Harris County House Democrats share priorities ahead of legislative session

HARRIS COUNTY, Texas (KTRK) -- On Tuesday, the Texas House and Senate will convene in Austin for the 89th legislative session.

Lawmakers are expected to address topics ranging from school funding to sports betting.

Sunday, house members from Harris County gathered at the party's headquarters in Houston's Fifth Ward to publicly share their legislative priorities.

Harris County Democratic Party Chair Mike Doyle opened the press conference by telling the audience, "Harris County Democrats are going to fight for not just stopping the bad things we know are coming, but for the things that matter to our citizens."

Doyle's colleagues provided a laundry list of priorities, including tax cuts, affordable housing, raising the minimum wage, and public school funding.

"Democrats want to tackle the real kitchen table issues. The issues that matter to families," Fort Bend County Representative Ron Reynolds said.

Rice University Political Science Professor Dr. Mark Jones told ABC13 he viewed the conference partly as an attempt to court the working class-- a group Democrats experienced substantial loss with in November.

"As a result, they're going to be reaching out to that population with the goal that they can somehow win them back with policies that essentially impact their pocketbook and improve their economic situation," Jones explained.

Regarding "the bad things" Doyle said were coming during opening remarks, speakers accused Republicans of greed and attacks on marginalized people, something they vowed to fight against.

Reynolds accused Republicans of "(fanning) the flames of hate."

Strategically, Jones cautioned against vilifying the party, citing its success this fall.

"If you're a Democrat who adopts a 100% anti-Trump policy, you better hope the Trump administration crashes and burns because, at least from the start, you're opposing policies that are supported by the majority of Texans," he said.

Jones also said the extent to which the democratic agenda will be accomplished this session will depend largely on who is selected as speaker of the House. A decision will likely be made on Tuesday, the first day of the session.

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