Erin Zwiener’s voting record

Although representing a swing district, freshman Democrat Erin Zwiener of House District 45 (Blanco and Hays counties) quickly established herself as one of the most radically-left members of the Texas House. In Rice University’s ranking of the 2019 legislative session, Zwiener was noted as the 6th most liberal member of the House. She also quickly earned a reputation for being fiercely anti-Life, not only scoring a 0% on the Pro-Life Scorecard, but authoring anti-Life amendments and delivering anti-Life speeches on the House floor. It is clear from her voting record that Zwiener supports abortion on demand until birth, paid for with taxpayer dollars. Shockingly, Zwiener even refused to support a bill that would’ve required that babies who survive abortions be treated with life-sustaining medical care. Another affront to patients was her vote against holding doctors accountable if they don’t make reasonable efforts to transfer critical patients to a different hospital capable of treating the patient. However, this horrendous voting record is somewhat understandable coming from a woman who once wrote that she wouldn’t have minded if a plague killed a bunch of people. 

Erin Zwiener’s full anti-Life voting record from her first session is below. 

86th Session (2019) – 0%

• House Bill 1: Budget Bill
  • Amendment 52 by Krause – Increases the Pro-Life Alternatives to Abortion program budget by $52 million over the 2020-21 biennium. (Supported by Texas Right to Life.) Zwiener voted against this amendment. 
  • Amendment 53 by Krause, Klick, Patterson, Stickland, and Oliverson – Amendment to perfect and clarify the $52 million budget increase for the Pro-Life Alternatives to Abortion program. (Supported by Texas Right to Life.) Zwiener voted against this amendment. 
  • Amendment 54 by Chris Turner – Removes the increase in funding to the Pro-Life Alternatives to Abortion program and takes an additional $20 million from the original program budget. (Opposed by Texas Right to Life.) Zwiener voted for this amendment. 
  • Amendment 287 by Swanson – Prohibits state funding for hospitals that provide elective abortions. No vote was taken on this amendment, but members could make their opposition known by entering a statement in the official Journal of the House. (Amendment supported by Texas Right to Life.) Zwiener registered her opposition. 
• House Bill 16 by Leach: The Born-Alive Infant Protection Act. This bill ensures medical intervention and legal protection for children born alive after an attempted abortion. 
  • Second Reading Vote – Vote to pass House Bill 16 to next step in passage. (Supported by Texas Right to Life.) Zwiener registered as “present, not voting.”
  • Third Reading Vote – Vote for final passage of House Bill 16. (Supported by Texas Right to Life.) Zwiener registered as “present, not voting.”
• Senate Bill 22 by Campbell: The No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act. This bill prohibits state and local tax dollars from funding or benefitting the abortion industry. 
  • Amendments 1, 3, & 5-21 – A series of 19 loopholes for taxpayer-funded contracts with abortion clinics or certain services. (Opposed by Texas Right to Life.) Zwiener voted for the amendments, and co-authored amendment 14 which would strike language of the bill prohibiting affiliates of abortion industry from receiving taxpayer funding.
  • Amendment 23 by Stickland – Clarifies that Senate Bill 22 does not restrict cities or counties from prohibiting abortion. (Supported by Texas Right to Life.) Zwiener voted against the amendment. 
  • Second Reading Vote – Vote to pass Senate Bill 22 to the next step in passage. (Supported by Texas Right to Life.) Zwiener voted against the motion.
  • Third Reading Vote – Members could record their opposition by entering a statement in the Official Journal of the House. (Statement opposed by Texas Right to Life.) Zwiener recorded a statement of her opposition to the bill.
• Additional Votes
  • Floor Amendment to House Bill 1504 by Toth – Subjects physicians to disciplinary measures and possible loss of license if the physician does not make reasonable efforts to transfer a patient. This amendment applies when the 10-Day Rule has been initiated and patients have a limited number of days to transfer to a new physician or facility before their life-sustaining treatment is withdrawn against their will. (Supported by Texas Right to Life.) Zwiener voted against the amendment.