Category Archives: Election 2008

So this is it, the primary that some people (like, um, me) foolishly wanted to move up to February to ensure a meaningful voice in the Presidential selection process is here at last. Many of us have already voted, but … Continue reading → Continue reading →

And even I’ll be ready to not hear those Obama commercials in heavy rotation on 103.7 Jack FM. I’m going to reiterate this post from Friday, for those of you who are voting today: If you vote today at a … Continue reading → Continue reading →

If you’re voting tomorrow, my advice is to get there early in hope of avoiding long lines. The campaigns of Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama urged supporters to stop in at shopping centers, libraries or county courthouses to cast … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Among the many reasons why I’m hoping that the precinct convention business wraps up early tomorrow night is that I want to attend some parties. For some reason, there are several right in my neighborhood, and I know I’ll be … Continue reading → Continue reading →

With Super Texas Tuesday finally almost upon us, it’s time to have a little fun. This is an open predictions thread. I’m going to list some races, you tell me what you think is going to happen. Be as general … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Longtime GOP strategist Royal Masset looks at the Democratic turnout numbers in the Quorum Report and sees dire things for his party. Masset now sees the makings of a political tsunami greater than the annus horribilis of 2006. The nearly … Continue reading → Continue reading →

As we know, the Dallas Morning News broke with the pack and endorsed Mike Huckabee for the GOP nomination for President. Yesterday, they repeated that endorsement. Win or lose in November, the GOP is destined to spend the next few … Continue reading → Continue reading →

At long last, the Chron finishes its endorsements (more or less). The good news is that in the end, they made the right calls. Texas Senate, District 4, Republican Tommy Williams — A legislator with impeccable conservative credentials, Williams is … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Take it for what it’s worth. I have no idea how you get a representative sample, but it’s better to try than not. Prosecutor Kelly Siegler and former Judge Pat Lykos lead police Capt. Doug Perry and defense lawyer Jim … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The Chron has another batch of endorsements today, which I almost missed since it wasn’t linked on the index page for Opinion – I spotted it in the paper version, and then had to look to find it online. Here … Continue reading → Continue reading →

As predicted, we had over 30,000 more Democratic votes cast on the last day of early voting – 33,100, to be exact, for a grand total of 170,032; 9,787 Republicans showed up to bring their final tally to 51,199 – … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Today’s been a day of press releases touting unprecedented endorsements. First up, the Houston GLBT Political Caucus endorsed Sen. Barack Obama for President. Here’s the release (PDF): The Houston GLBT Political Caucus PAC is proud to announce its endorsement of … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Poor dears. The party of the elephant is hoping its members don’t forget about it. Record-breaking turnout in the Democratic primary across the state is causing concerns that a significant number of Republicans may not vote in their own party’s … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Today is the last day to vote early in Texas. I really don’t know why we don’t extend early voting up through Election Day – at the very least, why we don’t extend it through the weekend before; Lord knows … Continue reading → Continue reading →

We start today’s look at turnout with a Republican talking point, which I’m sure we’ll hear again in the future. The excitement of their contest has driven up Democratic primary early voting to dramatic levels. But GOP spokesman Hans Klingler … Continue reading → Continue reading →

So a few weeks ago, this group called the Greater Harris County Democrats, whom no one had ever heard of and who listed no actual members on its web page appeared and circulated via email a group of candidates they … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I’ve kind of lost track of the campaign overview stories the Chron has run, mostly because they’ve appeared somewhat erratically, but here’s one on CD10, which features a hot Democratic primary between Dan Grant and Larry Joe Doherty. Thanks to … Continue reading → Continue reading →

For today’s look at the early vote turnout figures, I’m just going to consider two numbers and what they might have to tell us about what’s in store for November. Let’s start with this memo from Professor Murray (PDF), who … Continue reading → Continue reading →

You may recall that a coalition of activists filed suit earlier this month to have the 1973 law banning organizations or groups of persons from expending anything of value to aid or defeat the election of a speaker candidate declared … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Rep. Scott Hochberg understands the stakes in this year’s primary election. I realize that a lot of people are unhappy with Rep. Miles. I don’t blame anyone for feeling disappointed in him. But Miles represented his district well, he voted … Continue reading → Continue reading →

And back we go to the question of Republicans voting in the Democratic primary. According to polling, as well as anecdotal evidence, an unusually large number of Republicans and independents may cast their votes in the Democratic contest next week, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

When last I checked, I found a lot of yard signs on my neighbors’ lawns, but almost none of them were for Presidential candidates. Two weeks and a crapload of early voting later, that’s no longer the casae. I took … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Another day, another outrageously strong early vote showing in Harris County. Another 15,000 Democratic votes were cast on Monday, bringing the seven-day early vote total to a hair under 80,000. That means that we have already surpassed the entire Democratic … Continue reading → Continue reading →

And the Chron’s editorial board once again retreats into its fortress of solitude, leaving a bunch of primaries behind without any input from them. I suppose they may do one last endorsement roundup on Sunday or Monday, but I think … Continue reading → Continue reading →

John Truitt, who had announced his intent to run as an independent in CD07, has sent out an email saying he will abandon that effort. From the email: With the race for the Presidency so tight, the turnout for early … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Here’s a pretty decent overview of the four Democratic candidates running in contested primaries for the State Supreme Court. Unlike some similar pieces we’ve seen this cycle, it’s more issues-focused than personality-driven, which I always appreciate. It also brings to … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The Observer blog takes a stab at what is surely going to be the hottest parlor game among political prognosticators and consultants this summer, Trying To Figure Out Whose Re-election Chances Are Endangered By All This Democratic Primary Turnout: One … Continue reading → Continue reading →

It’s Monday, and that means the Chron has a random assortment of endorsements to sort of catch up on all the action they’ve been missing: U.S. Congress, District 10, Democrat Dan Grant — A graduate of the London School of … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I’m still trying to puzzle out what implications there may be for November from this unprecedented explosion in Democratic primary turnout now. While I still think that nobody knows what it means right now, we can still look at the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Though Sunday has been their main day for doing endorsements, as we saw last week, the Chron decided to devote its editorial page space today to energy issues. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, but it leaves me wondering … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The Walker Report says: Gov. Rick Perry set Saturday, May 10th, as the special election date to fill the vacancy in House District 119. The seat was left vacant by the resignation of Rep. Robert Puente. Candidates for this special … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The Burnt Orange Report offers its slate of candidates for the primary, generating a little heat in the comments for a couple of their selections. I largely agree with their choices, and would like to echo their recommendation of Rosemary … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I know I’ve harped quite a bit on the vast disparity between Democratic and Republican turnout so far in this primary, but that’s because every way I look at the data, it’s just stunning in its scope. Every way I … Continue reading → Continue reading →

This ad ran during last night’s debate. Good stuff. Much as I’m glad to see the huge boost in Democratic primary turnout statewide, it does add a certain randomization factor to various races, like this one. With Noriega going on … Continue reading → Continue reading →