Category Archives: Election 2020

30 Day 2020 campaign finance reports: State races, part 2

Posted on October 14, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Continuing to look at the 30-day campaign finance reports. A lot of candidates have been reporting big hauls, especially in the hot State Rep races. As before, I will split these into four parts. Part one, with statewide, SBOE, and … Continue reading →

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Fifth Circuit upholds Abbott’s mail ballot dropoff limits

Posted on October 14, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Because of course they did. Why would you have expected anything else? In a ruling issued late Monday night, a federal appeals court upheld Gov. Greg Abbott’s order that limited counties to one mail-in ballot drop-off location. A three-judge panel … Continue reading →

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State GOP files suit to stop curbside voting in Harris County

Posted on October 14, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Honesty, it feels like they’re just trolling now. Hours before early voting began, the Texas Republican Party filed a new lawsuit Monday night challenging Harris County’s efforts to provide more voting options during the coronavirus pandemic, this time asking a … Continue reading →

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November 2020 Early Voting Day One: People sure were ready to vote

Posted on October 14, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

You’re going to hear the words “record-breaking” a lot. More than 125,000 Harris County residents went to the polls Tuesday to cast ballots on the first day of early voting, smashing the county’s previous records. As of about 7:30 p.m., … Continue reading →

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30 Day 2020 campaign finance reports: State races, part 1

Posted on October 13, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Time once again to look at campaign finance reports. I don’t usually review the 30-day reports but this is a special year, and there’s a lot of money sloshing around, so let’s keep an eye on it. As before, I … Continue reading →

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2020 early voting starts today

Posted on October 13, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: The Early Voting period for the November 2020 General Election begins tomorrow, Tuesday, October 13th, and continues through Friday, October 30th. This is the longest Early Voting period in Texas history, and voters who are not eligible … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: Judicial races

Posted on October 13, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron endorses two Dem challengers and one Republican incumbent for the Court of Criminal Appeals. A court’s legitimacy derives in part from its capacity to inspire trust in the minds of those who live by its rulings. “There cannot … Continue reading →

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Interview with Rep. Lizzie Fletcher

Posted on October 12, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I knew I wanted to talk to freshman Rep. Lizzie Fletcher this cycle, because there’s just so much to talk about. You know her story from 2018 – the crowded primary, the unprecedented amounts of money raised and spent, the … Continue reading →

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Judge briefly halts Abbott’s order limiting mail ballot dropoff locations

Posted on October 11, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Late Friday breaking news, which lasted until the early afternoon on Saturday. A federal judge ruled Friday that Texas counties can have multiple drop-off locations for absentee ballots heading into the Nov. 3 general election, blocking the enforcement of Texas … Continue reading →

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We are finally about to get that District B runoff scheduled

Posted on October 11, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

About damn time. A court hearing set for Oct. 19 finally could end the election dispute that has delayed a runoff in Houston city council’s District B for nearly a year. A state district judge is scheduled to hear an … Continue reading →

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Military ballots

Posted on October 11, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

When we talk about the deadline to print and send out mail ballots, we are specifically talking about ballots sent to active duty military personnel, which by federal law are to be sent out 45 days before Election Day to … Continue reading →

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UT/Trib: Trump 50, Biden 45

Posted on October 10, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I’ll get into a broader discussion in a minute, but for now, there’s this: President Donald Trump leads former Vice President Joe Biden with the support of 50% of the state’s likely voters to Biden’s 45% in the 2020 race … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: For MJ

Posted on October 10, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron changes its course in the US Senate race. For 18 years, John Cornyn has represented Texas in the U.S. Senate with dignity, decorum and a legislative work ethic that has made him one of the more productive, and … Continue reading →

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First hearing for mail ballot dropoff locations

Posted on October 9, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Hopefully we’ll get some action quickly. Lawyers for voters and voting rights groups asked a federal judge Thursday to block Gov. Greg Abbott’s recent order limiting counties to one location where voters can hand-deliver mail-in ballots. Abbott waited too long … Continue reading →

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Fourth lawsuit filed over Abbott’s order limiting mail ballot dropoff locations

Posted on October 9, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights is heard from: BREAKING: We just sued #Texas over Governor Greg Abbott’s discriminatory 11th hour decision to PROHIBIT counties from providing voters with more than 1 drop-off location for mail-in ballots. This ban has … Continue reading →

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Win one, lose one at SCOTX

Posted on October 8, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

The win: Early voting in Texas can begin Oct. 13, following the timeline the governor laid out months ago, the Texas Supreme Court ruled Wednesday, rejecting a request from several top Texas Republicans to limit the timeframe for voters to … Continue reading →

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There’s so much more money in Texas races

Posted on October 8, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Item one: It’s the question that many, many people have raised — often as a joke — for years. But the combination of changing demographics, chaos among the state Republican ranks, and the ongoing struggles of President Donald Trump’s campaign … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: Well, he does have a big Twitter following

Posted on October 8, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I’m honestly not surprised that the Chron endorsed Dan Crenshaw for re-election. I just wonder if the editorial board ever reads what they write when they come up with this stuff. U.S. Rep. Dan Crenshaw has 1 million Twitter followers. … Continue reading →

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Interview with Rep. Christina Morales

Posted on October 7, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I have focused mostly on Congressional candidates in my limited series of November interviews, but I did several State House races for the primary – Akilah Bacy in HD138, Ann Johnson in HD134, Sarah DeMerchant in HD26 – and I … Continue reading →

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Third lawsuit filed against Abbott’s order to limit mail ballot dropoff sites

Posted on October 7, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

This one’s in state court. Gov. Greg Abbott’s order limiting Texas counties to one mail ballot drop-off location has been challenged in court a third time. The lawsuit filed in Travis County court on Monday alleges that Abbott’s order exceeds … Continue reading →

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How many undervotes would it take?

Posted on October 6, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

This story about the race for County Clerk has broken me. [Stan] Stanart has finished in line with the Republican straight-ticket vote in each of his three elections, winning the clerk seat in 2010 with 53 percent of the vote … Continue reading →

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Chip Roy calls on Paxton to resign

Posted on October 6, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Interesting. U.S. Rep. Chip Roy, a former top aide to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, called on his former boss to resign from his post after top members of Paxton’s staff said the attorney general should be investigated for multiple … Continue reading →

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Interview with Sima Ladjevardian

Posted on October 5, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Texas CD02 has a fairly short history of being centered in Harris County. It was redrawn in the Tom DeLay re-redistricting of 2003 to stretch from the north end of the county to Beaumont in order to oust then-Rep. Nick … Continue reading →

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How not to be “ground zero” for voter suppression

Posted on October 5, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

It starts with winning elections. Which would be easier to do if Republicans weren’t hell-bent on making it hard to vote, but then that’s why they do what they do. Fewer and fewer states are standing with Texas as it … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: For (just a little) more diversity

Posted on October 5, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron says a few words about the need to diversify the Supreme Court, then mostly endorses the status quo. When talk turns to Texas’ highest civil court — as it must, given voters’ opportunity to select four of the … Continue reading →

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Second lawsuit filed against Abbott’s mail ballot dropoff order

Posted on October 4, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

From Chuck Lindell on Twitter, on Saturday afternoon: We have a 2nd federal lawsuit against Gov. Abbott’s order limiting counties to 1 drop-off location for mail-in ballots, this one from the Texas Alliance for Retired Americans. Petition: https://democracydocket.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/45/2020/10/Straty-v.-Abbott.pdf Background: — … Continue reading →

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Two more data points about Latino voting preferences in Texas

Posted on October 4, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

On the one hand: On the eve of the first presidential debate of the 2020 electoral season, Univision News publishes its latest electoral polls: the National Latino Voter Poll, a survey that interviewed a representative sample of all Latino registered … Continue reading →

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Lawsuit filed over Abbott’s order to limit mail ballot dropoff locations

Posted on October 3, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

As expected. Voting rights advocates and civic groups have rushed to the courthouse in a bid to block Republican Gov. Greg Abbott’s Oct. 1 order allowing Texas counties no more than one drop-off location for voters casting absentee ballots, calling … Continue reading →

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It’s Julie Oliver week

Posted on October 3, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Julie Oliver, the Democratic candidate in CD25, is getting a fair bit of attention this week. First, there’s this Statesman story about what her path to victory looks like. On a recent Zoom fundraiser with Beto O’Rourke, Democratic congressional candidate … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: Menefee and more

Posted on October 3, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron endorses Christian Menefee for Harris County Attorney. Christian Menefee was still celebrating his victory in the Democratic primary over longtime incumbent Harris County Attorney Vince Ryan when the coronavirus pandemic changed everything. Lockdowns and social distancing left the … Continue reading →

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Abbott moves to stop mail ballot dropoff locations

Posted on October 2, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t know about you, but this reeks of fear to me. Gov. Greg Abbott on Thursday declared that counties can designate only one location to collect completed mail ballots from voters, forcing Harris County to abandon 11 sites set … Continue reading →

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Speaker’s race? What Speaker’s race?

Posted on October 2, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Just a reminder that one of the three most powerful political offices in the state is on the ballot this November, even if it’s largely invisible to us. State Rep. Senfronia Thompson fielded a question last week that’s been on … Continue reading →

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You can track your mail ballot in Harris County

Posted on October 2, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Nice. Harris County residents now are able to track the status of their mail ballots through a new system launched by County Clerk Christopher Hollins Wednesday. For the first time, a voter can see when their ballot is mailed to … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: A Congressional four-pack

Posted on October 2, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Going once again in numerical order… Rep. Lizzie Fletcher, CD07. Two years after her first-ever run for public office resulted in the defeat of a nine-term Republican incumbent, Democratic U.S. Rep. Lizzie Fletcher faces re-election with a solid record of … Continue reading →

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