House District 132 – Gina Calanni (D-Katy) • House District 135 – Jon Rosenthal (D-Houston) • House District 136 – John Bucy (D-Austin) 2 Former House Members Will Be Returning to the Texas House in 2019: • House District 15 – Steve Toth (R-The Woodlands) • House District 116 – Trey Martinez Fischer (D-San Antonio) Bill Filing – Legislators began pre-filing bills for the 2019 legislative session on November 12th. As of December 1st: • House Bills – 424 have been filed with HB’s 1-20 reserved for Speaker priority bills; • House Joint Resolutions - 22 have been filed with HJR’s 1-10 reserved for Speaker priority Constitutional Amendments; • Senate Bills - 182 have been filed with SB’s 1-30 reserved for Lt. Governor priority bills; and • Senate Joint Resolutions - 10 have been filed. SENATE: Special Election in Senate District 6 – Governor Abbott ordered an emergency special election to be held in Texas Senate District 6 on Tuesday, December 11, 3 2018, to elect a state senator to serve out the unexpired term of Senator Sylvia R. Garcia, who is going to Congress in District 29 replacing long-time Congressman Gene Green (D-Houston), who did not seek re-election. The filing deadline was Friday, November 16, 2018. Early voting started on Monday, November 26, 2018. Candidates include 3 Democrats and 1 Republican: • State Representative Carol Alvarado (D-Houston) • State Representative Ana Hernandez (D-Houston) • Mia Mundy (D-Houston) • Martha Elena Fierro (R-Houston) HOUSE: House Speaker’s Race – On November 12th, State Representative Dennis Bonnen (R-Angleton) announced that he has 109 pledges to become the next Speaker of the Texas House. 78 of the 83 incoming Republicans pledged to Bonnen (5 Republicans were not on the “Pledge” list). 31 of the 67 incoming Democrats were on Bonnen’s “Pledge” list. 36 Democrats were not on the list, with 13 of those being incoming Freshman Democrats. Bonnen said, “Each one of my colleagues who has come forward to run for the Speakership has done so out of deep respect for their constituents, their state, and the legislative body that has afforded us this great honor in the first place. It is a privilege to work alongside so many dedicated House Members, and I am deeply humbled by those who have made the decision to support my candidacy. When the House stands together in unity, we can do great things. I look forward to bringing together my colleagues to continue the tradition of strong bipartisan leadership in the Texas House.” Speaker-Elect Bonnen’s announcements so far include: Transition Team Chair – Brian McCall – Dr. Brian McCall is Chancellor of Texas State University System. He will assist Representative Bonnen in recruiting senior staff, planning his swearing-in ceremony, and working with outgoing Speaker Joe Straus and his staff to facilitate a smooth transition. Bonnen said, "Chancellor McCall knows the Capitol and the people who make it work. More importantly, he has a reputation as both a legislator and a higher education leader for his fairness, decency and ability to bring people together. I look forward to working with Brian in the coming weeks to lay the foundation for a successful 86th Session." Chief-of-Staff – Gavin Massingill - Massingill, who has more than 20 years of legislative experience inside and outside the Capitol, will assume his new role on January 8, 2019, the first day of the 86th Regular Session. Representative Bonnen said, “Gavin brings a wealth of experience and a valued perspective to my office. In addition to his years of experience as a legislative staffer, Gavin has a deep passion for the institution of the House and the ability to work across party lines to achieve the best results for Texas.” Massingill, a governmental relations consultant, has more than a decade of experience in the Texas Legislature where he served as chief of staff to two state representatives. He is an elected alderman on the Rollingwood City Council. He is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin. 4 Policy Director and General Counsel – Gardner Pate – Pate is a private- practice attorney.