Interview With County Chair Gwen Withrow on the Censure of Rep. Cecil Bell & Rep. Will Metcalf
May 3, 2025 | Media Inquiries: press@mctxgop.org
Why was that done?
The Precinct Chairs were responding to the voters of Montgomery County who were writing and calling our local Republican office demanding that we take action. The events which triggered this outrage by the local voters were two-fold.
First, many of the party activists made a trip to Austin on January 14th to advocate on behalf of the State Republican Party legislative priority: Ban Democrat Chairs. This priority was supported by the nearly 10,000 Republican delegates who attended the State Convention in May 2024 and is important because voters elected a Republican majority in the Texas House, clearly indicating that they want Republicans running the House and making decisions on their behalf.
Additionally, Representative Will Metcalf, who was Chair of the House Administration Committee, actually wrote and signed the memo which stopped party activists from observing House proceedings in the gallery on the day of the Speaker vote.
Secondly, both Will Metcalf and Cecil Bell were guilty of walking out of the Republican Caucus and joining forces with Democrats to elect the House Speaker. As a result of their actions, Democrats were given expanded power in the House by our Republican Representatives. They then tried to deceive Republican voters by saying that their new House Rules ban Democrats from chairing committees, but didn’t explain to voters that Democrats are now guaranteed vice-chair positions with the power to advance Democrat bills and stall Republican Party legislative priorities.
Personally, as I am elected by the entire county of Montgomery County Republicans, I am outraged that Representatives from Montgomery County would yield power to Democrats.
One of the members of the CEC is claiming the censure did not pass.
Have you spoken with that member to ask him why he is putting out false information, and can you say why he claims this? How should claims like these be addressed? Have these claims been addressed by the body?
I have not spoken to the CEC member who is claiming the censure motion did not pass. First of all, if he has objections, the proper thing to do is to raise his concerns or questions in the public CEC meeting. If he obtains a “Second” for his motion, then the CEC discusses and votes on his motion. At the time of the censure vote there was no motion to table or objection raised. Both sides debated the motion and it passed as can be seen from the recorded votes listed in the document linked above.
It would seem this CEC member takes the approach to circumvent the County Executive Committee body and post his opinions as if they are facts. This approach does not allow the body to debate and vote on his objections. He is obviously not happy he lost the vote and that he did not prepare and raise proper objections when the resolution was being debated.
A committee chairman has been appointed by the County Executive Steering Committee to oversee and review the actions of the CEC member who is making accusations against the local Republican Party, as was requested by another member. The committee’s members should be voted on at the June meeting. The parliamentarian has been consulted by the Steering Committee as to proper disciplinary proceedings, so that the party is proceeding on the correct path and all rules are being followed in a fair manner.
What happens next with the House Representatives who were censured? Are there any other further actions coming by the CEC or the state party to address what those Representatives have done?
As the party Chairman, I cannot say exactly what the local Republican Party will do regarding further censures. My job is to oversee the meetings fairly and properly.
I will say as the State Republican Executive Committeewoman for Senate District 4 that the state party expects many Rule 44 censures to be sent forward from counties all over the state. You can read more about Rule 44 censures in the Republican Party of Texas Rules. Each county can only censure their own Representatives. However, all counties have been granted the ability to censure the Speaker of the House. I expect that there will be a number of these sent to the state party.
I do know that the Montgomery County Republican Party does have Precinct Chairs who want to vote on sending to the state party a Speaker of the House censure resolution. There are also Precinct Chairs who want to proceed with a resolution of Rule 44 censure against both Will Metcalf and Cecil Bell. The rules and guidelines issued by the state party to accomplish a Rule 44 censure must be followed very closely to achieve a vote of the state party. I am not sure of the local votes for such a censure, but I am confident the local party will proceed along that path as soon as the legislative session ends.
Many want their fellow Precinct Chairs on the record as voting to oppose a Rule 44 censure for House members who ceded power to the Democrats this legislative session. This is because some members of the CEC feel very strongly that it is important for constituents to know how their Precinct Chair representatives on the CEC are voting.
The battle to stop Texas Republican House members from colluding with Democrats has been long and hard. I am confident the local and state parties will do everything possible to end the practice of granting power to Democrats to gain their votes for House Speaker. We have fought hard for a Republican majority in this state and I will not see it trampled on.
