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North Texas will see crop of new leaders as veteran lawmakers leave Legislature in droves

Redistricting, demands of the job and political ambition is causing turnover in the Texas House and Senate.

Proponents of term limits complain that elected lawmakers often overstay their welcome.

That’s not the case these days in the Texas House, where turnover is occurring across the state. In North Texas, the 2022 elections could bring an array of new faces to the House and Senate.

When the Legislature convenes in 2023, there will be eight new members of the House. And a new senator will replace the retiring Jane Nelson of Denton County. Statewide, 28 House lawmakers have retired or left their seats to run or another office. Five senators are not running for reelection, including several moderate Republicans, including Kel Seliger of Amarillo and Larry Taylor of Friendswood.

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Sen. Jane Nelson said Tuesday that while "things were looking pretty bleak" last year, the...
Sen. Jane Nelson said Tuesday that while "things were looking pretty bleak" last year, the state's economy has rebounded, allowing senators to pass a two-year budget "that will help keep Texas strong, safe, healthy and prosperous." (May 2019 File Photo)(Tom Fox / Staff Photographer)
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Rice political scientist Mark Jones said Nelson is the fifth-most centrist Republican in the Senate.

In Dallas County, House Democrats are losing retiring moderate John Turner of Dallas.

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“It just heightens the polarization,” Jones said of the retirements.

“When you look at the Republicans becoming more conservative and the Democrats losing some of their moderates, it just increases the polarization in Austin.”

The retirements also provide a new look, and for different reasons. Voters will make their choices in the March primaries and November general election.

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Disparate reasons to leave

State Rep. Matt Shaheen, R-Plano, has only been in the Legislature since 2015, but he’s seen a lot of turnover.

“I was on the floor late one night and I went over and looked at the composite pictures of all the members from when I first entered in 2015,” Shaheen said. “I’m not exaggerating. Half the people are gone and that’s just the nature of the Texas House. There’s just always turnover. People retire after a couple terms.”

This year’s redistricting process is responsible for at least one departure. Rep. Jeff Cason, a Bedford Republican, is not running for reelection because his district was redrawn to favor a Democratic Party candidate. Cason was one of two Republicans to vote against Republican House Speaker Dade Phelan, and the sacrifice of his district by Republican map drawers fortified other legislative boundaries in Tarrant County for the GOP.

Redistricting could have played a role in the departure of Democrat Michelle Beckley of Carrollton, who opted against running for reelection and is now a candidate for lieutenant governor. Her House district was redrawn to favor a Republican candidate.

The rigors of the job, meant to be part time, could also be a factor. Regular sessions are held every other year from January through May. But this year, lawmakers were in Austin for a regular session and three special sessions. That’s not how the system is meant to work.

“It’s just difficult to serve in what is pretty much a volunteer position,” Shaheen said.

State Rep. John Turner, a Democrat who represents House District 114, is the son of former...
State Rep. John Turner, a Democrat who represents House District 114, is the son of former state representative, senator and congressman Jim Turner. Like his father, John is a centrist Democrat in a Republican leaning district. Here, he poses for a portrait at his Dallas office on Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2021, in Dallas. (Lynda M. González/The Dallas Morning News)(Lynda M. González / Staff Photographer)

In Dallas County, Turner retired to focus on his family. He’s in his second term.

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“This decision is for one reason alone: my conclusion that another campaign and another full legislative session are not compatible with the time I need to devote at this stage in life to being a father and husband,” Turner said in a statement earlier this year.

McKinney Republican Scott Sanford will retire after 10 years in the Legislature. His District 70 was moved to the southern part of Collin County and is more favorable to a Democratic Party candidate. Closer to Sanford’s existing district, Republicans will see a new face in what’s being called District 61.

State Rep. Rafael Anchia, D-Dallas, says an adage from Texas State University chancellor and former Rep. Brian McCall sums up the current situation.

“When people leave the legislature, most of the time nobody feels bad, because it was time for them to go,” Anchia said.

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Pursuit of higher office

Ambition plays a role in some of the departures. Several lawmakers are leaving their post to run for other elected offices.

Beckley, first elected in 2018, initially announced a run for Congress against incumbent Republican Beth Van Duyne before announcing a campaign for lieutenant governor. That Democratic field includes 2020 nominee Mike Collier and former Texas Democratic Party Vice Chairwoman Carla Brailey. All want a chance to unseat powerful Republican incumbent Dan Patrick.

State Rep. Jasmine Crockett tears up as she is brought to the podium in Dallas on Wednesday,...
State Rep. Jasmine Crockett tears up as she is brought to the podium in Dallas on Wednesday, Nov. 24, 2021. Crockett will run to fill Eddie Bernice Johnson's seat.(Rebecca Slezak / Staff Photographer)
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In Dallas County, freshman lawmaker Jasmine Crockett of Dallas is leaving her statehouse seat for a campaign to replace retiring U.S. Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson in Dallas.

There’s also political ambition in Tarrant County, where Rep. Matt Krause first opted against reelection to run in the GOP primary for Texas attorney general. He later shifted course and is now running for Tarrant County district attorney.

Longtime Rep. Phil King of Weatherford is running for Senate seat now held by Burleson Democrat Beverly Powell. Republicans made Powell’s Senate District 10 more favorable to a Republican candidate. The new Senate maps are being challenged in court.

Flower Mound Republican Tan Parker is leaving his Denton County House seat to run for the Senate seat held by Nelson. Parker, a former majority leader, has been in the House since 2007.

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“Turnover can be a good thing,” Shaheen said. “You get fresh new blood and a fresh new perspective?”

Despite the turnover, a core of veteran North Texas lawmakers remain to help Republicans and Democrats.

Flower Mound Republican Tan Parker is leaving his Denton County House seat to run for the...
Flower Mound Republican Tan Parker is leaving his Denton County House seat to run for the Texas Senate. He's been in the House since 2007.(VERNON BRYANT / Staff Photographer)

State Rep. Yvonne Davis and state Sen. Royce West, both Dallas Democrats, were elected to the Legislature in 1992. Fort Worth’s Charlie Geren has been in the Legislature since 2001.

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Anchia, who was first elected in 2004, remembers when he was considered a newbie in a chamber filled with veterans. That year he replaced the retiring Democrat Steve Wolens of Dallas.

“He said ‘go ahead and sit down in my in my in my chair, make some calls, make yourself comfortable, because chances are you will never have an office like this,’” Anchia said Wolens joked. “The reality is that while I don’t have an office quite that large, I’ve moved up with my seniority to the high teens and my office is quite nice. I’m on quite a run.”