House Freedom Caucus disputes are present in state legislatures, not just U.S. House
You’ve heard of the House Freedom Caucus in Congress - but do you know about the ones popping up in some state legislatures?
Republican lawmakers in at least three state legislatures have formed equivalents of the U.S. House Freedom Caucus: Idaho, South Dakota, and Texas. All three states are Republican trifectas.
The latest caucus to form was the South Dakota House’s Conservative Republican Caucus in May 2018. Its founders said they formed after Gov. Dennis Daugaard (R) contributed to Republicans they considered to be moderates. They invited 20 members to join based on their scorecard rating from the group South Dakota Citizens for Liberty.
The Idaho House Freedom Caucus was formed in March 2017 after a group of Republican members said party leaders blocked their bills in committee and kept them out of leadership positions. The Freedom Caucus founders said they wanted to smooth over tensions between the members and leadership. In the May 2018 primaries, three Freedom Caucus members lost their primaries.
The Texas Freedom Caucus formed in February 2017 in opposition to House Speaker Joe Straus (R). The group said that Straus and his allies engaged in “routine obstruction of key anti-abortion, 2nd Amendment and property rights bills."
Pro-Straus candidates won 20 of the 30 head-to-head matchups between the factions in the 2018 Republican state legislative primaries. Straus did not seek re-election, three of his allies in the state House were defeated, and several anti-Straus primary winners pledged to join the Freedom Caucus if elected in November.
While its unofficial subsidiaries form in state legislatures, the U.S. House Freedom Caucus is attempting to influence the contest to replace Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) as House Republican leader and increase its membership. In 2018, the caucus has won in seven of 13 House primaries where it endorsed a candidate or a candidate pledged to join its ranks.
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