Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan heading to runoff against hardline conservative challenger
Phelan was neck and neck with GOP challenger David Covey with votes still being counted. Full Story
Zach Despart is a politics reporter for The Texas Tribune. He investigates power — who wields it, how and to what ends — through the lens of Texas government. He has extensively covered the Uvalde school shooting, including a groundbreaking investigation on the role the gunman’s rifle played in the disastrous police response. He previously covered Harris County for the Houston Chronicle, where he reported on corruption, elections, disaster preparedness and the region’s recovery from Hurricane Harvey. An upstate New York native, he received his bachelor’s degree in political science and film from the University of Vermont.
Phelan was neck and neck with GOP challenger David Covey with votes still being counted. Full Story
Divisions among Republicans are in stark display, some of Texas’ most senior members of Congress are retiring and Democrats are hoping to unseat Sen. Ted Cruz. Full Story
When the two presidents used the Texas-Mexico boundary as a backdrop for the national immigration fight, residents felt they were left out of the conversation. Full Story
District 71 is one of three-dozen Texas House races where statewide Republicans are trying to oust incumbents from their own party. Lambert says he knows his constituents better than they do. Full Story
The Houston Democrat voted for three anti-LGBTQ bills last year, which could make her more vulnerable as she fights for reelection. Full Story
Attorney General Ken Paxton, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, and former President Donald Trump are accusing Phelan of being a “RINO,” even as Phelan has overseen the passage of some of the most conservative bills in recent history. Full Story
Phelan’s reelection campaign has become a referendum on the power of the far-right faction of the state Republican Party. Full Story
In December, all five members of the city council quit. A fight over a railroad development spiraled into political mudslinging, broken trust and conspiracy. Full Story
The governor projected confidence throughout 2023 that vouchers would pass. But his insistence on universal eligibility ensured his failure to convince 21 House Republican holdouts. Full Story
The latest casualties were Senate Bill 5, which would spend $800 million on school safety measures through 2025, and Senate Bill 6, which would change the timeline of a trial after an election contest is filed by a citizen or group. Full Story