Texas Democratic Party

The Texas Democratic Party is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of Texas and one of the two major political parties in the state. The party's headquarters are in Austin, Texas. President Lyndon B. Johnson was a Texas Democrat. 39 out of the 48 politicians who have served as Governor of Texas have been Texas Democrats. The party used to be the dominant political party in Texas; however, like in other Southern states, its rival, the Republican Party of Texas has become the dominant party since the 1990s. The party used to support racial segregation and held white-only primaries until Terry v. Adams; however, the party has adopted liberal attitudes on race and other matters since the 1960s. Similar to the national Democratic Party, the Texas Democratic Party currently supports abortion rights, cannabis legalization, LGBT rights, environmentalism, gun control, Medicaid expansion, and raising the minimum wage. Black Texans, Hispanic Texans, young Texans, and Texans who live in urban areas are more likely to support the Texas Democratic Party than other demographic groups. However, Hispanic Texans have moved to the Republican Party in recent elections. History Prior to the Annexation of Texas, the Democratic Party had a foothold in the politics of the region. A powerful group of men that called themselves the "Texas Association" served as an early prototype for the Democratic Party of Texas. The Texas Association drew its membership from successful merchants, doctors, and lawyers, often traveling from Tennessee. Many members of the Texas Association were close friends of Andrew Jackson, and most had strong ties to the Democratic Party. Similarly, most of the other settlers in Texas were from states in the South, and white American southerners of this era generally held strong allegiances to the Democratic Party.