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The Blast: Who could join the Texas Dem chair race? [1]

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Date: 2024-11 

After 12, going on 13 years under the leadership of Chair Gilberto Hinojosa, it’s time for Texas Democratic Party officials to choose their next captain.



This morning, Hinojosa announced his intention to step down following Democrats’ backslide in Texas on Tuesday. He plans to serve until March, when the 100-plus members of the State Democratic Executive Committee will elect someone to complete Hinojosa’s term.



Vice Chair Shay Wyrick Cathey was the first to throw her name into the ring. Former Harris County Democratic Party Chair Lillie Schechter said she is “considering it closely.”



The Blast’s sources in and around the party mentioned the names of several individuals who are also making the rounds about potential bids: Monique Alcala , the party’s executive director since August

, the party’s executive director since August Carla Brailey , vice chair from 2018 to 2021 before running for lieutenant governor

, vice chair from 2018 to 2021 before running for lieutenant governor Randall Bryant , vice chair of the Texas Young Democrats and a member of the SDEC

, vice chair of the Texas Young Democrats and a member of the SDEC and Kendall Scudder, TDP’s vice chair for finance All that’s before a statewide name like Beto O’Rourke or Wendy Davis gets involved. Although they would be outsiders to the state party apparatus, both have run statewide operations. Both are some of the party’s strongest fundraisers and communicators. O’Rourke — with all his Texas traversing as a candidate and voter registering since then — is particularly accustomed to the schedule and some of the job’s top tasks.



Unlike the party chair elections held during the state party convention, only the SDEC members will cast votes, not the state convention delegates, and an O’Rourke or a Davis might have more pull on a convention floor than in a small group of insiders.



Hinojosa’s announcement comes only a few days after Texas Democrats lost the electoral gains they’d made during his tenure, which began when Republicans controlled 101 seats in the state House. Democrats are still reeling from their loss, and the political discourse is filled with hot takes, as a bunch of Democratic firebrands running on a few hours of sleep argue about what went wrong. Hinojosa’s decision also comes two days after he apologized for tying Democrats’ electoral performance to their stance on transgender issues.



Inserting the TDP chair race into that environment makes the discussions “intertwined in an unavoidable way,” one SDEC member told the Blast.



However, Hinojosa built in a bit of runway with his announcement, per another Democratic operative.



The SDEC’s next quarterly meeting will be on Dec. 7. But by pushing the election until the following quarterly meeting in March, there will be time to dive into data from elections officials, pollsters and focus groups, allowing the SDEC to make an informed choice rather than make a knee-jerk reaction.



Whoever they choose would serve as party chair at least until the next state party convention in 2026.

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