State Rep. Dustin Burrows, a Republican from Lubbock, was elected Speaker of the Texas House Tuesday, fending off a challenge from the (even more lunatic) right as Democrats helped him win the third-most powerful job in the state.
“The weight of this moment, and the trust you’ve placed in me, is not lost on me,” Burrows said, shortly after being sworn in.
“Recent days have tested our bonds, yet they have also proven that this institution is greater than any one individual or any faction,” he said. “The House endures because Texas, and Texans, need it to endure.”
Burrows prevailed over state Rep. David Cook, a Republican from Mansfield, who had been supported by a majority of House Republicans but ultimately didn’t get enough votes to win. Coming in third was state Rep. Ana-Maria Rodriguez Ramos, D-Richardson, who ran as the Democratic alternative to the two Republicans.
In the first vote, Burrows received 71 votes, Cook got 56, and Ramos received 23. Since no one hit the 76-vote threshold, that resulted in a runoff between Burrows and Cook. Burrows prevailed in the second ballot with 85 votes, to Cook’s 55.
The race for the top state House position had been hotly contested since former Speaker, state Rep. Dade Phelan, R-Beaumont, announced last month that he would not seek re-election.
Cook emerged as the House Republican caucus’ top choice but didn’t have the 76 votes required to secure the position in the 150-member House.
That’s when Burrows, a close ally of Phelan, emerged as the main Republican alternative. He claimed to represent a coalition of Republican and Democrats, which invited pushback from Republicans at the national level, including Donald Trump Jr. and Dinesh D’Souza. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton even went on a tour around the state last week in an effort to pressure Republicans to support Cook.
On Tuesday, representatives finally voted after weeks of bitter infighting, especially among Republicans.
That tension was evident in several speeches where lawmakers accused each other of being bought and paid for.
As she seconded Burrows’ nomination, state Rep. Lacey Hull, R-Houston, called him a man of “unshakable integrity.”
“We can (secure our state’s future) if we’re willing to stand up to the big money Astroturf machine seeking to control this chamber,” Hull said.
For her part, Ramos kept things positive.
“Our Texas is within our grasp if only we have the courage to reach for it,” she said, in an attempt to be uplifting that resulted in her coming in third place. “Our state faces challenges that transcend both generations and party lines. Let’s put the people of Texas first, because we have so much more in common than what separates us.”
