Now, of course, there are those who would immediately respond to that question with an emphatic yes. They would point to facts such as Donald Trump winning Texas by roughly 15 percentage points and Ted Cruz winning his race by nearly 10. They would note that Texas hasn’t seen a Democrat win a statewide election in more than two decades.

Yes, Texas has a Republican Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, and Republican majorities in both the State Senate and House. These are indeed facts—but it still begs the question: Is Texas truly a red state?

Just like a play under review during a college football game, let’s take a closer look.

In the Texas State House, Republicans hold an 88–62 majority over Democrats. Alongside a 19–12 advantage in the Texas Senate, one would expect that to mean strong conservative leadership. However, thirty-six (36) House Republicans joined forty-nine (49) Democrats to select the current Texas House Speaker, Dustin Burrows.

These are the same Democrats who fled the state to block a constitutional redistricting vote after the census. And one has to wonder why, with those numbers, we still can’t achieve genuine property tax reform in Texas.

Closer to home here in Dallas County, we continue to battle a Democrat Party funded by George Soros–affiliated organizations—one donation alone totaling $200,000. Sadly, we also have “mega-donors” right here in North Texas who recently gave to leftist Dallas City Council members running for reelection. Perhaps that explains why Marxist leftists control every major urban county in Texas—Dallas, Harris (Houston), Travis (Austin), and Bexar (San Antonio)—with only Tarrant County (Fort Worth) remaining on their target list.

What truly confuses Republicans across Texas, however, is the revelation that Secretary of State Jane Nelson—a Republican, former State Senator, and appointee of Governor Greg Abbott—is fighting against the Republican Party of Texas (RPT) to close the state’s primary system.

Back in 2024, 74% of Texas Republicans voted in favor of closing the GOP primary, meaning only declared, registered Republicans could vote to select Republican candidates. Currently, Texas has open primaries—any registered voter can participate.

In September, the Republican Party of Texas filed a lawsuit against the State of Texas to close the primaries, arguing that open primaries violate Republicans’ First Amendment right to freedom of association. We’ve already seen how Democrats have crossed over to vote in GOP primaries and even runoffs. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has joined the RPT in supporting this lawsuit. Yet, Secretary Nelson—whose office oversees elections and policy—stands in opposition.

So why would a Republican Secretary of State, appointed by a Republican Governor, oppose her own party? I have my own insights into this, having served as both Chairman of the Republican Party of Texas and now Chairman of the Dallas County Republican Party.

But it doesn’t stop there. Because the Attorney General’s office supports the RPT lawsuit, Secretary Nelson has sought outside legal counsel—hiring two firms: Underwood Law Firm and Washington, D.C.–based Clement & Murphy PLLC—at a total cost of $1.25 million.

And who pays for this? Texas taxpayers.

Unless Secretary Nelson is paying from her own pocket, she is using public funds to hire D.C. lawyers to fight against an issue that 74% of Texas Republicans support. Reports indicate that the lead attorney, James Xi, is billing at $1,500 an hour.

Why is a Republican Secretary of State using taxpayer dollars to oppose the will of her own party? Could it be that Jane Nelson is merely implementing the agenda of those who prefer Texas to look red—but not actually be red?

Last week, I wrote about the “Locust Effect,” and it remains a real concern. If Texas fails to secure its electoral integrity, we risk becoming the next state to fall.

Florida has closed primaries. In California, the left rules with an iron fist. Why is Texas so hesitant to advance bold, constitutional conservative policies?

I often wonder—if President Trump hadn’t publicly pushed Texas to conduct redistricting—would our own Republican leadership have done it at all?

Perhaps there’s a reason jihadist and Islamist extremist networks have found refuge in Texas. Never forget—the largest terrorism funding trial in U.S. history, the Holy Land Foundation case, took place right here in Texas in 2008. There should be no reason why subsidiaries of the Muslim Brotherhood feel comfortable operating in our state. And the same goes for domestic terrorist groups like Antifa and the Elm Fork John Brown Gun Club.

Perhaps if we finally close the Texas primary, we will become a real red state—and maybe that’s exactly what some people are afraid of.

Steadfast and Loyal,