If Rep. John Ratcliffe resigns his seat in the U.S. House of Representatives to become Director of National Intelligence, a Republican Party committee will elect a new nominee for the seat on Aug. 8.
President Donald Trump nominated Ratcliffe, R-Heath, for the DNI position in March, and Ratcliffe faced questioning from the Senate Intelligence Committee in a confirmation hearing May 5. An Intelligence Committee confirmation vote, then a vote by the full majority-Republican Senate, could take place this week.
If the Senate confirms Ratcliffe, he will vacate his seat representing Texas' 4th Congressional District, triggering the formation of a Congressional District Executive Committee that will choose a replacement House nominee, Texas GOP Chair James Dickey stated Monday in an open letter to district party officials.
The committee would comprise the party's new county and precinct chairs in the district, and that has caused a narrowing of the time frame during which the committee can be formed, elect officers and choose a House nominee by majority vote.
By state law, the party must submit its new nominee to the Texas Secretary of State by Aug. 24, but county and precinct chairs will not take office until after a primary runoff delayed until July 14 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
"The new County Executive Committee terms begin August 3, 2020, which means the window to conduct the CDEC meeting and elect the replacement nominee is just three weeks," Dickey stated.
Bowie County's delegation on the committee would include county GOP Chair Gary Singleton and 19 precinct chairs. According to the Texas Secretary of State, Bowie County's Republican precinct chairs are Claudia Bright, Marjorie Chandler, Robyn Cox, Howard Dunham, Cory Floyd, Olivia Gary, Joyce Giles, Minnie Hagood, Rickie Huggins, Joseph Lane, Burl Minter, William Morriss, Brandon Patterson, Marc Reiter, Emily Sabo, Lisa Singleton, John Welsh, Evelyn West and Betty Williams.
The CDEC will meet at 1 p.m. Aug. 8 in Sulphur Springs, Texas, the letter stated. The only requirement for someone to be a candidate for Ratcliffe's vacated seat is for a CDEC member to nominate them during the meeting. The qualifications for running are the same as for candidates who file to run for congressional office in the primary, except no application forms, filing fees or petitions are required.
If confirmed, Ratcliffe will replace former Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats, who resigned in July 2019. The office has been filled in an acting capacity since then, most recently by diplomat Richard Grenell.
Last year during the House's presidential impeachment inquiry, Ratcliffe rose to prominence as one of Trump's fiercest defenders. In late July, Trump tapped Ratcliffe for the DNI post but withdrew the nomination days later, when criticism of Ratcliffe's qualifications threatened to derail his confirmation process.
First elected to the House of Representatives in 2014, Ratcliffe won re-election in 2016 and 2018. He serves on the Election Committee, Judiciary Committee and Intelligence Committee. He is ranking member of the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security and a member of the Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property and the Internet.
Ratcliffe is a graduate of Notre Dame University and Dedman Law School at Southern Methodist University. He is married and has two daughters.
The Republican nominee for the 4th District seat will run against Democrat Russell Foster and Libertarian Lou Antonelli. Election Day is Nov. 3.