The Log Cabin Republicans, a conservative LGBT group, will not have a booth at the Texas GOP Convention yet again.

The State Republican Executive Committee on Saturday tabled a motion that would have allowed a vote on whether to allow the group the booth. The group has applied for a spot at the event for at least 20 years without success, said Houston chapter president Marco Roberts.

Motions to allow a roll call vote on the matter and to allow Roberts to speak both failed.

“Obviously, we are very disappointed with the decision made by our elected representatives,” Roberts said in a statement. “There were a few courageous members of the SREC who stood with us, even under enormous pressure to refrain from doing so. We owe them our highest respect and deepest gratitude.”

Roberts added: "Many have told us that it is upon us to make the case for ourselves. We agree, and we intend to do that, for us, and for our great party.”

State chairman James Dickey declined to offer his personal position, saying his obligation is to speak for the party, but stressed that he appreciated how members handled a controversial issue.

“There was a decent discussion yesterday and clearly, today after having already had that discussion yesterday, the committee decided not to rehash the lessons that frankly the party’s been considering for a long time,” Dickey said. “The discussions I had with members yesterday was how proud I am of how different a heartfelt debate looked like in our party compared to how I am convinced a similar debate on a similar topic would look from the other party.”

As Republicans work to keep a tight grip on their majority in the Legislature, this issue is one that members on both sides say foreshadows the party’s ability to grow and attract new members.

Amy Hedtke, who made the motion Saturday to allow the group’s booth, told the committee it could not afford to turn away fellow Republicans.

“Pretty much all of us have worked a campaign where we have lost by less than 50 votes,” Hedtke told the committee. “You know the importance of every single vote.”

She added: “They’ve been working within the party for 40 years. They worked with Reagan. They are working to fulfill Republican principles. They are the anti-Leftist group in this particular demographic.”

A Facebook livestream of Saturday’s meeting, posted by Hedtke, illustrated the divisiveness of the issue.

Smith County member Craig Licciardi commented: “Anyone that voted for LCR needs to be replaced.”

To which a Log Cabin Republican member, John Nicks, replies, “Anyone that votes against LCR should be replaced.”

Red Oak resident Penny Story, who voted as a proxy and disagreed with allowing the group into the party, said she was in favor of a roll call vote because she wanted committee members on the record. Story said she came to Saturday’s meeting specifically to address the Log Cabin Republicans issue.

“In our bylaws, it says we provide an opportunity for full participation in the party to all Texans who subscribe to the beliefs and principles advocated by the party," Story said. “That’s it. If you do not subscribe, you need to go.”

“It’s like joining any organization — why do you join it? It’s because you like what they do,” she added. “We don’t have a salad bar here; we have a full menu.”

Hedtke said after the vote that she was disappointed but not surprised by the vote, adding that those who did not wish to put their name to their opinion on this issue by taking a roll call vote were “cowards.” She reiterated she believes the party will have to change in order to grow.

“If you want Republicans to win, you get all the Republicans out to vote,” Hedtke said. “They’re people. We need help in not just party politics but in all sorts of policy issues going on in Texas.”

Former State Representative Glen Maxey, who was the first openly gay member of the Texas House of Representatives, said in a statement for the Texas Democrats that the vote was “yet another example of how extremism and prejudice have come to define the Republican Party.”

“It is dead wrong and the Texas Republicans’ decision today only reinforces their idea that all people aren’t created equal,” Maxey said. “To every Log Cabin Republican, we have one message: You are welcome in the Texas Democratic Party. Come join us in the fight for equality and march with us as we strive for a more just, fair society.”

Just before the meeting ended Saturday, Hedtke put in one last effort, making a motion to accept the group as a coalition organization to the Texas GOP.

The motion failed with resounding votes to table.