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When Greg Abbott was elected
governor of Texas in 2014,

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many Texas political observers
wondered what Abbott's

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governorship should look like
after Rick Perry had spent

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a record 14 years in the office.

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The consensus was that Perry
left the office in a uniquely

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influential position as a result
of his long tenure.

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Added to the usual uncertainty
that accompanies any governor

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in his or her first term

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was the question of just
how much of Perry's

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accumulated power would
carry over to Abbott.

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Abbott's decisive re-election
in 2018 puts to rest most

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of the questions about his
ability to effectively occupy

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the office.

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In this lecture, we'll discuss
how governor Abbott has

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established himself in the 
office by building on his

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popularity among republican
voters and managing his

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position in the relationship
with the two other key

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elected officials that have
served during his term,

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the lieutenant governor 
and the Speaker of the House.

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We'll conclude by looking
at how the results of the 2018

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elections and the change
in the speakership

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likely worked in concert
to strengthen his political position.

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Abbott's standing among 
Republican primary voters

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has proven to be his most important
political asset.

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And he's remained focused
for the most part

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on maintaining it.

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His success in this effort
is evident in his strong

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approval numbers among 
his key constituencies.

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Abbott has definitely followed
Rick Perry's path in his courting

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of conservative voters.

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He has taken public
positions and worked with

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other leaders on issues 
that Republican constituencies

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care a lot about,

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including immigration and
border security,

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while pressing the legislature
on other issues that motivate

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GOP voters like property 
tax reform.

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Republican voters have 
rewarded him with the highest

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approval ratings among
statewide elected officials

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including Lieutenant Governor
Dan Patrick and US Senator

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Ted Cruz who themselves
are favorites of grassroots

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conservative activists.

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In the February 2019, 
UT Texas Tribune poll,

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83% of republicans approved
of the job Abbott was doing.

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Including 62% who approved
strongly.

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His ratings were even higher
in the conservative

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quarters of the party.

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96% of self-described extremely
conservative Texans approved

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of the job he was doing.

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87% strongly approved.

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Given this, it should come 
as no surprise that Abbott

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faced no serious challengers
in the 2018 Republican primary

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and was the most successful
Texas Republican

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in the 2018 general election.

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Abbott won re-election 
by 14 percentage points.

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While this margin is about
six points less than when he

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was first elected in 2014,
he still won by the largest

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margin of any of the major
candidates on the statewide

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Republican slate.

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Lieutenant Governor 
Dan Patrick won by only

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about four points.

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And Attorney General 
Ken Paxton by about

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the same margin as Patrick.

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Abbott thus entered the 2019
legislative session much

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more secure in his position 
with voters than any other

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statewide official.

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Most notably more secure
than Lieutenant Governor Patrick.

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Which brings us to Dan Patrick.

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One of the factors contributing
to early questions about the

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prospects for Abbott's reset of the
governorship

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was the impact of Dan Patrick's
expected effort to restore

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the power of lieutenant governorship.

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A historically strong position
in the Texas political system

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during Abbott's term.

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Abbott's popularity with the
Republican base not withstanding,

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perhaps the most consequential
aspect of Abbott's first term

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as governor was the necessity of
managing the presence

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of an aggressive and influential
lieutenant governor.

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Just as Abbott spent his first
term trying to maintain

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some of the power that his
predecessor amassed during

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his many terms in office,

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Patrick spent the time period
seeking to re-establish

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the power of the office 
of the lieutenant governor.

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Abbott's relationship with Patrick
is one leg of the triangular relationship

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among the state's top three
political leaders.

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Sometimes called the Big Three,

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but it's proven more complex than
the relationships Perry faced.

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Perry and the lieutenant governor
that served through his terms,

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David Dewhurst, were rarely rivals.

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But Patrick signaled early on that
he was eager to shape the

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state's political agenda.

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His aggressiveness led to 
immediate rumblings

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that Patrick's ambition 
was to be governor.

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Thus for much of the 
first two sessions in which

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they occupied the top 
two spots in Texas government,

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each seemed to be making
decisions with one eye on the other.

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Their public image was generally
cooperative but insiders knew

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that each was wary of the other
even as they pursued

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similar political goals.

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The first term dynamics among
the big three were not

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just about Abbott and Patrick,
not by a long shot.

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In particular, Abbott had to 
manage his own place

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amidst the increasing 
acrimony between

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Patrick and then-Speaker
of the House Joe Straus.

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Strained relations between
Lieutenant Governor Patrick

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and Speaker Straus
go back to Patrick's time

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as a state senator and a
high-profile favorite of

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newly ascended Tea Party groups.

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Many of these Patrick allies 
work continuously to defeat Straus

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during his tenure as speaker.

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Straus, a more traditional 
pro-business Republican

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was not especially interested
in the socially conservative agenda,

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Patrick championed in his
first term in an apparent

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effort to maintain the support
or reward the allegiance of

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socially conservative GOP
primary voters.

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The protracted politics of
efforts to limit transgender access

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to public restrooms during
the 2017 session

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provides a good example of
this dynamic.

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Patrick championed the issue
and rallied social conservatives

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to his cause,

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what became known as the
bathroom bill.

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Even as business interests,
especially large corporations,

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opposed the measure on the
grounds that it was bad

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for the state's business climate
and for their bottom line.

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Straus publicly opposed 
the bill and instructed

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the legislation at every
opportunity.

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It ultimately failed the pass
even after the governor

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called the special session 
as part of an effort not to

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be outflanked on the
issue with conservative voters

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by the lieutenant governor.

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For the most part, 
Abbott, publicly at least

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attempted to stay above
the Patrick/Straus conflict.

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Behind the scenes, relations
were strained among all three.

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When cooperation among the 
three leaders did emerge,

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it always seemed provisional.

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A pattern emerged, depending
on the situation,

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Abbott could use Straus as both
unspoken ally and public scapegoat

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when it came to managing his
position vis a vis Patrick.

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The bathroom bill was the 
epitome of this dynamic.

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Abbott was a reluctant 
backer of the legislation

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given business opposition.

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He pushed the issue in order
not to be seen by social

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conservatives in the party 
as less committed to their issues

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than Patrick.

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But the governor did so knowing
that if Straus prevented the legislation

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from passing. Abbott could publicly
blame him even if he

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was glad that it failed.

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This is exactly how it played out.

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With Straus now out of the mix,

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Abbott's position vis a vis
the lieutenant governor

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is likely to remain, shall we
say, complicated.

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Straus' replacement, 
Angleton Republican Dennis Bonnen

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enters the speakership with a much
more solid base among Republicans

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and a conservative voting
record as a long time house member.

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This will make it harder for either
Abbott or Patrick to portray him

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as insufficiently conservative
in order to use him as foil

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or scapegoat.

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The lieutenant governor will have
less ability to attempt to

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undermine the speaker by 
using discontented conservatives

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in the house to press his agenda
as he did during Straus' term.

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Many conservatives supported
Bonnen's speakership

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and many were rewarded with
good committee assignments.

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Patrick emerges less influential
and then less politically powerful.

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Again, especially given his 
close re-election.

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An equally important factor
in Abbott's post election position

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is that the results of the 2018 election
left Abbott politically stronger

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in regards to Patrick.

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As I said earlier, Abbott won 
by a much larger margin

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than Patrick in 2018.

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But in addition to this 
display of Abbott's superior

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standing with voters, 
he also cemented

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relationships with many 
Republicans by virtue

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of his political fundraising skill.

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One of Abbott's less widely
appreciated strengths is that

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he has always been a very
effective fundraiser.

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An asset that predates his
election as governor.

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During the 2017-2018 
election cycle,

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Abbott out-raised his Democratic
challenger Lupe Valdez,

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44.3 million dollars to just 
1.9 million.

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The largest gap between
major party candidates in

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state history.

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Between January 1995 
and January 2019,

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Abbott raised a 
166.5 million dollars

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in political contributions.

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125 million of that was 
raised between January 2013

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and January 2019 to support
his gubernatorial campaigns.

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The highest six year figure
in state history.

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With such deep pockets, 
Abbott was able to amend

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an electoral effort that helped
candidates up and down the ballot

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in a very tough election year.

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This was not lost on Republican
candidates in close races

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who Abbott supported both 
materially and with endorsements.

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In 2018, Governor Abbott was 
a good friend to have

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if you were a Republican candidate.

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And once the election was 
over, Abbott had a lot of

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friends who owed him in 
the legislature.

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Patrick to be sure remains 
well liked by Republican voters.

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Though his job approval ratings
among Texas Republicans

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remained eight points lower 
than the governor's in the

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February 2019 UT Texas Tribune poll.

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While this is not a large gap,

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Abbott's strong approval ratings
are 14 percentage points

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higher than Patrick's.

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Overall, managing the limitations
of the office while first term

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governor meant the inevitable
transition in the centrality of

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the office and the state's politics
compared to the Perry years.

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Abbott's first term situation
was much closer to the

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norm of the system created
by the Texas constitution.

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No one should be too surprised
that the governorship

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looked different during Abbott's 
first term

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than it did in Perry's last

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when Perry was at the apex
of his political power.

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However, the combination of
Abbott's record setting

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fundraising, his decisive victory
in 2018, Patrick's much closer race

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and the advent of a new
speaker of house

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have all had the affect of strengthening
Abbott's position in his second term.

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Abbott still has to contend with
the constitutional limitations,

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the plural executive places on
the governorship.

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But like his predecessor, 
he has maximized the office's

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potential for cultivating public
support.

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And brought his own particular
assets to the office.

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For the most part, 
questions about Abbott's

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ability to fully occupy the
enhanced governorship

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have been asked and answered.