Texas
A person desiring to form a political party in Texas must form an organization and elect a chair and other necessary officers. The organization's name cannot exceed three words.
A political party is required to meet organizational requirements before holding its nominating conventions. A new political party is required to submit its party rules to the secretary of state by a given date. These rules are required to prescribe the following:
A political party making state nominations is required to establish a state executive committee. All party rules, temporary or permanent, must be posted on the state party's Internet website.
Convention requirements for minor partiesMinor parties nominating via convention are required to hold the following conventions:
To be entitled to place its nominees on the general election ballot, a third party must first file a list of precinct convention participants with the secretary of state by a given date. The number of participants must equal at 1 percent of the total number of votes received by all candidates for governor in the most recent gubernatorial general election. For 2014, for example, the required number of precinct participants was at least 49,729. The list must include the residence address and voter registration number of each participant.
If the number of precinct convention participants is lower than the number required for the political party to qualify to have the names of its nominees placed on the ballot, the party may qualify by filing a petition containing signatures in a number that—when added to the number of convention participants indicated on the lists—equals at least 1 percent of the total number of votes received by all candidates for governor in the most recent gubernatorial general election. This petition must be filed with the secretary of state by the state party chair before the deadline for filing the lists of precinct convention participants.
A political party is entitled to have the names of its nominees placed on the ballot in each subsequent general election following a general election in which the party had a nominee for a statewide office who received a number of votes equal to at least 5 percent of the total number of votes received by all candidates for that office.
A political party is required to meet organizational requirements before holding its nominating conventions. A new political party is required to submit its party rules to the secretary of state by a given date. These rules are required to prescribe the following:
- the parliamentary procedure governing the conduct of party meetings and conventions from the precinct level to the state level
- the method of selecting the party's presidential elector candidates
- the manner of selecting party officers, convention delegates, convention alternates and convention officials
- the manner of adopting party rules and amendments to the rules
A political party making state nominations is required to establish a state executive committee. All party rules, temporary or permanent, must be posted on the state party's Internet website.
Convention requirements for minor partiesMinor parties nominating via convention are required to hold the following conventions:
- precinct conventions
- county conventions
- district conventions
- state conventions
To be entitled to place its nominees on the general election ballot, a third party must first file a list of precinct convention participants with the secretary of state by a given date. The number of participants must equal at 1 percent of the total number of votes received by all candidates for governor in the most recent gubernatorial general election. For 2014, for example, the required number of precinct participants was at least 49,729. The list must include the residence address and voter registration number of each participant.
If the number of precinct convention participants is lower than the number required for the political party to qualify to have the names of its nominees placed on the ballot, the party may qualify by filing a petition containing signatures in a number that—when added to the number of convention participants indicated on the lists—equals at least 1 percent of the total number of votes received by all candidates for governor in the most recent gubernatorial general election. This petition must be filed with the secretary of state by the state party chair before the deadline for filing the lists of precinct convention participants.
A political party is entitled to have the names of its nominees placed on the ballot in each subsequent general election following a general election in which the party had a nominee for a statewide office who received a number of votes equal to at least 5 percent of the total number of votes received by all candidates for that office.
As of May 2017, Texas officially recognized four political parties: the Democratic, Green, Libertarian, and Republican parties.
Democratic Party of Texas Link Party by-laws
Green Party of Texas Link Party by-laws
Libertarian Party of Texas Link Party platform
Republican Party of Texas Link Party by-laws
Green Party of Texas Link Party by-laws
Libertarian Party of Texas Link Party platform
Republican Party of Texas Link Party by-laws
See statutes: Section 181 of the Texas Election Code
