State Representative Dustin Burrows will sit at the helm of the Texas House after a contentious race to determine who would lead the lower legislative chamber. Burrows' victory marks a devastating blow for GOP frontrunner David Cook (R-Mansfield),

Instead, new House Speaker Dustin Burrows won the job with the support of Democrats, who favored him over a challenger backed by the GOP’s emboldened right.

Lubbock Republican state Rep. Dustin Burrows clenched the speakership of the Texas House on Tuesday in the culmination of an unusually long and unusually public mudfight for the role. As expected, Burrows relied on a coalition of Democratic and Republican members to win,