Tag Archives: Election 2008

Your vote is worth 30 times what it usually is

Posted on July 23, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

A little runoff math from the Trib. It is easy to lament low voter turnout. Only 11 percent of the state’s voting age adults showed up for the May primaries. But look at their clout: Every actual voter was making … Continue reading →

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How many bonds are too many?

Posted on July 17, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

We may find out this November. Houston voters may face a dizzying array of decisions in November as the city, school district and community college system seek authority to borrow more than $2 billion for construction work. The multiple measures … Continue reading →

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Interview with State Sen. Wendy Davis

Posted on June 11, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I didn’t have the room in my schedule during the TDP convention to contemplate trying to arrange a bunch of interviews, but if there was one person I hadn’t spoken to this cycle that I really wanted to it was … Continue reading →

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GOP results, statewide

Posted on May 30, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Full, though not necessarily the most up to date, results, are here. The Trib and the Observer have good roundups as well. – Mitt. Yawn. He was at just under 70% statewide, with Ron Paul getting 11% and Rick Santorum … Continue reading →

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The Trib’s strange samples

Posted on May 22, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s the UT/Texas Trib poll result the Trib should have reported: Q19. If the 2012 general election for U.S. president were held today and Mitt Romney was the Republican nominee, would you vote for [randomize] Barack Obama, Mitt Romney, someone … Continue reading →

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Early voting after one full week

Posted on May 21, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Here are your seven day early voting totals for the 2012 primaries, and some historical context to go along with them. Year 7 day Early 7 day % Final 7 day % Early % ============================================================== 2004 R 11,330 28,217 38.91% … Continue reading →

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Early voting begins today

Posted on May 14, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Feels weird to be talking about early voting for the primaries now, doesn’t it? Well, ready or not after all this time and all these twists in the road, here we are. Here are your early voting locations and schedule. … Continue reading →

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The other PPP April polls

Posted on April 29, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

In addition to their Presidential poll, Public Policy Polling asked about the Senate race and the future of Rick Perry. In their poll of the GOP Senate primary, they see things tightening up. Every time PPP polls Texas the Republican … Continue reading →

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Harris County rejecting fewer voter registrations

Posted on March 31, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

In other lawsuit-related news: Harris County officials have rejected far fewer would-be voters since 2008, but Democrats are demanding more proof that voter rolls are not being illegally suppressed – particularly among Hispanics – as another U.S. presidential election approaches. … Continue reading →

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Interview with Rep. Borris Miles

Posted on March 21, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

State Rep. Borris Miles is in his second term representing HD146, though his terms were not consecutive. He knocked off longtime Rep. Al Edwards in 2006, lost a rematch in 2008, then won again in 2010. He will face Edwards … Continue reading →

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Texas will be relevant to the GOP nomination circus after all

Posted on March 17, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

After Mitt Romney’s unimpressive showing on Tuesday, the race for the GOP Presidential nomination continues to slog on with no clear end in sight. Which is good news, I guess, if you’re a Texas Republican because it means that your … Continue reading →

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Good news and bad news

Posted on March 6, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Good news. Big news today: Bastrop County Judge Ronnie McDonald is stepping down from his position. At a press conference today, he announced today that he will either run for the 17th Legislative District, anchored in Bastrop and currently held … Continue reading →

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Two modest campaign finance reform suggestions

Posted on February 21, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

What to do about this? As indicted ex-constable Jack Abercia fights federal corruption and bribery charges brought against him last month, a lack of money for his legal defense isn’t one of his problems. The former Precinct 1 Harris County … Continue reading →

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Santorum surges in January UT/Trib poll

Posted on February 21, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

There will come a day when using the word “surge” to describe the now-frontrunning Republican Presidential candidate in Texas will get old. That day has not arrived yet. Former Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania has a commanding lead among Republican … Continue reading →

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On primary challenges

Posted on February 14, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I bookmarked this Statesman story about State Sen. Jeff Wentworth and the primary challenge he faces back when it ran, not because I was terribly interested in that particular race (though some elements of it are quite entertaining) but mostly … Continue reading →

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Interview with DA Pat Lykos

Posted on February 13, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

For my interviews this week, I’m going to take a brief detour from the Democratic primaries to converse with the two candidates in the highest profile Republican primary in Harris County. That would be the District Attorney race, and we … Continue reading →

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The numbers in the “deal”

Posted on February 7, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

As I start to type this I have no idea if the “deal” that was announced earlier today will be in effect or on the trash heap. I think it’s instructive to look at the numbers in the proposed maps … Continue reading →

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Interview with Sheriff Adrian Garcia

Posted on February 1, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia was elected in 2008 with the highest vote total of any candidate on the ballot. He inherited an office that was tainted by the scandals of his long-term predecessor, a jail system that was overcrowded, … Continue reading →

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January finance reports: Harris County state races

Posted on January 31, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

In addition to county candidates, my 2012 Democratic primary election page has information about state and federal candidates who will be on the ballot in Harris County. There are numerous contested primaries, and while I’m not tracking information about Republican … Continue reading →

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More on disciplining deputies

Posted on January 31, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s another long Chron story about disciplinary statistics for Harris County Sheriff’s deputies. Reading through it, I felt like there was some context missing. A Houston Chronicle review of disciplinary records indicates that from 2008 through 2010, more than 200 … Continue reading →

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Lampson on the DCCC’s list

Posted on January 21, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

It’s just like old times again. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, launching its bid to win back the House majority, has unveiled its list of top 2012 recruits. DCCC Chairman Steve Israel announced 18 candidates on Wednesday who are being … Continue reading →

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Sullivan says he’ll step down if he wins primary

Posted on January 18, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

He’s hoping to defuse a campaign issue. Houston City Councilman Mike Sullivan will submit his resignation in July if he wins the Republican nomination for Harris County tax assessor-collector in April’s primary, he said. The resignation would not be effective … Continue reading →

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Wait, you mean there’s a Democrat running for Senate?

Posted on January 4, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

There’s actually seven of them, but the Chron writes about the one with actual legislative experience. Paul Sadler, a plaintiff’s lawyer who represented an East Texas district from 1991 to 2003 and who developed a reputation during his years in … Continue reading →

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Lykos v Anderson

Posted on January 3, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I obviously don’t have a dog in the Republican District Attorney primary fight, but I like a good high-profile political battle as much as the next junkie, so stories about it are interesting to me. [DA Pat] Lykos argues she … Continue reading →

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When is a filing deadline not a filing deadline?

Posted on December 20, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Answer: When there will be another filing period after the filing deadline, as will be the case in Texas, according to the Secretary of State. “Based on the federal court’s order handed down December 16, candidates will be permitted to … Continue reading →

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Who will be the Lege education expert post-Hochberg?

Posted on December 12, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

In writing a political obituary for State Rep. Scott Hochberg, who announced his retirement from the House last week, Abby Rapoport spends a paragraph on his purported successor as the go-to education legislator. Rep. Jimmie Don Aycock, R-Killeen, is clearly … Continue reading →

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Sizing up the opportunities

Posted on December 6, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

This Chron story about the new Congressional map and who’s looking at what (which ran in the Express News last week) has a lot of things we’ve been discussing, and a couple of things to point out. First, a theme … Continue reading →

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Two more points about redistricting

Posted on November 30, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

First, go read what Greg has to say about the San Antonio federal court’s logic in drawing the districts that it did. I tried to get at some of this in this post, but he digs in and says it … Continue reading →

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Filing season opens today

Posted on November 28, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

It’s supposed to open today, anyway. It may get pushed back a day or two until the remaining legal actions get sorted out. As we know, after being turned down by the San Antonio federal Court, AG Greg Abbott is … Continue reading →

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Pena steps down

Posted on November 26, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Bye-bye, Aaron. State Rep. Aaron Peña will retire at the end of this term rather than seek re-election under interim political maps for the Texas House of Representatives that stripped him of a district offering the best opportunity for a … Continue reading →

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Modified House and Senate maps are out

Posted on November 24, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The federal court in San Antonio has now issued orders that slightly tweaked the State House and State Senate maps; the new plans are H302 and S164, respectively. The modifications are minor and mostly affect a few districts in Harris … Continue reading →

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First impressions of the new maps

Posted on November 18, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Before I get too into this, the invaluable Texas Redistricting reminds us that the parties in the lawsuit will be able to make objections and comments to the proposed maps today at noon. Meaning, there may yet be some tweaks … Continue reading →

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Still nothing interesting in the 2012 Presidential polls of Texas

Posted on November 6, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

There’s a new UT/Texas Trib poll of the Presidential race in Texas, and while most of it is about the Republican nomination, the bit that interests me as always is regarding the general election: Perry would do better in a … Continue reading →

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Dan Grant forms exploratory committee for CD25

Posted on October 24, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

BOR: Dan Grant announced that he’s forming an exploratory committee for CD-25, the Congressional district that includes much of East and Central Austin. Overall, the new CD-25 includes all of Johnson, Hill, Bosque, Somervell, Hamilton, Coryell, Lampasas and Burnet Counties, … Continue reading →

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