A Texas state representative has announced she has switched from the Democratic Party to the GOP during an event last week.
State Rep. Shawn Thierry of Houston announced a Moms for Liberty event held in Washington, D.C.
“The Democratic Party has veered so far left, so deep into the progressive abyss, that it now champions policies I cannot, in good conscience, support — policies like promoting sex changes for vulnerable children and dismantling Title IX protections for women in sports. That’s why I am leaving the left and joining the party of family, faith, and freedom,” she said in a press release. “I now stand with colleagues, friends, neighbors, women, and mothers in the Republican Party.”
GOP Gov. Greg Abbott responded to Theirry’s announcement: “Today, I am proud to welcome Representative Shawn Thierry to the Republican Party — the party of opportunity, individual liberty, and economic prosperity.”
He added: “Representative Thierry served in the Texas Legislature for four terms until the Democrat Party abandoned her after she delivered a 12-minute speech from the House floor in favor of a law I signed to protect Texas children. Her decision to switch parties demonstrates that the radical leftist agenda of the Democrat Party does not align with a majority of Americans. I look forward to continuing to work with Representative Thierry to build a bigger, better Texas for generations to come.”
According to The Texan, Theirry switched to the GOP after losing to a far-left Democratic primary challenger, Lauren Simmons, earlier this summer.
The outlet added: “The state representative bucked her party on two big votes in the Texas House last session. She voted for the law banning gender modification procedures on minors and to prohibit sexually explicit materials in school libraries. During consideration of the child gender modification ban, Thierry gave a passionate floor speech backing the proposal. She was censured by a local Democratic group for her vote supporting that law. She wasn’t the only Democrat to vote for the bill, three others did, but was the only one to speak in favor of it. The move was a long time coming for those in the Capitol, who saw her become increasingly disaffected with Democratic Party leadership.”
Houston state Rep. Shawn Thierry switches to Republican Party | The Texas Tribune https://t.co/87QY25uYly
— Tanisa Jeffers (@tanisaJ) September 3, 2024
Her switch to the GOP comes amid a string of other Texas Democrats switched to the GOP. “State Rep. Ryan Guillen (R-Rio Grande City) made the switch in 2021 and Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson flipped last year — both citing a change in their previous party’s priorities. Three Democrats in border counties flipped parties last November,” The Texan reported.
Republicans now have 87 seats in the state House, though Theirry’s will once again become a Democrat-held seat after the November election.
Meantime, Elon Musk, the head of X, is moving the social media company headquarters away from the liberal city of San Francisco, California, to Austin, Texas.
The Tesla CEO said, in an email to employees, that the San Francisco headquarters of X, formerly Twitter, will close on Friday, September 13, Fox News reported.
The far-left policies from majority Democrats in California are behind Musk’s decision.
“Musk announced last month that he would move the global headquarters of X and SpaceX out of California after Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill prohibiting schools from notifying parents of their children’s gender identity,” the report said.
“Musk said at the time that X’s headquarters would move to Austin, Texas, while he also announced that SpaceX would relocate its headquarters from Hawthorne, California, to Starbase, Texas. He cited the gender identity law as being ‘the final straw’ and attributed the move to ‘this law and the many others that preceded it, attacking both families and companies,’” it said.
The CEO has been a critic of California policies as he has gotten more involved in politics and endorsed former President Donald Trump in the election.
