Texas Supreme Court rejects state Republican bid to hold in-person convention in Houston News
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Texas Supreme Court rejects state Republican bid to hold in-person convention in Houston

The Texas Supreme Court Monday upheld a refusal by the mayor of Houston to host the state Republican party convention in person due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

The Texas Republican party contended that the Court had the authority to require the City to move forward with the convention. The Court dismissed their request, citing a lack of jurisdiction under Section 273.061 of the Texas election code.

Texas Republican party leaders had planned the convention for July 13–18 in the George R. Brown Convention Center. Thousands of attendees were expected to assemble in downtown Houston center that seats 3,600.

Last Wednesday Mayor Sylvester Turner ordered city officials to cancel the in-person convention. In making the decision, the twice-elected Democratic mayor cited the ongoing public health crisis stemming from the COVID-19 outbreak. Texas has seen a significant increase in the number of COVID-19 cases in July. On Monday alone, the state recorded almost 9,000 new cases.

It remains unclear how the Texas Republican convention will move forward. State party leaders are already meeting to discuss possible next steps. Notably, the Texas Democratic Party already held a fully online state convention in June due to COVID-19.

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