Published: November 14, 2008 10:42 am      

State GOP appears in control of House, now race for Speaker is on

From Staff and Wire Reports

A late legislative win for Republicans seems to have secured the GOP majority in the state House, if only by a razor-thin, two-seat margin.

The good news for Republicans is it likely means a Republican will remain as Speaker of the House.

The question remains who?

State Rep. Jim Keffer, R-Eastland, whose 60th district includes Palo Pinto County, easily won re-election on Nov. 4 over Democratic challenger David Shupp and he has been campaigning for the Speaker’s seat since the end of the last legislative session.

Current Republican House Speaker Tom Craddick is trying to fight off challenges from Keffer and seven others who are seeking the position, including four Democrats. However, a Democrat in the Speaker’s role does not seem likely since Republicans will apparently hold a 76-74 majority in the House.

That came about earlier this week when the counting of votes finally concluded in the race for the Irving seat held by Republican Rep. Linda Harper-Brown. After the count of overseas and provisional ballots was completed late Monday, the incumbent held a 20-vote lead over her Democratic challenger.

If the late count had turned in the Democrat’s favor, it would have meant an even 75-75 split in the House.

Now, it seems the Speaker of the House race is Craddick’s to lose.

Problem is, there seems to be no unified choice to replace Craddick, which could give him the edge.

“Speaker Craddick is extremely organized and very good at what he does,” said Democratic former state Rep. Sherri Greenberg, now a fellow at the University of Texas at Austin’s Center for Politics and Governance. “Up to this point, they’ve been waiting to see what happened to the Harper-Brown seat in Irving. I do think that (Craddick’s foes are) going to have to get organized quickly around a single opponent.”

But disarray, rather than organization, seemed to prevail for the group known as ABCs — Anybody But Craddick.

His Republican and Democratic opponents are divided and, as yet, unable to coalesce behind one of the three Republican or four Democratic alternatives to the powerful speaker. It’s much the same scenario the ABCs were in last year, when they twice tried and failed to oust Craddick from the post.

Craddick’s detractors have long complained that he rules the chamber like a dictator and strongarms lawmakers into obedience. The chaos came to head during last year’s legislative session, which ended with Craddick surviving a bitter attempt to overthrow him.

Rep. Mike Hamilton, R-Mauriceville, supported Craddick in 2007 but calls himself “undecided” heading into the 2009 session. Still, Hamilton predicted Craddick would keep the gavel.

“It’s too young, too early to know what’s going on,” Hamilton said, when asked who he was supporting. “I think (Craddick) is going to win. I think the numbers are just in his favor.”

The 150-member chamber will choose their leader with a vote during the first week of the legislative session, which begins Jan. 13.

While elections are rarely overturned, some uncertainty remains.

Harper-Brown’s Democratic opponent, Bob Romano, said he intends “to request a recount of the ballots cast in this election.”

Last week’s elections gave Democrats a three-seat gain in the House, narrowing their minority status to within two seats.

In the last five years, Republicans have squandered a 26-seat majority that had given them free rein in the chamber and made Craddick the first Republican speaker in modern times.

With the Republican House majority shrunken to a two-seat advantage, there’s a growing list of lawmakers seeking to replace Republican House Speaker Tom Craddick when the speaker’s election is held at the beginning of the session.

Speaker candidates

The Associated Press examines each of the nine candidates, looking at their strengths and weaknesses:

TOM CRADDICK, R-MIDLAND

After squashing two bitter attempts to overthrow him last year, Craddick is seeking a fourth term as leader of the divided House. The Republican edge in the chamber has sharply dwindled since Craddick became speaker in 2003.

The longest-serving member of the Legislature, Craddick’s adept fundraising skills helped the Republicans win a majority in the House in 2003 for the first time in more than 130 years. His grateful colleagues promptly chose Craddick, an oilfield mud salesman, to be their leader — and Texas’ first Republican speaker since 1871.

But many complain the 40-year House veteran is too authoritarian and uses his power to force lawmakers to bend to his will, which critics say causes lawmakers to vote against the interests of their home districts.

In 2007 he blocked his own ouster with a parliamentary maneuver, refusing to give his challengers the floor to call for a vote.

He’s counted on the support of a group of Democrats, known as the Craddick Ds, who have been rewarded with plum favors. Their support is key for Craddick, 65, to win another term. But their loyalty has become shaky, as the prospect of a Democratic speaker becomes possible for the first time in six years.

PETE GALLEGO, D-ALPINE

This 18-year veteran represents a vast West Texas district that’s bigger than the combined square miles of Rhode Island, Delaware, Connecticut, New Jersey, New Hampshire and Vermont.

A moderate but partisan Democrat from a rural border county, Gallego, 46, has been active in law enforcement and criminal justice issues in the Legislature.

Gallego, who helped orchestrate last year’s rebellion, is seen as the choice for establishment Democrats. But he’s not on good terms with Craddick Ds, many of them still angry over the bitter attempts to overthrow Craddick. He may also encounter resistance from GOP stalwarts.

SCOTT HOCHBERG, D-HOUSTON

Hochberg is respected by both Republicans and Democrats for his keen understanding of complicated school finance formulas.

He’s well-liked by colleagues on both sides of the aisle, but his political chops haven’t been tested. Scholarly, his liberal leanings may negate the general goodwill he’s cultivated.

In addition to education issues, Hochberg has been a champion of environmental protection efforts.

DELWIN JONES

At 84, he’s the oldest member of the Texas Legislature, but a keen interest in politics and a knack for storytelling keep Jones young at heart.

Jones, once a Democrat, was first elected in 1964 but he lost his seat in 1972 to Pete Laney, who later became House speaker. Jones came back to the House in 1989 as a Republican.

His genteel brand of politics harkens to another era: In the 1972 race, Jones once told voters he’d vote for Laney if he weren’t on the ballot, and he ended up becoming an ally of the Democratic speaker.

But Jones is no stranger to hardball politics. As chairman of the redistricting committee in 1971, he drew a district designed to punish a young new Midland Republican — Tom Craddick. Craddick was re-elected anyway.

JIM KEFFER, R-EASTLAND

One of several top Craddick lieutenants who jumped ship and announced for speaker in 2007, Keffer chairs the House Ways and Means Committee but his apostasy ensures he’ll lose that post if Craddick stays at the helm.

Keffer, 55, is a pro-business Republican who represents a large swath of rural Texas between Fort Worth and Abilene. The good-natured iron foundry executive pokes fun at his own malapropisms but critics say he mishandled a 2006 tax overhaul that had to be patched up in subsequent legislation.

TOMMY MERRITT, R-LONGVIEW

A maverick within the GOP, Merritt is a quintessential good ol’ boy from a rural northeast Texas district dominated by the logging and oil and gas industries.

Merritt, 60, remains a close friend of President Bush and has been a guest at the White House more than once.

He’s generally well-liked by his colleagues, but he may have cultivated mistrust with House Republicans with his bipartisan ways, even going so far as endorsing two Democrats for re-election this year.

Known as a wily and masterful strategist, Merritt has a knack for finagling the rules and seems to enjoy antagonizing Craddick.

ALLAN RITTER, D-NEDERLAND

Another former Craddick ally who soured on the speaker, Ritter, 54, is a conservative leader of the so-called “WD-40” coalition — white Democrats over 40. Selected as “freshman of the year” in a bipartisan 1999 vote, Ritter is well-liked and serves as vice-chair of the influential House Ways and Means Committee.

Ritter has cross-over support from Republicans, but his ties to mega-donor Bob Perry, a Houston homebuilder who has given millions to GOP candidates, could cost him with liberals. Ritter sponsored the 2003 bill creating the Texas Residential Construction Commission, backed by the homebuilding industry but criticized by consumer advocates.

SENFRONIA THOMPSON, D-HOUSTON

The third most-senior member of the House, Thompson, 69, is both the longest serving woman and black in the Legislature. She sponsored the anti-hate crimes law named for James Byrd, the black man whose 1998 dragging death stirred the nation’s racial conscience.

A passionate orator who likes to speak up for the “little dogs,” Thompson combines fiery inner-city oratory with Texas good ol’ gal mannerisms. A snappy dresser with a weakness for shoes, Thompson is a liberal icon but insiders don’t give her much chance of becoming speaker.

SYLVESTER TURNER, D-HOUSTON

Democratic Rep. Sylvester Turner, the second-ranking member of the House leadership and a longtime ally of Craddick, shocked Capitol circles when he filed his speaker candidacy, days after the 2007 House rebellion.

At the time, Turner said the final days of the session were wasted on the unrest and that led to his decision to challenge Craddick.

Turner, 54, will have a hard time winning support from House conservatives due to his left-of-center stances on issues like abortion. And his alignment with Craddick could be an obstacle for those Democrats who consider him a turncoat.

But he’s emerged as the leader of the Craddick Ds and he holds considerable influence in the race’s eventual outcome.

During the final days of last year’s rebellion, Craddick trusted Turner enough to allow him to preside over the House. At the podium, Turner could have easily let Craddick opponents attack him from the floor, but instead ruled them out of order as Craddick requested.