TX GOV UNIT 1 SLIDES FALL 2016 PDF

Govt. 2306: State and Local Unit 1  In the Beginning…  March 1836: Two groups of men got together to ponder their futures. One of the groups contained approximately 180 members took refuge in a Spanish mission known most commonly today as the Alamo.  These men de...

Govt. 2306: State and Local Unit 1  In the Beginning…  March 1836: Two groups of men got together to ponder their futures. One of the groups contained approximately 180 members took refuge in a Spanish mission known most commonly today as the Alamo.  These men decided to take up arms against the Mexican government for reasons that will forever remain a mystery.  The second group of men numbered half of the first, and they established the Washington village, located on a bluff above the Brazos River app. 150 miles east of San Antonio.  These men declared themselves independent of the Republic of Mexico, and they created a new government under which they would be autonomous in their posterity.  What this means…  This course will focus on the development of this little village into the state in which we now live, on its capture of autonomy as an independent state, the formation of its government, and its political structure.  “Politics” is defined as the activities that relate to influencing the actions and policies of a govt. or obtaining or keeping a power in government.  “History” of Politics  There is no defined history of politics or political action; rather this is a concept that has been around as long as man. Since the beginning, man has been self-serving, their main ulterior motive being not only survival, but also thriving. The easiest way to ensure that you are absolutely able to obtain what you want is to make sure that you control the goods and services you seek. To do this, you put yourself in a position of power where not only will you be able to fulfill your own needs and desires, but you will be able to control those around you in a way that is most beneficial to you.  Government  Government is formed through—or as a result of—politics.  “Government” is composed of public institutions that have the authority to mandate the collection of revenue and to allocate valuable things for a society.  In regards to the State of Texas, public institutions can include such entities as the Texas Legislature, the Office of of Government, the Higher Education Coordinating Board, the District Courts, etc.  The Foundation  The Spanish are the main explorers who are attributed with first colonizing what would become the Republic of Texas.  When the Europeans first came to this part of the so- called New World (now known as Texas), the land was already occupied by numerous Native American groups—bands, tribes, and even confederations.  Alvar Nunez de Vaca arrived in Texas by way of FL in 1528 and and spent the next 7 yrs. wandering. He eventually found his way to a Texas Colony on the Gulf of Mexico, and then down to Mexico City where he recounted his adventures to Spanish Officials.  Nunez’s report prompted these officials to outfit a dull-scale expedition to explore the area and, more importantly, to search for what he deemed “golden citites” that Nunez had claimed to have observed at a distance. The expedition was led by Francisco Visquez de Coronado, and and they as a group would spend the next several years wandering through what is not modern-day Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, and even up to Kansas.  The French took this expedition a step further.  Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle landed on the Texas coast in 1684 and claimed the area for the King of France.  When La Salle strayed from his original group, he was murdered for this attempted conquest.  La Salle’s attempts resulted in Spain’s plan to establish a permanent presence in these desolate northern provinces in order to deter future incursions by other European powers. Ironically, it was because of La Salle that Spain would continue to attempt (and for the most part succeed) in their dominant rule of Texas for the next 130 years.  Missions  The first tool Spain used to establish a permanent presence in Texas was the mission. This system had worked well in other parts of Spain and its empire as a means of subduing conquered or indigenous peoples and converting them into both faithful Christians and loyal Spanish subjects.  This would not be as successful in Texas.  Hispanics  First Spanish missions in what is now Texas were established in the eastern part of the state in what would now be Nacogdoches. The Caddo Indians living there at the time were one of the most highly developed tribes in Texas at the time, and they saw no real advantage with leaving their own est. colony to relocate to the missions.  By the 1700s, after failing miserably to relocate the locals, the missions system in the state was abandoned.  In the southern part of the state, however, the mission system was actually fruitful, bounded by the Rio Grande River and the Gulf of Mexico, resulting in Spanish culture putting down its deepest roots in this area, and the use of several Spanish town names even now.  More than just town names are attributed to Hispanic culture in this area; Hispanics’ legal heritage had influence on community property and water rights in addition to communities that relied on free-ranger cattle ranching established throughout the Rio Grande and San Antonio de Bexar regions in the latter half of the 18th century. This is the causation of the cattle trade exploding throughout the 19th century.  The Anglos  First Anglo settlement of Texas was est. under Stephen F. Austin whose father negotiated an agreement with the Spanish. After his father’s death, Austin began issuing land grants.  In the 1820s, land was the most powerful commodity there was, primarily because it was such a precious commodity. Austin offered a deal wherein farmers received 177 acres of land; ranchers 4428 acres.  The prospective landowner had to occupy the land within two years, have it surveyed, make improvements to it, and become a Catholic (the official religion under Mexican constitution).  Result: Land grants drew Anglos to the are by the thousands. The Anglos were driven by independence and rebellious of the Mexican government that controlled them down in Mexico City. Likewise, the Mexican government grew increasingly weary of these Anglos.  1833: Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna was elected as president of Mexico. At this point, Mexico was a dictatorship, and Santa Anna aimed to keep it one, maintaining that Mexico was not ready for democracy. This ideology resulted in alienating many of the native Hispanic Texas families (aka “Tejanos”).  The Revolution  The alienated Hispanics allied with their Anglo neighbors to the east.  Oct. 1835, fighting broke out between Anglo settlers near Gonzales and Mexican cavalry troops from San Antonio. The battle was soon being referred to as the “Lexington of Texas” and within weeks the Anglo colonists and their Hispanic allies were revolting against Santa Anna and the Mexican government.  Santa Anna responded by deploying a large Texas army to dispel the revolutionaries.  The Revolution lasted 7 mos.  Highlight was the battle of the Alamo, which was spearheaded by Sam Houston, a Tennessean who had come to Texas in search of a better life. Reluctant to fight since all odds were against him, he finally took the field leading a troop against Mexican troops at San Jacinto on April 21. With the element of surprise, Houston and his troops defeated Santa Anna’s army, forcing them to retreat.  Now they were left independent, both in autonomy and free of any government, and the Republic of Texas was born.  The Republic of Texas  For the next ten years, Texas would be inhabited by people who basically acted like savages with no political structure to their government, which was bordering on chronic bankruptcy, suffering countless Indian attacks, Mexican invasions, European immigration, and politics that made, and no way to police against any of it. The economy relied on barter since cash was scarce and outrageously inflated, causing confusion and controversy in the economy.  Relief  Political parties didn’t exist, so there were constant struggles between the Sam Houston, the first president of Texas, and his successor, a poet from Georgia named Lamar, sparked endless controversies in regards to the structure of not only the political system in the Republic, but in the structuring of the government as well.  Contentions between the Anglos and Tejanos contiued, primarily because the political structure that was set in place was structured against the Tejanos, who had no recourse.  Moreover, Indians raided frontier settlements constantly, and Mexico sent in separate armies to invade Texas twice. Life in Texas deteriorated into a state of nature.  Having no recourse, no political structure, no legal ramification, and a continued absence of any sustainable economy left Texas feeling that anarchy was the only solution since government formation continued to fail.  The solution? Manifest Destiny.  Manifest Destiny  In a nutshell, this was a political concept that came out of the US in the mid 19th-century that lobbied for US expansion across the entire continent from the Atlantic to the Pacific.  The basis of this theory existed in widespread belief that Americans and their institutions (specifically their government) had special virtues that warranted geographic expansion and immersion by others.  America had made it its mission to redeem and remake the West in its own agrarian image  There was an irrefutable destiny to accomplish this essential duty.  Manifest Destiny was never fully successful, partly because of its large base of political opposition from people such as Ulysses S. Grant and Abraham Lincoln, but more because of the continued slavery issue in the US during this time. Despite its political opposition, the ideal of land expansion for the US did excel, and this ideology did allow for the US war with Mexico in 1840 as well as the largest land acquisition in US history in the Louisiana Purchase, and which would include, most importantly, the alliance with what was the Republic of Texas.  By Dec. 29, 1845, the Rep. of TX officially died when on this day, Texas became the 28th US state. And even though the Rep. wasn’t without its faults and existed in a state of nature due to lack of any centralized government, Texans missed it. They missed the autonomy, the independence, yet they had been willing to sacrifice this for governmental protection extended to them by joining the US. Still, Texas would look back on its days of being an autonomous republic w/ a nostalgia that would lead the state to believe that they were different, better, than the country and its government who had save them from themselves, and the result of this arrogance was a deterioration back into the very state of nature from which they had originally begged to be saved.  The Confederacy  15 yrs. after becoming the 28th State, Texas joined 10 other Southern States in attempting to disjoin from the Union. These states formed the Confederate States of America.  Not all Texans favored disbandment, and this would cause even more contention in the State throughout the Civil War.  By the summer of 1862, opposition to the Confederacy in and around Gainesville and Cooke County was so strong that a large group plotted to remove the area from Confederate control. This attempt was viewed as treason by the Confederacy; 40 were hanged.  Texas became a huge supplier of both men and supplies to the South’s efforts during the Civil War, even though few battles were actually fought on Texas soil.  By the war’s end, the South had surrendered, and so too had Texas. With the economy in shambles due in large part to a decrease of demand, Texas was also politically decimated, and had been militarily occupied.  General Gordon Granger came to Galvaston on June 19, 1865, the head of 1800 Federal troops. He also brought with him a copy of the 1863 Emancipation Proclamation, officially freeing the slaves in Texas. Black Texans would celebrate this day as “Juneteenth,” which is still celebrated today.  Reconstruction  Not an easy time for Texas.  The withdraw of fed. Troops at the beginning of Civil war left the western frontier vulnerable to attacks by Plains Indians.  The Union’s blockade of Southern ports helped to destroy the state’s economy. Wartime deaths had basically wiped out an entire generation. While the policies of the Reconstruction weren’t strict, they still left Texans longing for the days of the Confederacy, primarily because they opposed a strong federal government.  Harsher policies implemented by Radical Republicans in Congress resulted in many Confederate and wartime officials being barred from voting and holding elective office. Compile this with the fact that Blacks now had marginal civil rights, and what you go was the election of the state’s first Republican governor.  EJ Davis  Elected to Governorship in 1869.  Davis was left with a mess; he struggled to bring order out of the economic and political deterioration that was rampant in the state, but because of Republican-controlled national legislature, he was forced to raise taxes. He also used the state’s militia and police forces vigorously to attempt to get the state’s lawlessness under control. Neither move was popular w/ or well-received by the state’s populace.  By 1873, many former Confederates had their voting rights restored, and this came with a renewed vengeance at the polls in a statewide attempt to remove EJ Davis from office. With no enforceable laws at the time to dictate voting frequency, men were able to “vote early and often.  Davis was ousted from office.  Davis appealed to the State Supreme Court to overturn the election based on voter misconduct. Since Davis had appointed every single one of these justices to the Court, his appeal was granted, but besiegement by Democratic mob back at the state capitol would cause him to resign.  So ended the Reconstruction in Texas. And for the next 100 yrs. The state would be controlled by Democratic rule—not today’s Democrats, yet rather a party that was the conservative states’ rights who shared the political ideology of a common-day Republican than with the common-day Democrat.  The Americans: A Frontier State  The final years of the 19th century in Texas were marked by expansion, recovery, and political upheaval. The return of militia would help to force out the Plains Indians from the Western parts of the state, and Texans would flock to these areas.  Railroads expanded throughout the state, and provided Texas with an influx of goods and mode of transportation. These railroad companies were given preferential treatment by the government, and this angered much of the populace because the business practices of the railroads were unethical at best, illegal at worst. The expansion of these railways would economic political issues for the traditional shopkeeper and farmers; the result was the election of James Stephen Hogg as Governor in 1890. His stint in office would mark the beginning of the Progressive Era of Texas politics.  Taking office, Hogg made good on a promise to regulate the railroad companies by creating the Texas Railroad Commission. Legislation to regulate insurance companies, child labor, restructuring the prison system, and regulating local governments—all of which had been huge sources of grievance for common Texans—soon followed. This new hands-on approach to governmental regulation flew in the face of the traditional desire for laissez-faire state government possessed by most Texans. This new government activism marked a radical shift not only in Texas’ political ideology, but in their continued expansion from country to city, from farm to factory, and from the antiquated economic ventures of the 19th century into the capitalistic modern big-business boom it would face in the 20th.  A Modern State  Oil has been big business in Texas since the beginning of the 20th Century.  Big Oil was brought into Texas on January 10th, 1901 when AF Lucas brought in a huge well south of Beaumont, making the Spindletop field became the most productive in the world.  This changed everything. People flocked from country to city because fuel was cheap and readily available, and would create a catalyst for rapid industrialization, and working the oil fields proved much more lucrative than farming.  Jim Ferguson  Won governorship in 1914; was reelected in 1916.  His first term earned him a wide support base. After his second term, he feuded with the faculty and administration of UT and in a line-item veto in 1917, Ferguson managed to eliminate all funding from the general appropriation bill. This was the causal factor of Ferguson’s impeachment; charged with 21 articles, the Senate convicted him on 10 counts, most related to the questionable diversion of state funds to the Temple State Bank, which Ferguson had helped to establish. He remains the only governor in Texas’ history to be impeached and removed from office. In 1924, however, his wife Miriam ran for Governor and won, serving as a political proxy for her husband’s rule.  Despite Ferguson’s political issues, Texas became essentially a one- party state, with most Democrats elected to office remaining in office until resignation or death.  The Great Depression hit Texas hard, though, largely due to the collapse of farm prices, and this caused people to rapidly flock from rural to urban areas to seek work. However, oil discoveries in the Permian Basin and jobs in defense plants throughout WWII helped to ease economic strife throughout the state. However this economic influx was not ubiquitous, as it was largely subject to social and economic racism, meaning that most minorities didn’t share this life in the mainstream.  So the history of Texas is complex…. (This is made even more so by geographic influences from the different regions and the ethnical diversity from each region, which can be read about in sect. 1.3- 1.6) Federalism and Texas Constitution  Federalism  Federalism is the doctrine underlining a political system in which power is divided between a central authority and constituent political subunits.  This is the most pompous way possible of saying that federalism is simply the ever- evolving relationship between the federal govt. and the states.  Federalism is a dual system of government.  2 systems operate congruently: one at the national level, and one in each state.  Both the national and state systems have power over its citizens, meaning that you have to obey US federal laws, and the laws here in the State of Texas.  There are three branches of govt. at the US level: the executive, legislative, and judicial. Those same three branches exist in the State of Texas.  There exists different court systems at both the state and federal levels, each with its own original, appellate, and subject matter jurisdiction.  Federalism dictates what powers are granted to both the national and state governments.  Originally, the distinction between state and federal powers was more distinct and direct. To this day, when we consider what the national gov. actually does, we consider the major issues it deals with, such a international relations and foreign policies; controlling the military; in other words, issues that concern our national security.  Traditionally, it has been the responsibility of the states to handle their own people, and the issues that directly affect their local populace such as education, public aid (the irony or point of contention here being that some 85% of all funding for public aid agencies in the State of Texas is federally financed).  Currently, however, federalism has subscribed to a more centralized system, meaning the national government is more likely/more willing to give power to the state government, but more importantly, the national government has the authority to take the power back from the state as it sees fit. It is for this reason that even though the states are given the authority to regulate their own local issues, they have the ability to do this only to the point that the national govt. sees fit to give it to them, and so true power is never relinquished by the federal government.  Constitutional Limitations on State  Powers The US Constitution is the supreme law of the land. Be it a state or individual, we bow to it. However, the 10th Amendment does allow for the creation of federalism under our democratic system by asserting that “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people.” Basically, what this is saying is that if it is something that is not explicitly prohibited by the Constitution, then the federal government will leave the issue at hand up to the states’ discretion to deal with.  That said, there are plenty of things that the Constitution explicitly prohibits a state from doing.  Article I Sec. 10 highlights specific state limitations, which include, amongst others, that a state is prohibited from entering into a foreign treaty with another country; they cannot lay duties against any entity importing or exporting goods into the US without the consent of Congress; and they cannot enter into war without the prior consent of Congress unless they are actually attacked.  Shared Powers  Shared powers are those that are clearly and explicitly shared at both the federal and state level.  Article IV, Sec. 1-4 highlights the Full Faith and credit Clause; new states may be admitted to the union by Congress; the federal govt. will guarantee a republican form of govt. for all states under its jurisdiction. Constitutional Amend.  Bill of Rights (know these)  The purpose of the Bill of Rights was to limit the power of the federal govt.  The purpose of the subsequent 17 amend. was to limit the states’ power.  Consider the 13th, 14th, 15th, 17th (stripped state legislatures of right to appoint US senators); 19th, and 26th.  US Constitution aside, the fed. govt.’s biggest hold over the states is to control taxation and spending.  $3.8 trillion natl. budget.  1/3 of Texas budget comes from fed. govt.  Easiest way to control laws states pass is to limit state funding (consider the drinking age).  Dual Federalism  AKA Cooperative Federalism  This concept of federalism was created under President Andrew Jackson  Under this theory, each level of govt. had its own sphere of influence (states concerned with states’ concerns; vice versa, federal).  Ended by Great Depression  Cooperative Fed.  Lasted from 1937-1990  As name suggest, concept wherein Fed and states work together.  State leaders took issue with this theory, arguing coercion over cooperation.  LBJ Great Society programs/ ended in mid 1960; compelled states to comply by withholding funding  New Federalism  1990-pres.  Political devolution (reverse transfer of power from the fed. govt. back to States)  Restores states’ autonomy robbed of them under FDR New Deal  Relies on 10th Amend; Block Grants  Why this matters…  Federalism discusses the evolving relationship between fed. govt. & states; fed. govt. manipulative with money  Fed. Places mandates on states (these are actually funded)  Unfunded mandates  Lays foundation for state constitution  Texas Constitution  Laid out much the same way as fed.  Leg., Ex. Judicial branches est. by separate articles  State’s Bill of Rights protects individuals from unreasonable govt. action.  Yet another article details the powers and limitations of local govt.  Legislative Law: Bills passed by the legislature and enacted by governor.  Texas has more than 300 amendments  1836 Rep. of Texas Constitution was written quickly between the fall of the Alamo and Sam Houston’s victory at San Jacinto.  Generally followed US model (bicameral; 3 branches; no judiciary).  7 Texas Constitutions  Rep. of Texas Con. Limited pres. to serve one term; no clergy  Slavery legalized; land grants continued.  Replaced by 1845 constitution.  1845 Constitution  Reached bc of Annexation w/ US  House and Senate; governor  Term limits >4 yrs. Of 6 yr. period; met biannually  Governor appointed justices (initially; this changed w/ 1850 amend.)  Slavery continued  1861 Constitution  Result of Texas’ secession to join Confederate States of America.  Only major change was slavery: in order for a slave to be emancipated, permission from state govt. required.  1866 Constitution  TX forced back into the Union after Confederacy lost Civil War.  Forced to illegalize slavery  Black Codes prominent (limited job opportunities for newly freed slaves; created caste sys. in state).  1869 Constitution  March 1867: All Southern State governments were disbanded; the (former) Confederacy divided into 5 military districts.  Each state required to ratify Civil War Amendments  Convention controlled by Radical Republicans  Division: Texas 5 separate states?  EJ Davis: Gov. during reconstruction; proactive in passing 15th Amend.  Obnoxious Acts: Name opposing Dems. gave Davis’ agenda  Created state police force to stop lynchings and Indian attacks  Militia viewed negatively as they incl. blacks; were costly; and mandated via bill passed through state leg. in shady way  1872 Elections: Dems. overtook legislature again.  Davis ousted 1873; contested constitutionality of election to Supreme Court; served in succession w/ successor, Dem. Richard Coke before finally leaving office in 1874.  1876 Constitution  Texas Grange (blame RR companies)  Legislature met annually  Debt ceiling 10X more than under previous con.  Series of amend. that would return centralized power to state.  Mirrored pre-civil war doc.  Limited gov. to 2-yr. term; Texas State Supreme Court Justice to 6; lowered legislative salaries  (Texas’) Bill of Rights  2 Reasons we need this: US Bill of Rights doesn’t extend to the relationship between the state and its citizens; a state can’t give less protection to its citizens than is dictated by US Supreme Court, but it can give more (EX. 1982 ERA defeated; Texas passed one in 1972).  TX Bill of Rights contains 30 provisions (incl. the illegalization of monopolies and debtor’s prison; grand jury for felony charges).  Amending the Constitution  State house and Senate must approve proposed amend. w/ 2/3 vote. 51 House Members and/or 11 Senators can block passage.  Ratification of amend. approved by the legislature requires majority approval from the voters (most are).  Governor has no formal role in amendment process  Constitutional Revision  In 1969, several obsolete provisions such as one dealing w/ Spanish and Mexican land titles were removed.  Instead of renumbering originally mis- numbered sections of the1876 document, we blanked them out entirely.  1974: Constitution overhaul  1976 Constitutional Convention  1972 Constitutional Amend. Passed called for a revisions commission; this commission would submit recommendations at the 1974 Constitutional Convention.  Convention’s delegates consisted of elected members of the house and senate in a single body.  Hoped for reform in the wake of Vietnam War, Watergate scandal, and Sharpstown Scandal (1971-72 stock fraud scandal involving highest state govt.)  Convention delegates haggled over a new Constitution from Jan.-July 1974  Required 2/3 majority approval from delegates to be sent to voters for ratification; fell three votes short.  Voters more than likely wouldn’t have passed it due to provisions requiring workforce (potential employees wouldn’t have to join a labor union to get a job); equalization of public school funding  In 1975, House and Senate reconvened in order to revamp the 1974 proposition. Sent it to vote as 9 different propositions.  None of these propositions passed, primarily bc the governor was screaming that these provisions would create a state income tax.  Result in the passage of an amend. that required voter approval before a state income tax can be levied Opposition of Revision  There was little call for revision for 20 yrs. after the failed 1975 attempt.  There has been little since. Opposition is strong amongst groups who are benefiting from status quo. Voting and Elections  Voting and Voting Rights  Remember Texas has a history of discouraging voters from voting  15th Amend./ Black Codes/ White Primary (1905- 1944; Grovey v. Townsend (1924); overturned by Smith v. Allwright (1944), wherein it was reversely ruled that political parties were agencies of the state, and thereby open to public admittance).  Women’s rights  Universal suffrage (15th, 19th, 26th Amends).  Voter Discrimination  Poll Taxes (Passed in 1902)  24th Amend. (1964) applies specifically to national elections.  Texas v. US (1966) struck down the Texas law, illegalizing poll taxes at state level.  US Supreme Court also struck down more discriminatory and prohibitive Texas statutes regarding a year of residency and annual registration before anyone could vote in TX.  Voting Rights Act (1965)  Not extended to TX until 1975, but protects minority voter turnout and protects from discrimination during the voter process.  Requires all affected states and municipalities to submit redistricting plans to US Justice Department or Fed. Court for approval.  This provision eliminated racial gerrymandering  Voter Requirements Must be 18, US citizen, and a Texas resident; county resident for 30 days prior to election; register 30 days in advance. National Registration Act of 1993  Voter Turnout  The irony of turnout (you wanted the right, but…)  Education, familial involvement key factors  Type of election also a factor: Elections w/ highest media attention draw largest turnout (presidential, governor).  Lower turnout in minority communities stems from disadvantaged socioeconomic groups who have become disenfranchised by the govt., believing that their votes either don’t matter or aren’t counted.  Family Tradition  Language barriers  Specific to TX  Large number of elections in TX (party primary, party primary runoff, city election, city election runoff, recall election, a special election, a general election, etc.)  This leads to election burnout, which occurs when citizens simply fall to the belief that there are just too many elections and therefore fail to vote.  Long ballot is also a factor in minimizing turnout (too many candidate choices).  Voter Reform  Several states allow Election Day registration.  Voting by mail  2011: TX passed voter ID bill; bill was struck down by US Court of Appeals  Voter education  No Excuse Early Voting Policy: (For primary and general elections, early voting begins 15-17 days before election and ends 4 days prior to election).  Primary Election  Primary elections held by each party to determine candidates  In TX, votes don’t register as Republican or Democrats; instead, they wait until the primary elections and just vote (therefore you cannot vote in both parties’ primaries)  Primary elections held on the 1st Tuesday in March in year of general election  Primary runoff  General Election  General elections determine who will hold office. (These are the winners of primaries as well as minor party nominees who have their names placed on the general election ballot).  Minor parties will remain minor in TX; it is difficult for their names to be placed on the general election ballot unless one of their candidates received at least 5% of the vote in the last general election or the party can get a petition signed by at least 50,000 citizens (1% of the last general election total for that office) and these people cannot have voted in the Dem. or Rep. primaries  Plurality: Having more votes than any other candidate  Gubernatorial election: Held in even-numbered years, it is in these election in which the governor and other executive officials are picked; these elections occur in interim years.  The governor’s party is listed first on the ballot for four years following his win.  Straight Party: Voting for a specific party as opposed to a single candidate.  Special Election  Held to fill vacancies, ratify state constitutional amendments, or approve local bond issues.  Special elections to fill vacancies are “nonpartisan” (no political party influence); require a majority to win, and usually occur outside of the traditional March and November dates.  Campaigning  Direct/Grassroots Lobbying  Lobbyist/Interest Groups (NRA, TEA Fund, Sierra Club)  Media/Social Media  Mailings  MONEY  Political Parties Democrat v. Republican Parties in TX are coalitional (Meaning we’re talking about a diverse group of people who are rallying around one specific candidate for an office). Ideology Platform  Other Parties  Minor Parties (Green and Libertarian/ Their place in the TX political race) >0.5% of the total vote  Closest a Libertarian has ever come to winning a race in the 2012 House race when Lillian Martinez Simmons gained 29.7% of the total vote in the 52nd district  Conventions  Precinct (small geographic regions that hold elections across the state)  Precinct meetings (held on eve of party primary)  Precinct Convention: Begins with the election of the convention chair and secretary, and then they will elect delegates (voters who attend who will move onto the next level of the election)  Resolutions  State Senatorial District Convention (A chair and secretary are chosen; each county or district is granted one delegate for every 300 votes that were cast in the last county election for that party’s nominee)  State Level Convention  Highest level of parties’ conventions  Held in June in even-numbered years, always in major cities (Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, Austin)  Chooses chair and secretary and party platform  During the year of a presidential election, this State Convention will choose delegates to send to the national election convention and select of list of potential presidential electors; these people only become official electors should their party rep. win the gen election in November  Democrats  Est. Formally in 1854 in TX  Compiled from failing Whig and Know-nothing parties  Whig Party dominated in the US thru the 1860s; believed in dominance of Congress over the President and economic protectionism. This party produced 4 US presidents:  Know-Nothing Party (operated in mid-1850s; anti- Catholic and immigration; purify politics)  Democrats Continued political dominance  Factions  Liberals v. Conservatives vie for control over party during the 1930s  FDR New Deal  Texas Regulars  Democrats of Texas (liberal faction formed in 1930s)  Republican Party  Dems. Held control of TX politics through the reconstruction, and up until the 1950s when Eisenhower-Stevenson faceoff for Senate seat over Tidewater controversy  LBJ (D) run for president in 1960  Political Parties…Brief History  It starts with Andrew Jackson (3rd Pres.; Elected from Dem. Support in  Democratic-Republicans v. Federalists  Federalist became Whigs (urban/capitalist/evangelical)  Federalists/Whigs supported a stronger central govt. (No Bill of Rights) (Fell apart due to slavery)  Democratic-Republicans formed when the Whigs folded  Jackson pit Congress against the Executive Branch  By the 1850s: Industrial Revolution; you see the Dems. V. Republicans (the Republicans anti- slavery; capitalist; evangelical; urbanist  Democrats representing everyone else: agriculturalist; labor union; non-Protestant  Great Depression; parties formed their current stereotypical ideologies as the Fed. Govt. wanted to step in; FDR’s New Deal; these traditional ideologies permanently shifted with Civil Rights Movement Reagan Republicanism  Elected in 1980; Conservatism resonated with TX  TX officially became a two-party state in 1986; Republicans unable to win a down-ballot race (contest below the US president, governor, or US senator).  Election Day 1988: George Bush took election  Gerrymandering ruling in 1991  Interest Groups  Interest Group v. Party  Centralized Interest Group (Groups with a centralized organization and leaders who control the group’s interests)  Decentralized Interest Group (Groups that have little formal organization and therefore no formal leadership)  Amorphous Interest Group: (tenuous connected membership; no organization or focus)  Grassroots campaigning: Requires group members’ participation in campaign efforts.  Types of Groups  Business Interests: (TX stance against big business; TTARA (Texas Taxpayers and Research Assoc.: Specializes in the state’s tax structure (ind., state, corporate)  Labor Interests: Act on behalf of Laborers (Oil, Chemical and Atomic Workers of TX)  Professional Interests (TX Teachers’ Assoc.; TX Trial Lawyers Assoc.; TX Medical Association).  Ethnic Interests: NAACP  Single Interest Groups (NRA; MADD)  Interest Groups and Legislation  TX Legislation meets in reg. session for a maximum of 140 days beginning in Jan. of every even-numbered yr.  6-7000 pieces of legislation viewed. Biennial budget hammered out (other issues include tort reform, casino gambling; toll road construction; utility deregulation, etc.)  All of this legislation overseen by citizen legislators paid $600/mo. who specialize in these various issues.  Given the time constraint of the session, information is the most valuable commodity  Information dissemination: The process by which an interest group rep makes information available to legislators.  Once a group has researched and est. a stance on an issue, they turn to their link to get their message out. This link is their access to the legislature.  Your lobbyist is the person who tries to gain access wit a particular legislator in order to drive legislation.  Congressional subcommittees; lobbyist as former legislators turned hired guns.  Formal contacts (lobbyists, legislators, and lobbyist ethics; cost of lobbying ventures and outsider donations)  Informal Contacts: (Literal) Parties involving lobbyists, legislators, their secretaries; staff members—legislators are busy; these informal contacts allow lobbyist a different “in.”  Membership mobilization: Grassroots efforts of enlisting members of an interest group in attempting to sway policy makers.  Interim Oversight: Various action by an interest group aimed at protecting its gains and promoting its goals between leg. Sessions.  Regulation  Sharpstown Scandal (1971-72): Stock fraud scandal  Led to passage of Lobbyist Registration Act: The law was originally passed in order to force lobbyist and interest groups to register, in order to control interest groups’ influence. Now contains several provisions to which a group or lobbyist must adhere esp. those who lobby for money (i.e., prohibition of contingency fees, controlling conflicts of interest between lobbyists/groups.)  Interim Oversight: The various actions taken by an interest group aimed at protecting its gains and promoting its agenda between legislative sessions (i.e.: a lobbyist discussing known issues w/ legislators between sessions is going to be more effective since legislator won’t be as busy)  All About Money  Internal funding of Interest Groups (Dues)  Competition between small and large groups for political and legislative influence; “small” groups remain competitive by relying on affluent members.  Money=influence. Influence=change.  External Funding  Interest groups raise money to fund their own operations, and also to contribute to election campaigns.  TX law forbids labor unions and corporations and trade associations from donating to an individual political campaign. (Think about it: you give money, you want something in return. Apple could theoretically buy the presidency). Those with the money are the ones to get their message to the masses.  The loophole to this is Political Action Committees.  PAC  Political Action Committees (PACs) is a voluntary association of individuals who bond together for the purpose of raising and distributing money for political campaigns.  AT&T (headquartered in Dallas) cannot donate corporate money to Rick Perry’s campaign; their employees can donate their individual funds, however.  Problem: Peer pressure  The Iron Triangle  The exchange of favors between interest groups, the legislature, and government departments (each one of these has something to gain from the other, and likewise, something to give in return).  For instance, the legislators provide funding to agencies to help interest groups pass or kill legislation that directly effects them.  Agency Staff provide information to legislators and to interest groups.  Interest Groups and their PACs provide campaign funds to legislators and provide info to both legislators and agencies.