Joseph Richard Straus III (born September 1, 1959) is an American politician who served as the Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives from 2009 to 2019.
He is a Republican and represented District 121, which comprises northeastern Bexar County, including part of San Antonio, Texas, and several surrounding communities from his first election to the House in 2005 until his retirement in 2019.
Straus was first elected Speaker on January 13, 2009.
In October 2017, Straus announced that he would not seek re-election in 2018.