Gov. Greg Abbott outlined a variety of legislative priorities during his keynote speech at the state Republican Party convention Friday afternoon in Houston, followed by the stunning appearance of an elephant that paraded around the room.
Abbott, who is running for an unprecedented fourth term as governor of Texas, also stressed how he intended to help Republicans win elections, including in Harris County.
Abbott had previously pledged to spend big to flip blue-leaning Harris County, but he had been largely silent on the issue since his preferred candidate for Harris County judge, Houston firefighters' union president Patrick "Marty" Lancton, failed to make the party's primary runoff. He reiterated his commitment to delegates and gave specifics while speaking on stage at the George R. Brown Convention Center.
"My campaign will spend at least $25 million just in Harris County alone," Abbott said. "We are going block by block, door to door, and we are going to win up and down the entire ballot."
Abbott also endorsed a key demand of the party, passing legislation to close the state's primary system. Currently, Texans can vote in either major party's primary. Many Republicans have expressed concerns, with little evidence, that this is encouraging crossover voting by Democrats to influence their party's choice of candidates.
The Republican Party of Texas is currently suing the state, arguing that the open primary system violates Republicans' First Amendment right to freedom of association.
Much of Abbott's speech revolved around listing past Republican legislative accomplishments, ranging from tightening the state's election laws out of concerns for voter fraud — the evidence for which is minimal — to banning gender reassignment surgery for children.
But when Abbott began speaking about the party's efforts to cut property taxes, he focused on his proposals for the next legislative session: legislation to require two-thirds voter approval for municipalities to pass any property tax hikes, as well as legislation lowering the property tax appraisal cap from 10% to no more than 3% per year.
"And we should stop using your homestead to fund education in the state of Texas," Abbott said. "We must abolish school district property taxes on your homesteads."
Abbott did not give any indication of what he proposed to replace property taxes as a source of funding for public education.
Other priorities Abbott addressed ranged from banning Islamic religious law in the state of Texas to making it possible to impeach what he described as "rogue" district attorneys who refuse to enforce state law, a measure that would be largely aimed at elected Democrats in large cities.
But Abbott also spoke of the need to regulate the construction of artificial intelligence (AI) data centers, outlining the plan he had unveiled earlier in the week.
"Over the past five years, we have added 50% more electrical power to the grid," Abbott said. "Going forward, to better protect the grid, we will require data centers to bring their own power, reuse their own water, and lower the cost of electricity for residents."
Abbott did not, however, address a key demand of many delegates: providing local governments with the final word on where and whether such data centers can be built in their jurisdictions. That demand is set to be included in the party's platform and official legislative priorities. Abbott has spent much of the past several legislative sessions fighting to clamp down on local control, particularly in majority-Democrat municipalities.
As Abbott concluded his speech, the convention announcer asked people to remain in their seats for a surprise guest. A full-grown elephant then entered the hall, draped in a shawl bearing one of Abbott's campaign slogans.
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