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|succeeded2=Dennis Bonnen

|succeeded2=Dennis Bonnen

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'''Joseph Richard Straus, III''', known as '''Joe Straus''' (born September 1, 1959), is a [[Moderate Republican]] former state representative from [[San Antonio]], [[Texas]], who served as [[Speaker]] of the Texas House of Representatives from 2009 to 2018. He was initially elected to the House in a special election held in January 2005 to succeed Elizabeth Ames Jones, who resigned from the legislature to join the [[Texas Railroad Commission]], a post she since vacated in an unsuccessful bid for the Texas State Senate. A youthful admirer of the late [[U.S. Senator]] [[John Tower]], for whom he was once a part-time chauffeur, Straus has, like Tower, supported [[pro-abortion]] interests. His critics claim that he has also undermined [[free enterprise]] economics,<ref>http://www.votesmart.org/issue_rating_category.php?can_id=49917</ref> but he counters with the claim that he is a champion for economic development, transportation, and public education.

'''Joseph Richard Straus, III''', known as '''Joe Straus''' (born September 1, 1959), is a [[Moderate Republican]] former state representative from [[San Antonio]], [[Texas]], who served as [[Speaker]] of the Texas House of Representatives from 2009 to 2018. He was initially elected to the House in a special election held in January 2005 to succeed Elizabeth Ames Jones, who resigned from the legislature to join the [[Texas Railroad Commission]], a post she since vacated in an unsuccessful bid for the Texas State Senate.  

 

A youthful admirer of the late [[U.S. Senator]] [[John Tower]], for whom he was once a part-time chauffeur, Straus, like Tower, supported [[pro-abortion]] interests. His critics claim that he has also undermined [[free enterprise]] economics,<ref>http://www.votesmart.org/issue_rating_category.php?can_id=49917</ref> but he counters with the claim that he is a champion for economic development, transportation, and public education.

==Political career==

==Political career==