“After much prayer and consideration, I have decided to not seek re-election in 2022,” said Taylor in a press release. “This has been a very difficult decision, as having the privilege of representing my community in the legislature for nearly two decades has been the biggest honor of my life.”
“For me, this has been a fulfilling and worthwhile season of my life, and now I look forward to seeing what God has in store for me in the next season.”
Taylor’s announcement makes him the fifth member in the upper chamber to forgo reelection, following Sens. Jane Nelson (R-Friendswood), Dawn Buckingham (R-Lakeway), Eddie Lucio, Jr. (D-Brownsville), and Kel Seliger (R-Amarillo). All members except for Buckingham, who is running for Texas Land Commissioner, are retiring.
The Friendswood Republican was first elected to the upper chamber in 2011, following a five-term stint in the Texas House of Representatives.
Taylor reportedly said that part of his reason against running for reelection to the Texas Senate is because Rep. Mayes Middleton (R-Galveston) is intent on running for the seat.
“I tried to tell him, I’m just going to go one more time, why don’t you wait, but he’s ready to go and wanting to spend a lot of money,” said Taylor, according to a reporter with the Galveston County Daily News.
“I feel pretty confident I could win that but it would take a lot of resources,” said Taylor.
Almost immediately after Taylor announced that he would not be seeking reelection, Middleton announced that he had filed to run for the Senate seat.
“I just filed to be your next state senator for [SD 11],” said Middleton. “I’m asking for your prayers, your support, and your vote.”
Located south of Houston, Senate District (SD) 11 includes the southern part of Harris County, nearly all of Galveston County, and parts of Brazoria County, based on the new map that was recently approved by lawmakers and signed by the governor.
SD 11 is a safe Republican seat in which GOP candidates in the 2018 and 2020 elections typically received about 60 percent of the vote, giving it a Texas Partisan Index (TPI) rating of R-60% that remained unchanged before and after redistricting.
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Daniel Friend
Daniel Friend is the Marketing and Media Manager for The Texan. After graduating with a double-major in Political Science and Humanities, he wrote for The Texan as a reporter through June 2022. In his spare time, you're likely to find him working on The Testimony of Calvin Lewis, an Abolition of Man-inspired novel and theatrical podcast.
