Texas saw a potential shakeup in government on Tuesday, as Secretary of State Jane Nelson announced her resignation, effective July 17.
"It has been an honor to serve the people of Texas in this role," said Nelson in her announcement. "My time as Secretary came at an important moment for Texas, and I am proud of what we have been able to accomplish as an agency in under four years."
For many Texas conservatives, though, this was a moment to celebrate — since Nelson has been one of the biggest critics of a Texas GOP crusade to adopt "closed primaries," or a system where eligibility to vote in primaries is restricted based on party affiliation of the voter. Many states already use such a system, though in recent years the trend has been more toward adopting open primaries, where all registered voters can choose which primary to vote in each time. The GOP wants to close Texas primaries partly out of suspicion that Democrats can exert undue influence on the process.
"Texas is going to close the primaries This is a big deal," wrote talk radio host Kenny Webster on X.
"Embatttled Texas S.O.S. Jane Nelson, the one using Texas taxpayer dollars to keep leftists voting in GOP primaries is reportedly resigning," wrote right-wing commentator Chris Salcedo. "Who wishes she had resigned before wasting our tax dollars to service socialists?"
"Glad to hear this. Long overdue," wrote right-wing influencer Cary Cheshire. "Nelson opposed the party on closed primaries, allowed local governments to ignore election law, and oversaw elections at mosques and Islamic centers."
Other commenters, however, were fearful of what might be coming next, seeing the GOP as increasingly radicalized and that radicalization likely to spill into election administration.
"There are unsettling things on the horizon for election integrity in Texas, y’all…." wrote state house candidate Sara McGee.
