Texas House Speaker Dennis Bonnen will not run unopposed in the 2020 Republican primary election next year. Rhonda Seth, an emergency room nurse and Lake Jackson resident, has announced her candidacy for state representative in Bonnen’s district as grassroots’ frustration with the Texas legislature continues to heat up following the recent legislative session.
“Recently, Dennis Bonnen said on social media that more women need to put their names on the ballot,” said Seth. “To him, I say, ‘Challenge accepted.’”
In her campaign announcement, Seth referenced recent comments made by Bonnen in which he praised Democrat State Rep. Joe Moody (El Paso) as his possible successor, as well as his stated policy to punish Republicans who help campaign against Democrat members of the legislature.
“Statements like that are exactly how you turn Texas blue and don’t represent the sentiments of this Republican district,” she added.
Should Seth ultimately file for a place on the ballot, it would not be the first primary challenger to Bonnen, who has held his seat in the Texas House for 11 terms. In 2018, Bonnen earned over 76 percent of the vote against Republican challenger Damon Rambo.
But after a session where Republican legislative priorities were stymied at the hands of the Texas House and Senate, incumbent lawmakers may begin to see a lot more challenges from conservatives who are unhappy with their performance in Austin.
The Republican primary election will take place on March 3, 2020, and is now just under nine months away.
