Peter Roeff
On Friday, the Republican State Legislative Committee, the national party organ that deals with state legislative races, announced that a change of party by Louisiana State Assemblyman Francis Thompson gave the GOP its 24th legislative supermajority.
A supermajority occurs when enough members in a state legislative chamber belong to the same party to override a governor’s veto. Louisiana now has enough Republicans in the State House of Representations to override Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards’ veto, making it what RSLC President Dee Duncan described as “a good day in Baton Rouge.”
What has happened in the Pelican State is part of a growing trend in which Republicans are dominating the States, while at the same time things have come to a fairly deadlock in Washington.
The trend continues. The gains of Republican politics have always been rewarded with more votes for more candidates, leading to larger majorities that could do more.
In 2022, an election that most pundits described as “a boost at best” for the GOP, the party won seven additional supermajorities in chambers it controlled, to those already in place before the election.
Currently, the GOP is the majority party in 58 of the country’s 99 legislative chambers. The Nebraska legislature is unicameral and non-partisan.
Other developments cited by the RSLC in their publication include:
- Florida, where Republicans now have their largest Republican majority in State House history.
- Iowa, where the GOP supermajority secured in the Senate will be the first supermajority the state has seen in both houses in 50 years.
- Montana, where Republicans added a supermajority in the State Senate to one already in the State House.
- South Dakota: Republicans hold all but 11 seats in the state legislature.
Even in states where the party lags far behind, the RSLC points to recent historic GOP wins. There are more New York City Republicans in the New York State Assembly than at any time in 40 years. In Oregon, the GOP threw off its super-minority status in the House and Senate, gaining net seats for the first time since 2010.
The states are where the action is happening, especially with Congress deadlocked. Republicans now have a track record in the states and many new ideas on taxes, spending, education, professional licensing, public safety and other issues close to the hearts of most voters. The Democrats cannot win now by simply saying that having the GOP in power would be worse than the status quo, no matter how bad the status quo is. There are still many battles to be fought, but where it matters most, it is Republicans, not Democrats, who are on the march.
Peter Roff, a former senior UPI policy writer and US News and World Report columnist, is a senior fellow at several public policy organizations, including the Trans-Atlantic Leadership Network. Contact him at RoffColumns AT gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter and TruthSocial @TheRoffDraft.
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