SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 159
	WHEREAS, Proud members of the Republican Party of Texas are
	celebrating the organization's 150th anniversary in 2017; and
	WHEREAS, The Republican Party of Texas was founded at the
	Harris County Courthouse on the Fourth of July, 1867, 13 years
	after the national party was established and 7 years after the
	election of the first Republican president, Abraham Lincoln;
	former governor Elisha M. Pease served as chair of that initial
	state convention, and Colonel John L. Haynes, commander of the
	United States Army's First Texas Cavalry, became the executive
	committee chair; the party's membership in its early years was
	largely made up of former slaves, German American immigrants, and
	Texans who had opposed secession during the Civil War; and
	WHEREAS, Notable early Texas Republicans included Edmund
	J. Davis, the state's first Republican governor, Morgan C. Hamilton,
	a Republican senator, George T. Ruby, an African American state
	senator from Galveston, and Norris Wright Cuney, a prominent
	African American leader and a member of the Republican National
	Committee from 1886 to 1896; and
	WHEREAS, The party gained strength in the Lone Star State
	in the 20th century when Dwight Eisenhower carried Texas in the
	1952 presidential election, and its fortunes were boosted again
	in 1961 when John Tower was elected to replace Lyndon Johnson in
	the United States Senate; a new era began in 1978, when William P.
	Clements took office as the first Republican governor since
	Reconstruction, and from the 1980s to the present, Texas has been
	represented in the United States Congress by a series of
	accomplished Republican leaders, including Senators Phil Gramm,
	Kay Bailey Hutchison, John Cornyn, and Ted Cruz, as well as
	numerous members of the United States House of Representatives;
	Republicans have taken on an increasingly prominent role in state
	and local government as well; the party has held the governor's
	office since 1994, with George W. Bush, Rick Perry, and Greg
	Abbott serving as chief executive, and Republicans have swept the
	other statewide offices in five consecutive elections and have
	held a majority in the Texas Senate since 1997 and in the Texas
	House of Representatives since 2003; and
	WHEREAS, Thanks to the tireless service and exemplary
	leadership of countless men and women, the Republican Party
	continues to carry forth its core goals, including limited
	government, political and economic freedom, and strong national
	security, and its members may indeed take great pride in their
	invaluable contributions to our state and nation; now,
	therefore, be it
	RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas, 85th
	Legislature, 1st Called Session, hereby commemorate the
	sesquicentennial of the Republican Party of Texas; and, be it
	further
	RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution be prepared for
	the Republican Party of Texas as an expression of high regard
	from the Texas Senate.
	Bettencourt
	Birdwell Hall Nichols
	Buckingham Hancock Perry
	Burton Huffines Schwertner
	Campbell Huffman Seliger
	Creighton Hughes Taylor of Collin
	Estes Kolkhorst Taylor of Galveston
	Nelson
	Patrick, President of the Senate
		________________________________
		President of the Senate
		I hereby certify that the
		above Resolution was adopted by
		the Senate on August 15, 2017.
		________________________________
		Secretary of the Senate
		________________________________
		Member, Texas Senate