Ellzey, a state representative, beat fellow Republican Susan Wright, who was backed by former President Donald Trump. Ellzey will finish the term of Ron Wright, who died earlier this year after contracting COVID-19.
July 2021
Posted in
Texas Legislature 2021
GOP senator says Gov. Greg Abbott should lose line-item veto after cutting Legislature’s funding, jeopardizing staffers’ jobs
The bill is largely symbolic, as the Legislature is currently at a standstill, unable to move any legislation because House Democrats broke quorum two weeks ago when they fled to Washington, D.C., to block GOP voting bills.
Posted in
Coronavirus in Texas
CDC wants more vaccinated people and schoolchildren to mask up — but Texas keeps it voluntary
Texas Republican state leaders held their ground against allowing local schools and governments to require masks. The CDC guidelines are not mandates and have no weight of law.
Posted in
Politics
Gov. Greg Abbott orders Texas National Guard to help with migrant arrests at the border
In a letter to the major general of the Texas National Guard, Abbott said “more manpower is needed” at the border.
Posted in
Demographics
Federal judge tosses lawsuit that sought to end UT-Austin’s affirmative action policy
The judge found that the group behind the suit had essentially brought the same claims in a previous case in which the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the University of Texas at Austin’s policy.
Posted in
Higher Education
University of Texas officially asks to join the SEC
The university is seeking to leave the Big 12 along with the University of Oklahoma, a move that would have wide-ranging impact on Texas college athletics.
Posted in
Higher Education
After UT-Austin signals a Big 12 exit, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick moves to create a Senate panel focused on college sports’ future
The University of Texas at Austin and the University of Oklahoma are expected to leave the Big 12 for the Southeastern Conference. The move throws the athletics future of several other Texas schools into uncertainty.
Posted in
Texas 2022 Elections
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton gets all-important endorsement from Donald Trump over fellow Republican George P. Bush
Paxton is facing a primary challenge from Bush, the land commissioner, as well as Eva Guzman, the former state Supreme Court justice.
Posted in
Texas Legislature 2021
Speaker Dade Phelan signs civil arrest warrant for Texas House Democrat who returned to Washington
The warrant to apprehend state Rep. Philip Cortez is the first one signed by the speaker since more than 50 House Democrats left the state to block Republicans from having the quorum needed to pass legislation during the special legislative session.
Posted in
Texas Legislature 2021
Texas lawmakers to testify as U.S. House oversight committee plans hearing on Texas voting bill
Three of the Democratic legislators who went to Washington, D.C., to deny the Texas House a quorum have been invited to detail their concerns at a specially called hearing on the contentious legislation that includes new restrictions on voting.
