Conservative Voter Guides in Montgomery County
The Republican Club does not endorse candidates. Instead, we provide unbiased voter research here. Voter Guides in Montgomery County are orchestrated by Political Action Committees (PACs) and distributed to aid their endorsed candidate in winning elections. These guides serve as political campaign extensions, and campaigns invest significant dollars toward having their names promoted by supporting PACs. It is crucial to note that PACs possess the liberty to disseminate misinformation about candidates, and such falsehoods are shielded by the 2nd Amendment.
The Republican Club encourages all readers to research each candidate on their ballot. We have instructions on how to view your Sample Ballot here and provide Candidate Research here. More details about PACs in Montgomery County are below. For more information on voting dates and times, as well as location, visit the Elections Administration website here.
Montgomery County Tea Party
The Montgomery County Tea Party was founded in 2012 and its President is Patricia Tibbs of Magnolia. Their vetting committee is a ten person board who sends out questionnaires and also interview candidates. “Endorsements and recommendations, when given, are based on defined consensus procedures that reflect the informed opinions of the MCTP voting membership. All of the supporting data is accessible.” If candidates do not participate in their vetting process, the Committee automatically gives the candidate a failing score with a maximum of 50 points out of 100 - regardless of public voting record or stewardship. The Montgomery County Tea Party holds meetings the 1st and 3rd Monday of each month. Contested Past Endorsements/Recommendations: Rand Henderson, Gwen Withrow, Ritch Wheeler, Jon Bouche, Jonathan Hullihan, Gregory Parker, Eric Yollick, Jennifer Eckhart, Billy Graff, Kate Bihm.
Republican Voters of Texas PAC
The Republican Voters of Texas PAC was formed in 2018. Their endorsement process includes vetting candidates through questionnaires and observing them in the community. Their process is unique in that it has an Advisory Board of over 100 people from all over Montgomery County who review the candidate responses and have an equal vote on who the PAC endorses. They display their Advisory Board here. A candidate must receive 60% of the Advisory Board’s vote to get an endorsement. The Republican Voters of Texas PAC states that they endorse candidates who are Republican, highly qualified for the office they seek, and who are good members of the Montgomery County community. The Republican Voters of Texas PAC does not hold monthy meetings, but instead espouse that they are actively involved in multiple Republican and faith based organizations. Contested Past Endorsements/Recommendations: Wesley Doolittle & Rand Henderson, Bryan Christ, James Noack, Mark Keough, Vince Santini, Robert Walker, Morgan Luttrell & Christian Collins, Charlie Riley.
Texas Tea Party Patriots PAC
The Texas Patriots PAC was founded in 2009, and is led by President Bruce Rieser of The Woodlands, formerly of The Woodlands Township. A seven-person Board of Directors interviews candidates for election via Zoom and candidate questionnaires. Their vetting committee members are not listed online. Candidates must receive 2/3 approval from the vetting team, as well as President approval, to achieve an endorsement from the Texas Patriots PAC. The Texas Patriots PAC states, “The philosophy behind our endorsements for public office closely follows the Buckley rule: we support the most conservative candidate with a viable path to victory”. The Texas Patriots PAC does not hold monthly meetings but, instead, are involved heavily with political and faith based organizations in The Woodlands. Contested Past Endorsements/Recommendations: Rand Henderson, Gwen Withrow, Ritch Wheeler, Jon Bouche, Gregory Parker, Eric Yollick, Jonathan Hullihan, Billy Graff, Kelly Case, Phil Grant.
What is a PAC
The Montgomery County Republican Club has compiled information on Conservative Voter Guides and each PAC so you can understand who makes the decisions on candidate selections. Before describing the various Montgomery County PACs, it’s important to know what a PAC is:
According to Texas Law, a Political Action Committee (PAC) is “two or more persons acting in concert with a principal purpose of accepting political contributions or making political expenditures”.
A Political Action Commitee may, or may not, endorse candidates. For example, the Montgomery County Republican Club and the Texas Federation of Republican Women Clubs are PACs (as required by law) but do NOT endorse one candidate over another. Their focus is on building the Republican community in Montgomery County and increasing votes for Republicans in the General Election (GOTV). Their information can be found here.
The Endorsing PACs in Montgomery County are: Montgomery County Tea Party, Republican Voters of Texas, and Texas Tea Party Patriots. They are detailed below. None of these organizations are under a larger, nationally recognized, organization. All are independently run by their local, self appointed, officers.