A considerable amount of scholarly attention has been devoted to exploring the relationship between political parties and the legislative branch. However, most of this research has only been conducted in the context of national-level politics. While this approach has enriched our understanding of political parties, unfortunately, it has empirical and substantive limitations. This dissertation explores three research questions regarding state political parties and their relationship with the legislative branch. In Chapter 2, I examine whether legislative term limits influence legislative procedures. Specifically, I analyze whether term limits correspond to an increase in Speaker power. Chapter 3 focuses on state legislative elections. I examine whether various attributes associated with the majority party influence electoral outcomes for state legislators. In Chapter 4, I focus on interbranch relationships. Specifically, I analyze whether gubernatorial leadership is associated with an increase in partisan behavior regarding legislative roll-call votes. Overall, this project contributes to our understanding of state political parties and how they can influence various parts of our institutions and political system.