Located in one of the most strongly positioned and vocally republic states in the nation, Tyler, Texas stays true to its roots. The city promotes conservative positions and values in both their personal and political lives.
Known as the rose capital of America, Tyler, Texas runs red through and through. Citizens in the city are strongly Republican, reflecting conservative values in their voting tendencies, elected government officials, gun laws, strong religious population and community, and low government involvement.
We know that Texas and Tyler are both strong independent and Republican in their values, but what sorts of indicators in the city of Tyler help us to identify conservative beliefs and behaviors?
What Views are Conservative?
Democrats are generally considered to be more liberal in their views, while Republicans tend to lean more conservative options in their positions. Conservative policies
support and campaign for individual freedom for the people. They believe that limited government and more power for individual citizens is the best policy.
Conservatives are large supporters of personal freedom and independence for Americans, allowing them to pursue their own goals and practice their personal beliefs. They value individualism, free markets, personal freedoms and liberties, strong national defense, religious beliefs and practices, limited government involvement, and traditional American and family values.
Largely due to their strong religious values, conservatives promote marriage between a man and woman rather than same-sex marriage as supported by democrats. Conservatives strongly discourage abortions and work to limit access and legality of abortion operations and practices. They also strongly support the constitutional right for citizens to bear arms, providing easy access to gun ownership for everyday people and not only for law enforcers.
True to its famous independent nature, Texas has been long known as a strong supporter of the Republican party. Their laws and voting tendencies support these conservative beliefs and protect religious values and personal freedom for American citizens.
Voting Statistics and Financial Contributions
In the last presidential election, 68.9% of Smith County voted in favor of the Republican Party, 1.6% voted Independent, and only 29.5% of the population voted for the Democratic party’s candidates. Well over half of the voters sided with the Republican party. The majority of the city runs red in voting decisions.
The Republican Party and conservative groups received incredibly high contributions in both value and amount over the last four years. Their final turnout for both was an average of $643 per contribution.
They raised a total of $7,653,509 from 11,904 contributions, while the Democratic and liberal groups only received $766,606 from 9,302 contributions in the same time period from 2018-2021. Republican and conservational donations reached over $7 million! Their financial support was nearly 7 times as much as their opponents.
Conservational Republican support in the city of Tyler is overwhelmingly higher than that of liberal or democratic organizations. High conservative numbers in both voting tendencies and financial contributions prove Tyler to be a conservative city.
Government Officials
Don Warren is the current mayor of Tyler, Texas. He is a member of the Republican party and supports conservative values. He and his wife Chelli are active members of the Green Acres Baptist Church. Warren has been an oil and gas professional for 36 years and owns a small oil and gas management firm called Locomo Inc. Mayor Warren is nearly the epitome of conservative values. He is a religious family man, self-made, owns an oil and gas company, and represents the Republican party.
The election for Tyler’s new mayor in 2020 was won by a landslide. Don Warren ran against Joel Rando taking an overwhelming 70% and leaving Rando straggling behind with the support of only 30% of Tyler residents. Warren was the leading candidate by nearly 13,960 votes!
Tyler is a clearly conservative town, supporting Republican candidates that will represent their personal views and values well during their time in office.
The two elected members of the Senate from Texas are John Cornyn and Ted Cruz. Both men belong to the Republican party. Of their 150 members in the House of Representatives, Republicans take the majority in Texas yet again with 85 of the representatives in their political party. The Republican Party has had control of the Texas House of Representatives since 2002 and increases its majority each year. Four of the five State Executive Officials from Texas are Republicans, with one Non-Partisan.
Religious Community
In addition to elected government officials, a high percentage of Tyler are also religiously affiliated. An estimated 73.2% of Tyler residents are religious. Many of these citizens belong to a variety of religious beliefs: Baptist, Catholic, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Presbyterian, Methodist, Pentecostal, Lutheran, and others.
There are hundreds of religious buildings, built in Tyler including churches, synagogues, mosques, and others. These groups cover a large range of beliefs. The city hosts a number of Buddhist and Hindu temples as well.
The city also boasts a large number of private religious schools. Some of the most highly ranked options include Grace Community School – Upper Campus, Grace Community School, and All Saints Episcopal School. Tyler’s strong religious community keeps their children well involved in religious practices and environments, a well-supported action for conservative populations.
Abortion Bills and Laws
Following their highly Republican tendencies, the state of Texas enacted a new bill in May of 2022, fighting for the lives of unborn children and standing against abortions. Texas passed Senate Bill 8, nicknamed “the heartbeat bill”. This bill bans the abortion of a child after a heartbeat is detected, which usually occurs around 6 weeks into the pregnancy. Governor Gregg Abbott signed the bill, proud to support the Pro-Life campaign.
“Our creator endowed us with the right to life and yet millions of children lose their right to life every year because of abortion. [The Legislature] worked together on a bipartisan basis to pass a bill that I’m about to sign that ensures that the life of every unborn child who has a heartbeat will be saved from the ravages of abortion.”
Gregg Abbott, Governor of Texas
The State also has a “trigger law” that would come into place within 30 days if the Supreme Court were to reverse the Roe vs Wade trial ruling. This trigger law would make all abortions a crime in Texas. Doctors violating this law could face a life sentence in prison and up to $100,000 in fines.
The Republican party and conservative beliefs are protected and promoted in Texas. Bills and laws such as the “heartbeat bill” and “trigger law” are possible because of the large amount of support conservative Texans give and their overwhelming population in the state and community.
Farmland and Countryside
As is true of most Southern states, a large portion of Texas is taken by farmers and ranchers of many different types. Tyler is specifically known for its incredible rose production. The city is home to the nation’s largest rose garden at 14 acres! The garden has 38,000 rose bushes and more than 600 different varieties of roses. This is a historical site for the city and is one example of the strong agricultural backbone of Tyler.
Many rodeos are held in Eastern Texas and some such as the Real Cowboy and Rusk County rodeos are held in Tyler! Many ranchers have their livestock involved in rodeo and fair events. Local participants have been performing on radios for most of their lives.
Cities and areas with large agricultural and farming communities tend to vote in a more conservative direction. They prioritize limited-government powers and individual liberties and freedoms.
Gun Laws
In comparison to other states, Texas has relatively weak laws for gun control. The state does not require background checks or licenses for private gun sales or purchases made at gun shows. Texas laws do not prevent domestic violence offenders from possession of firearms, as is protocol in many other states.
This provides little protection for victims of domestic violence abuse. In addition, state funding does not support community-based violence intervention programs and does not allow the intervention of family members or law enforcers to petition the court for the temporary removal of a person’s firearms when in a time of crisis.
In September of 2021, a new bill was passed allowing residents to carry handguns in public places without a permit. This is a highly conservative action, promoting citizens’ ability to bear arms.
Texas also has gun shows held year round and all over the state. In 2022, nearly 200 registered gun shows are scheduled to take place between June and December alone. This six-month range has a higher amount of gun shows than some states have in an entire year!
In 2021, Texas had the most registered firearms of any state in the nation and more than doubled the second place state. There were 1,006,555 firearms in the state. Florida had the second highest number, but only had 518,725 registered.
Some staff and teachers are allowed to carry guns in K-12 schools. Texas also allows people with concealed-carry licenses to carry a gun on college and university campuses.
Low levels of restrictions on gun possession and carry laws are a large sign of conservative beliefs. They allow citizens to defend themselves when necessary, rather than relying solely on law enforcement.
