Some of you may remember that in July, I wrote about the Lt. Governor’s seat, the powers it holds, and what would happen if Vikki Goodwin won while Republicans maintained the Senate majority.
Now that Senate Republicans are actually planning to change the Senate rules to strip power from the Lt. Governor’s seat, everyone is panicking.
Slow down. Take a breath. We knew this was coming. Goodwin knew it was coming.
Republican Senators can’t actually “strip power” from the Lt. Governor. They simply change the Senate rules. The rules that they put in place at the beginning of each Session. The ones that they made to give Dan Patrick unprecedented power.
Vikki Goodwin will still hold immense power as co-chair of the Legislative Budget Board and the Legislative Redistricting Board. She’s also second in charge if Gina Hinojosa leaves the state or gets ill.
Democrats also have other levers they can use to get things accomplished in the 90th Session, like line-item vetoes of every Senate Republican’s priorities.
The point is, we knew this would happen. It is what it is.
Secondly, MAGA-fascist Brian Harrison (R-HD10) sent a letter to Greg Abbott yesterday demanding that he call a special session so they can strip powers away from the Governor’s seat.
Again, don’t freak out. Abbott is not going to call a special session.
No one listens to Brian Harrison, except for the fringes of the far-right. That includes Abbott, who has, in the past, reprimanded Harrison for racism toward Abbott’s appointment.
If Abbott does call a special session, Democrats would break quorum. None of the Democrats will show up to a special session so that they can take away their own power.
If they are threatened with fines or jail, whatever. When Gina Hinojosa is sworn in, she can forgive them all.
It’s all going to be okay.
For now.
But the priority lists and speeches I’m hearing come from newly elected and re-elected Democrats in Texas and DC, and they tell me most of them are forgetting the most important thing.
Did we just win to give Republicans power back in two years?
Because that’s exactly what is going to happen if Democrats do not make democracy their number one priority.
In Texas, Republicans have spent the last 30 years making it harder for people to vote. That’s why voter turnout in Texas has almost always lagged behind every other state.
In DC, Trump’s hand-picked SCOTUS has gone rogue, destroying the Voting Rights Act, and Republicans in Congress have blocked a stock trading ban.
All of the mechanisms that open the door for voter oppression and billionaires running our state/country into the ground are still there. And as long as they are there, Republicans will do everything in their power to stop more people from voting. We make sure that doesn’t happen again by securing and expanding democracy.
What Democrats in the Texas Legislature will need to pass.
Last Session, Representative John Bucy (D-HD136) introduced the Barbara Jordan Voting Rights Act. This bill will protect Black voters and other voters of color in Texas from voting discrimination, provide powerful tools to combat voter intimidation, expand language access, and more.
They need to ban all mid-decade redistricting and implement a non-partisan, independent redistricting commission. We will need this commission intact by the 2030 census. But in my opinion, Democrats should redraw all the maps to make 2028 fair and not skewed toward the GOP.
We need online voter registration. We’re only one of seven states that don’t have it. We also need same-day voter registration. People should be able to register for elections easily and at any time.
We have to roll back the awful, racist Jim Crow bill, SB1, which Republicans passed in 2021. This would restore 24-hour voting and drive-thru voting. Early voting should have a minimum time, not a maximum.
These are the ones we can absolutely get through the House of Representatives, but it will be harder to get them through the State Senate. Negotiating and compromising with Republican Senators will likely be necessary.
A little harder to pull off.
Texas should introduce a bill to join the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact. Right now, they are 48 votes short. While several states flipped their Legislatures and could join next year, Texas joining would have the biggest impact with 40 votes.
Both George Dubya Bush and Donald Trump proved that the Electoral College is a relic of a bygone era, and we need to make sure that unpopular presidents are never elected again.
Texas should restore voting rights for people with felony convictions upon release. The Sentencing Project estimates that more than 479,000 Texans can’t vote because of a felony conviction, making it the second-largest disenfranchised population in the country after Florida.
If a citizen works, pays taxes, and raises kids in their community, then they should be able to vote. Right now, the law confuses. Look at Crystal Mason, who was sentenced to five years in prison for filling out a provisional ballot while on supervised release.
We need campaign finance limits. Otherwise, billionaires will be throwing millions upon millions in propaganda and scare tactics to hand the government back over to their worker bees (Republicans).
Another plus, but harder to get, would be something simialar to the Montana Plan, which banned corporate, nonprofit, and dark money spending in state and local politics.
Congress has to pass these.
All the leadership speeches I’m hearing are from Democrats in blue states, and none of them have mentioned the John Lewis Voting Rights Act. This act would restore the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Plain and simple. And if Democrats need to blow up the filibuster to get it, then they should.
Congressional Democrats’ failure to pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Act the last time they had control led to all the mid-decade redistricting we saw across the country this last year, including Texas.
Statehood for DC should be a priority. No taxation without representation. Either you believe in democracy, or you don’t. Simple.
The Fair Representation Act would require ranked-choice voting for Senate and House races, and push extremists out of politics. It would also give minority parties a chance to be competitive.
Most importantly, we need to ban congressional stock trading and overturn Citizens United. As long as corporations and billionaires can buy off our elected representatives, we will never have a government “for the people.”
In the meantime, what do we do about the Texas Senate?
We should focus on the weak Senators as we prepare to replace them in 2028. I ran the numbers for the 2028 Senators this morning:
If these Senators were on the ballot this year, several of them would have lost their seats. Their constituents need to approach them and tell them that if they want to be re-elected, they’ll play ball. It might not work every time, but if they want to come back, they’ll be accommodating.
From an electoral perspective, the weakest Senators in the Legislature are:
Adam Hinojosa (R-SD27)
Paul Bettencourt (R-SD07)
Angela Paxton (R-SD08)
Phil King (R-SD10)
Tan Parker (R-SD12)
Joan Huffman (R-SD17)
These Senators have a choice. Do they want to spend their last year in office obstructing all progress for the people of Texas, or do they want to be re-elected?
We aren’t powerless anymore.
We won. Now, how do we stop them from stealing power once again?
I know everyone is focused on affordability, education, and oversight. Those things are important, too. But a $1,500 check doesn’t stop the next gerrymandering. And an electricity rate freeze doesn’t put nearly 500,000 Texans on parole or probation back on the voter rolls. And everything we do doesn’t survive if Republicans take back control in 2028.
The GOP understands these mechanisms. That’s why less than 24-hours after the polls closed, they were meeting to discuss which powers could be stripped away. They never cared about the price of gas or groceries. But watch how much they care about winning power back in 2028.
Democrats should care too.
Most of y’all have Democratic representation now.
🚨🚨CALL YOUR ELECTED OFFICIALS, tell them you want these measures. Tell them to vote in favor of them.
If these pass, Republicans have to win with fair maps, open registration, and every eligible voter on the rolls. If they don’t get passed, then I’ll have to write this article all over again in 2030.
Texas Democrats spent 30 years begging people to show up. Now they have the power to make sure no one can stop voting. Use it.
January 12, 2027: The 90th Legislative Session begins.
Click here to find out what Legislative districts you’re in.
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*Dubya,
It has long been my fear that once our democrats assume the reigns, they become impotent. Too often democrats become mealy-mouthed, useless poseurs who brag about "reaching across the aisle" and "bipartisan support,' as if concessions to fascists, misogynists, and racists was something to crow about. We call these establishment democrats and their weakness is how we got here.
Gina and Vikki are relentless fighters. I hope the others are up to the challenge.
It would be a mistake to assume that the voters who delivered this huge victory will stay blue just because. Democrats need to keep organizing in 2027. We can use canvassing to tell voters -- of all stripes -- what the Dems are delivering on, and that the Republicans are obstructing if they do. This will keep our volunteers engaged so we aren't accelerating out of a dead stop in 2028. It's much better to build a machine and keep it running.