AUSTIN, Texas — State Rep. Tom Oliverson on Thursday announced a challenge to Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan, arguing that Phelan has ceded too much power to the minority of Democrats serving in the chamber.
Oliverson, an anesthesiologist from Cypress in his fourth term, pitched himself as the right man to realign the lower chamber with the priorities of the Republican party, which he said Phelan too often ignored.
The announcement was a political betrayal of Phelan, who in 2021 appointed Oliverson chair of the House insurance committee and hopes to continue as speaker. But the voters of Phelan’s Beaumont-area district may not even send him back to Austin.
David Covey, a once little-known but well-funded challenger, forced Phelan into a runoff in House District 21. Worse, Phelan received fewer votes in the first round, and second-place finishers rarely win runoff elections in Texas. He may become the first House Speaker since Rayford Price in 1972 to lose a primary.
But even if Phelan does manage to eke out a victory, some Republicans believe he is too weak to continue as the chamber’s leader. His critics say the results of the primary, in which nine House Republicans were ousted and eight were forced into runoffs, are a repudiation of Phelan’s leadership.
Jockeying for the speaker’s gavel has been going on behind the scenes since the primary results were tallied two weeks ago. Oliverson is merely the first candidate to go public with his intentions. That he did it before Phelan has officially been defeated — and 10 months before the House will convene to elect the next speaker — suggests he believes he can quickly consolidate support.
Oliverson was unopposed in his own Republican primary, and will face Democrat Brett Robinson, a progressive graduate student at the University of Houston, in the November election. The district is reliably conservative, so Oliverson is likely to win.
Among Republicans in the House, Oliverson is viewed as a reliably conservative, genial, hardworking member who brings unique expertise as a medical professional. House leadership leaned on these traits last year when they put forth Oliverson as the face of Senate Bill 14, which banned gender-transitioning care for transgender minors.
In floor debates on a topic that can easily become emotionally charged, Oliverson maintained the countenance of a doctor explaining something to a patient, avoiding the bombast that can make Republicans vulnerable to accusations of bigotry.
He did not emerge entirely unscathed from the debate, however, drawing flak from the right for supporting an initial proposal to exempt children who were already receiving puberty blockers and hormone therapies. Though Oliverson argued that the science was unsettled on “the effects of rapidly withdrawing these medications from a patient,” the exemption was ultimately stripped.
Oliverson was the only House Republican who did not cast a vote on the impeachment of Attorney General Ken Paxton last year, sidestepping an issue that has driven a wedge between Phelan’s allies and the party’s right flank. He is also a vocal supporter of private school vouchers, aligning with Gov. Greg Abbott and a majority of House Republicans on the other issue that has divided the Texas GOP.
Oliverson serves as vice chair of the Texas House Republican Caucus and briefly led the group when it was between chairs in 2022.
His district covers the northwest corner of Harris County, including Tomball, Waller and his hometown of Cypress.
This story comes from The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan media organization that informs Texans - and engages with them - about public policy, politics, government, and statewide issues.
