http://www.examiner.com/market-in-austin/eddie-rodriguez-elliott-naishtat-among-most-liberal-members-of-texas-house

John Egan, Austin Market Examiner

A pair of Democratic state lawmakers from Austin – Reps. Eddie Rodriguez and Elliott Naishtat – were two of the most liberal members of the Texas House during the 2011 legislative session, according to a new ranking.

Rodriguez ranked seventh on a political science professor’s list of the most liberal House members, while Naishtat was in the No. 9 position. The higher the ranking, the more liberal a House member is considered to be. According to this ranking, Rodriguez and Naishtat were the most liberal state representatives in the Austin metro area (Travis, Williamson, Hays, Caldwell and Bastrop counties) in 2011.

Based on this ranking, Rep. Charles Schwertner, a Georgetown Republican whose district covers part of Williamson County, secured the title as the most conservative House member from Central Texas for 2011. He was at No. 112 on the list.

Mark Jones, chairman of Rice University’s political science department, devised the ranking system using roll-call votes taken by 149 members of the Texas House during the 2011 regular and special legislative sessions. The House has 101 Republicans and 49 Democrats.

House Speaker Joe Straus, a San Antonio Republican, was excluded from the ranking because he typically doesn’t cast roll-call votes.

Based on the 2011 votes, each state representative was assigned a numerical score on a liberal-conservative scale. That score determined every lawmaker’s position in the rankings, with -1.0 being the highest possible liberal score and 1.0 being the highest possible conservative score.
Advertisement
Jones’ findings were published by The Texas Tribune.

A little bit down the liberal ladder from Rodriguez and Naishtat was Rep. Dawnna Dukes, an Austin Democrat. She was in the 13th position in the ranking.

In 35th place was Rep. Donna Howard, an Austin Democrat. Not far behind, in the No. 38 spot, was Rep. Mark Strama, also an Austin Democrat.

Rep. Larry Gonzales, a Round Rock Republican, was in 61st place. That put him in the “more moderate” pack among GOP members of the House, according to Jones, the Rice professor.

At No. 90 was Rep. Paul Workman, an Austin Republican. In position No. 96 was Rep. Jason Isaac, a Dripping Springs Republican whose district includes Caldwell and Hays counties. Holding down the 98th spot was Rep. Tim Kleinschmidt, a Lexington Republican whose district includes Bastrop County.

According to their 2011 voting records, Workman, Isaac and Kleinschmidt are “Republican centrist.”

Continue reading on Examiner.com Eddie Rodriguez, Elliott Naishtat among most liberal members of Texas House - Austin Market | Examiner.com http://www.examiner.com/market-in-austin/eddie-rodriguez-elliott-naishtat-among-most-liberal-members-of-texas-house#ixzz1Rnj9nPpe