A group of Texas House Republicans who oppose Speaker Dade Phelan have reached a consensus to support state Rep. David Cook of Mansfield in his bid to oust Phelan from the House leadership.
In a secret meeting at an Austin barbecue, Cook, who is serving his second term in the House, emerged as a winner after several rounds of voting. According to the Dallas Morning News, Cook said his selection was “about a movement that will reshape Texas for the better.”
“Our goal remains clear: to reform the Texas House so that it truly reflects the will of the people. I will work tirelessly to solidify the support needed within our caucus and, after that, to unite the House in order to efficiently lead as speaker,” he said in a statement.
House Republicans have long criticized Phelan for appointing some Democrats to lead some of the lower chamber’s committees.
In a statement, Cook said he would only appoint Republicans as leader of House committees, but he added that Democrats will “have the opportunity work their bills and see them considered fairly, as preserving the rights of the minority party remains part of facilitating the orderly transactions of business in the Texas House.”
Phelan criticized the secret meeting, arguing that it violated Republican Party rules. Those rules state that all GOP House members should meet privately to select a speaker candidate after the November election. Phelan also said he still has the majority of votes.
“I proudly have the clear majority votes needed to be the Speaker today,” Phelan said in a statement, “and will have the clear majority support needed to become Speaker again come January.”
On Jan. 14, next year, all 150 members of the House will vote for a speaker.
“Today’s gathering is little more than an orchestrated scheme to generate headlines and fuel social media clicks, driving our caucus headlong into unnecessary chaos,” Phelan said.
So far, participants of the secret meeting said 45 Republicans, both House members and candidates running for election, supported Cook, three votes were abstentions.
“What happened today is the majority of the Republican caucus have chosen a person that we believe should be the speaker,” said Rep. Briscoe Cain, “And we plan to support that person in December,” when Republicans will choose a speaker candidate.
Cook has served two terms in the Texas House since 2021, and previously was the mayor of Mansfield, from 2008 to 2021.
