Just weeks after he announced he would not be seeking re-election, the Republican Party of Texas has censured the lawmaker who led the failed impeachment against Attorney General Ken Paxton.
State Rep. Andrew Murr (R–Junction) was first elected to the Texas House in 2014 representing House District 53. The district includes the counties of Bandera, Crane, Crockett, Edwards, Kerr, Kimble, Llano, Mason, McCulloch, Medina, Menard, Pecos, Real, Schleicher, Sutton, and Upton.
This session Murr chaired the House General Investigating Committee, which brought the impeachment charges against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Paxton was later acquitted by the Texas Senate.
Murr’s record led him to be censured by two county parties in his district for his role in the rushed impeachment process, as well as for his vote for House Speaker Dade Phelan (R–Beaumont), who appointed Democrats to key committee chairmanships in the Texas House.
They also highlighted his votes against school choice and for state interference in the political party process.
On Saturday, the State Republican Executive Committee voted to concur with the censure. The censure would have prevented the party from spending funds on his re-election effort and would allow money to be spent educating voters on the censure. Murr, however, announced last month that he would not be seeking re-election.
The censure was approved by a vote of 61-0, with two abstaining.
A separate censure resolution of Dade Phelan advanced through the SREC’s committee process, and could be considered at a special meeting in the coming months.
