The Seven Constitutions of Texas

1
The Seven Constitutions of Texas

• A Brief Tour

2
Influences on the Texas Constitution

• Political Culture
• Traditionalism
• Individualism
• Shared history with Mexico
• Coahuila y Texas
• Spanish Common Law tradition
• Texas Independence
• Jacksonian Democracy
• Independent Nation-State (1836-1846)
• Civil War Reconstruction
• Union Army Occupation
• Radical Reconstruction Constitution
• Distrust of Centralized executive power

3
1824 Coahuila y Tejas

• Texas stands as the northern part of Mexicos
  largest State.
• Sparse population of loyal Mexican citizens
• Tribal populations generally would not consent
• Mexico issues land grants to foreign investors
  under specific conditions
• Consent to reside on the land grant
• Consent to jurisdiction of the Federal Republic
  of Mexico
• Consent to join the Roman Catholic Church
• Consent to conduct all official and legal
  business in Spanish
• Consent to emancipate anyone held to service or
  labor
• Tejas files at least four Division Petitions
• Citing inadequate representation at the State
  Capitol in Saltillo
• Dividing Coahuila y Tejas
• At El Rio Bravo del Norte OR
• At El Rio Nueces
• All petitions were declined

4
1836 The Texas Revolution

• Part of a larger revolt
• Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna suspends Federal
  Constitution
• Attempts to establish a unitary state
• Installs himself as de facto dictator
• Uprisings in multiple states
• Coahuila y Texas, Durango, Guanajuato
• Michoacan, Queretaro, San Luis Potosi,
• Yucatan, Zacatecas
• Lopez officially resigns the Presidency in order
  to lead the Mexican Army into Zacatecas and Tejas

5
The Republic of Texas (1836-1846)

• Establishes a Unitary Republic
• Institutional Separation of Powers
• Legislative
• Unicameral Congress
• Executive
• Directly elected President
• Judiciary
• A supreme national court
• Challenges to Texas Independence
• Insecure border with Mexico
• Lopez considers Texas a rebel province
• Lopez army invades at least twice
• Economic instability
• Mexico only viable trading partner
• Nearest Accessible US port New Orleans, against
  the Gulf current
• Insecure and ill-defined Western and Northern
  boundaries
• Lipan, Chiricahua, Qohadi and Kiowa oppose both
  Texas and Mexican government
• Texas Annexed in 1845
• Allows US protection

6
The State of Texas

• The US-Mexican War
• Texas annexation declaration of war
• 1846-1848
• The Texas Constitution up to 1850
• Similar to the Republic of Texas
• Reflects having joined the United States
• After 1850
• Texas Constitution reflects Jacksonian Democracy
• Plural elected executive
• Elected court system

7
State of Texas in the CSA

• Texas and the Union
• Texas claim that the US is a confederation
• Texas legislature narrowly moves to secede
• perceived violation of reserved powers
• Texas citizens deeply divided on secession
• Texas Ordinance of Secession
• Texas secedes from the US
• Constitution amended to reflect secession
• Civil War erupts

8
First Reconstruction (1866)

• Conditions for rejoining the US as a state
• Rewrite the state constitution
• Ratify the 13th Amendment
• Constitution must be approved by the US Congress
• Texas first attempt
• Written largely by former Confederates
• Retains language of the 1836 Constitution
• Establishes two distinct classes of citizensthe
  Black Codes
• Rejected by US Congress

9
Second Reconstruction (1869)

• Former Confederates boycott Texas Constitutional
  Convention
• 1869 Constitution
• Radical and Moderate Republicans
• Establishes a state government unfamiliar to most
  Texans
• Legislative
• Annual sessions
• Debt provisions
• Executive
• Unitary Executive (Governor)
• Strong Appointment power
• Initiative power
• Strong emergency powers
• Judiciary
• Appointed by the Governor
• Governor Edmund J. Davis
• Appoints Radical Republicans to top positions in
  state government
• Appoints Radical Republicans to state courts
• Establishes a state militia and state police
  force
• Used to enforce 13th and 14th Amendment
  restrictions against States

10
The Election of 1873

• Hotly contested election
• Both Davis and his Southern Democrat opponent
  claimed victory
• Numerous allegations of voter fraud and ballot
  stuffing
• Davis requests Federal Military assistance to put
  down a revolt
• Grant refuses to send troops
• Legislature threatens impeachment
• Davis resigns
• The New Governor (Richard Coke) and the Texas
  Legislature call a Constitutional Convention

11
The Constitution of 1876

• Foundation for the Current Texas Constitution
• Reaction to Reconstruction
• Resurrects prior constitutional forms
• Severely restricts state government
• Legislative branch
• Limited to biennial sessions of 140 days
• No power to call special sessions
• Balanced budget requirement
• Executive branch
• Plural executive
• Multiple independently elected executive offices
• Governor chief executive in name only
• Judicial branch
• All courts except municipal courts directly
  elected
• Amended in the 1880s to split the Texas Supreme
  Court into two Courts