First posted on Instagram
Texas State Representative Brian Harrison on Wednesday urged outgoing Governor Greg Abbott to immediately bring lawmakers back to Austin in a special session to curb the governor's executive emergency powers, arguing that Republicans should act in the weeks remaining before Democrat Gina Hinojosa takes over the governor's office.
Harrison, a Republican who represents House District 10 in Ellis County, made the call in a letter to Abbott dated November 4 and in a post on X the same day, accompanied by a photograph of the letter on Texas House letterhead.
In the letter and post, Harrison argued that although Republicans lost the November 3 election, they had not yet left office, and the legislature should use the remaining weeks — he put the window at about ten weeks — to restore the separation of powers and limit the emergency authority the incoming governor is set to inherit. He warned that without action, Hinojosa would inherit emergency powers he described as those of a dictator.
Harrison pointed to legislation he has previously filed, House Bill 911, which would require emergency orders to be narrowly tailored and to expire unless the legislature ratifies them within 30 days.
The call follows Hinojosa's victory over Abbott in the November 3 governor's race. The Associated Press called the race for Hinojosa, an Austin state representative, who will become the first Latina governor of Texas and the first Democrat to hold the office since Ann Richards left office in 1995. She is scheduled to be sworn in on Tuesday, January 19, 2027, one week after the next legislative session begins on January 12, 2027.
Under the Texas Constitution, only the governor can call a special session, a session can last no more than 30 days, and lawmakers can consider only the subjects the governor names in the proclamation. As of the time of writing, no response from Abbott or his office to Harrison's call had been reported, and no endorsement of the call by the House or Senate Republican leadership had been reported.