Allen West, a former congressman who spoke at a QAnon-affiliated convention over the weekend, announced Friday that he was resigning as chairman of the Texas Republican Party and acknowledged that he might run against Republican Gov. Greg Abbott.
"Humbled and blessed by the opportunity to serve," West tweeted with a link to the announcement from the Texas GOP that he was stepping down after less than a year on the job.
His resignation is effective July 11, when a new chairman will be selected, the Texas GOP said in a news release. The party said West "will take this opportunity to prayerfully reflect on a new chapter in his already distinguished career. We know that wherever he goes next, he will continue to be a bulwark against progressive socialism and a champion for the principles of Texas and our American Republic."
In a brief interview about the announcement with Fort Worth-based radio station WBAP, host Chris Salcedo asked West, "Am I safe in assuming you are considering a run for governor?"
"You are safe in that consideration," West answered.
At a press conference later in the day, West said he might also run for something "congressional," and possibly challenge Democratic Rep. Colin Allred, who represents Texas's 32nd District.
West is an outspoken ally of former President Donald Trump and suggested that Texas and other states should secede after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against the state's lawsuit challenging the results of the 2020 election.
"Perhaps law-abiding states should bond together and form a Union of states that will abide by the constitution,” West said in a statement at the time.
He used his time as state chair to criticize some of his fellow Republicans, including protesting Abbott's coronavirus safety measures at a demonstration in front of the governor's residence. West alsosued Abbott in September for expanding early voting in the state, arguing the move enhanced the risk of voter fraud.
Trump endorsed Abbott, who is up for re-election next year, this week. Abbott told The Dallas Morning News in the days before West's announcement that he is not focusing on his re-election yet and “I’ll get to politics when the time comes.”
West shrugged off the Trump endorsement to the Morning News on Friday. "I don't serve President Trump," he said. “I serve God, country and Texas, so that does not affect me whatsoever,” he said.
A retired Army lieutenant colonel, West served one term in Congress in Florida after he was elected in the tea party wave in 2010 and made a national name for himself with his outspoken criticism of then-President Barack Obama.
He was elected Texas GOP chair last July and quickly courted controversy by making the party's motto "We Are the Storm" — which is also a slogan for QAnon conspiracy theorists. West denied that the party was trying to appeal to QAnon followers and said it was simply a quote from a poem he likes.
"I’m not into internet conspiracy theories," he told KXAN-TV in an interview last year.
West spoke at a convention tied to QAnon proponents in Dallas over Memorial Day weekend, and posed for a picture with former Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn, who reportedly urged him to run against Abbott.
