From left to right: Texas Federation of Republican Outreach (TFRO) Vice Chairman Gene Pack, New Republican Waller County Commissioner Jeron Barnett, Chairman James Dickey, TFRO Chairman Bill Calhoun, and TFRO Executive Director Mona Lisa Chambers

Dear Texas Republicans,

This Saturday, grassroots Republicans all over Texas will gather in their home counties to adopt resolutions for our platform, priorities, and rules and to elect delegates to the State Convention. I hope that you are a part of this process! If you have not yet become involved with the convention process, it’s not too late to get started. Please see the “Party News” section for details.

People & Places

I had the pleasure of meeting with the Texas Federation of Republican Outreach (TFRO) Chairman Bill Calhoun, Vice Chairman Gene Pack and Executive Director Mona Lisa Chambers. Without a doubt the highlight of the meeting was welcoming party switcher and Waller County Commissioner for Precinct 3 Jeron Barnett to the Republican Party of Texas. Commissioner Barnett’s story of coming to realize that being a member of the Republican Party was key to his ability to provide better opportunities and leadership for his community and constituents was encouraging and enlightening. I thank TFRO for all their efforts and accomplishments over the past 25 years and look forward to seeing Commissioner Barnett again soon.

Orange county held their first-ever Reagan Gala this year – an incredible sign of just how far they’ve come and how much their spirit could not be broken in spite of the devastation of Hurricane Harvey just six months ago. I was honored to join Governor Greg Abbott, Senator Robert Nichols, Representative Dade Phelan, SREC Committee members Judy Parada and Terry Holcomb, and numerous current and former county chairs to celebrate their tremendous accomplishments over this time. My congratulations to Orange County Chair David Covey and appreciation to him for the invitation and for his leadership in Southeast Texas.

From left to right: Chairman Dickey, Liberty County Chairman Ryan Daniel, SREC Committeeman and San Jacinto County Vice Chair Terry Holcomb, San Jacinto County Chairman Dwayne Wright, Jefferson County Chairman-elect Judy Nichols, and Orange County Chairman David Covey

Report from the Field

Mark Irey, Harris County Regional Field Director, reports that a brand new group of Republican Leadership Engagement fellows from Pearland have been trained up and are ready to hit the ground for the 2018 general election!

Matt Desguin, a native Houstonian, has joined the field team to work closely with Mark. Matt previously worked for the RPT during the 2016 Victory program. He is a proud graduate of the University of Houston and we are excited to have him on board.

Rommel Lopez, CD-23 Regional Field Director, led at a house party with conservative leaders in Eagle Pass to help grow our conservative base, and conducted an RLI training in Bexar County.

Joel James, DFW Regional Field Director, participated in the County Council of Republican Women and the Irving Republican Women’s Club meetings, updating them on field work in the area and helping them to use the Advantage walk app.

We’ve hired an additional staff member to help Joel in the metroplex. Matt Dunn is finishing up his studies at Dallas Baptist University where he is on the lacrosse team. For the last several months he worked closely with Joel as a Republican Leadership Initiative fellow, focusing on voter contact and recruitment. welcome to the team!

Party News

As always, the RPT headquarters is buzzing with activity as we wrap up primary election results, provide delegate training, walk county chairs through preparation for the county/SD conventions, and prepare for our upcoming SREC meeting! Here are some notes and resources:

  • Our Canvass of Primary Election was held yesterday (Sunday, March 18). This means that the Republican Party primary election results all over the state have now been officially certified.

  • All of the county/SD conventions will be held this Saturday, March 24 at a time and place chosen by the counties. For more information, including a comprehensive 18-minute training video, click here.

  • Some counties have not yet held their precinct conventions (those may be scheduled March 6-24). For extensive training materials on precinct conventions, click here.

  • Our 2nd Quarterly SREC meeting of 2018 will be held April 7, with committee meetings on April 6, at the Wyndham Garden Austin. The official call including agenda and committee meeting schedule will be sent within the next week.

In addition to being a delegate to conventions, another way you can participate is to serve on a committee. The temporary committee members for the county/SD conventions are selected by the temporary convention chair; many have already been selected but you can still reach out and let them know if you’re interested in serving. The temporary committee members for the state convention will be nominated by the SREC members shortly after the March 24th conventions. If you’re interested in serving on temporary committees in San Antonio June 11-13, please reach out to your SREC members and let them know! The State Convention will have temporary committees on Credentials, Organization, Rules, Legislative Priorities, and Platform & Resolutions.

We’ve had many people ask if it’s possible to be a delegate to state convention even if they missed their lower-level conventions. The answer is YES! Here’s the explanation:

There are 3 levels of convention: precinct (meet with your neighborhood), county or SD (meet with your town), and state. To be a delegate at your precinct convention, simply show up (as long as you’re eligible: registered in your precinct and affiliated with the Party by voting or signing an oath of affiliation). To be a delegate at your county or SD convention, you must have been elected by your precinct convention (whether or not you were there). To be a delegate at the state convention, you must be elected by your county or SD convention (whether or not you are there, and regardless of whether or not you are a delegate).

There are several things you can do to help promote yourself to be elected as a State Convention delegate by your county or SD convention.

First, attend the Temporary Nominations Committee meetings and let the committee know that you’d like to serve as a delegate. They may ask you questions and/or ask you to fill out an application form to learn more about you. The committee will meet after the precinct convention but before the county/SD convention starts. Many are holding meetings this week; some will hold meetings Saturday right before the convention. If your county party has a website, the committee meetings must be posted there at least a day in advance. Every delegate to that convention has the right to observe, testify, and record committee meetings.

Second, especially if you missed the Temporary meeting, attend the Permanent Nominations Committee meeting on March 24th during the County/SD convention and let them know you’d like to serve as a State Convention delegate. This committee receives a report from the Temporary committee and then gives the full convention a recommendation of who should represent them at state convention.

Third, if your name doesn’t end up on the report from the Permanent Nominations Committee, any delegate at the county/SD committee can make a motion to add your name to the list (if it’s full, they’ll need to make a motion to strike someone in order to add you). If you’re a delegate at county/SD, you can make this motion yourself. If the delegate list is full, you can be added to the alternate list. Don’t worry if you’re “only an alternate” — most likely, you will still get seated and be able to participate in important votes at State Convention.

In Case You Missed It . . .

News Articles:

Press releases:

Interviews:

Coming Up Next

Now thru March 24: Precinct conventions – see info (also check with your county party for location & time)

  • March 17: Chairman Dickey at Orange County Reagan Dinner – see info
  • March 21: Senate hearing relating to Plank 114 (Healthcare Choice) – see info
  • March 21: Chairman Dickey at Ector County Republican Women
  • March 22: Senate hearing relating to Plank 106 (Dpt. of Family Protective Services) – see info
  • March 22: Chairman Dickey at Harris County Lincoln Dinner
  • March 24: County/SD conventions – see info
  • March 27: House hearing relating to Planks 37 & 191 (property rights, special purpose & municipal management districts) – see info
  • March 27: House hearing relating to Planks 179 & 181 (government postings and accountability) – see info
  • April 4: Senate hearing relating to Plank 147 (school choice ) – see info
  • April 6-7: SREC meeting – see info

Thank you for your participation in our party. You, the grassroots Texas Republicans, are vital to our success.

Sincerely,

James Dickey