On July 17, Jane Nelson, Texas Secretary of State,ceased to be Secretary.  Texas Secretaries of State are not elected; they are appointed.  Governor Greg Abbott replaced her with Robert Howden.  Nelson had been opposing the Republican Party lawsuit that demands a closed primary for the party.  The Attorney General had been supporting the lawsuit, even though normally Attorneys General are supposed to defend state laws.

On August 6, U.S. District Court Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk ordered the new Secretary of State to reveal whether the new Secretary will switch sides.  If the new Secretary does switch sides, then there will be no government official left to defend the existing open primary law.  However, in that case, there will be private organizations who will ask to intervene in the lawsuit.