Tag Archives: Election 2012

The payday lenders won’t go without a fight

Posted on December 30, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Where there’s a fight, there’s sure to be lots of money. Payday lenders were big spenders in the most recent Texas political campaigns – contributing more than $1.6 million to state races in the 2012 election cycle and giving most … Continue reading →

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There are eight candidates who have filed for SD06

Posted on December 29, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Yesterday I made an inquiry with the Elections division of the Secretary of State’s office, to ask how many candidates had filed for the special election in SD06. They kindly forwarded me a scan of all eight candidate applications, which … Continue reading →

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Dewhurst campaign aide accused of stealing contributions

Posted on December 29, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Oops. Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst’s campaign manager is under criminal scrutiny, suspected of stealing at least $600,000 — and possibly more than $1 million — from the Republican’s political accounts over the past several years. Kenneth “Buddy” Barfield, a longtime … Continue reading →

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Time once again to talk about expanded gambling

Posted on December 28, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

There’s a legislative session coming up, right? That can only mean one thing: A new effort to expand gambling in Texas. Track and gaming interests say voters should be allowed to decide whether to give Texas a shot at the … Continue reading →

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Trib overview of SD06 special election

Posted on December 26, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

For all the delays in getting this called, the special election in SD06 is one month from today. The Trib takes a look. State Rep. Carol Alvarado, D-Houston, and Sylvia Garcia, a Democrat and former Harris County commissioner, are vying … Continue reading →

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Three things in life are certain

Posted on December 23, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Death, taxes, and Bruce Hotze filing a lawsuit every time he loses an election. A local anti-tax activist filed a lawsuit Thursday to block the city of Houston from borrowing $410 million to add, expand and repair parks, libraries, police … Continue reading →

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Transition, schmansition

Posted on December 20, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Don Sumners, ladies and gentlemen. “There is no transition,” said lame-duck Tax Assessor-Collector Don Sumners. The occasionally cantankerous 73-year-old anti-tax taxman said he and his two predecessors came in cold, and [Tax Assessor-elect Mike] Sullivan will have to do the … Continue reading →

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Where redistricting stands with SCOTUS

Posted on December 18, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

From Texas Redistricting: What happens now in the Supreme Court? With the filing of motions to affirm or dismiss last week by the Justice Department and intervenors, Texas’ appeal of the preclearance ruling is now ready for review by the … Continue reading →

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Once more to the judicial elections well

Posted on December 17, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I swear, I thought I was done talking about judicial elections, at least for now until one or more of the bills that would affect them comes up in the Lege, but then there was this op-ed in the Chron, … Continue reading →

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Don’t write off the University line

Posted on December 14, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Metro certainly hasn’t, judging by what they’re saying. “Dallas has almost 100 miles of light rail,” Metro board chairman Gilbert Garcia told a business luncheon Tuesday. “Certainly we can get to The Galleria.” What hasn’t been figured out, yet, is … Continue reading →

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SD06 special election date set

Posted on December 13, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Very glad to her it. Gov. Rick Perry today set Saturday, Jan. 26, 2013, as the special election date to fill the Texas State Senate District 6 seat formerly held by the late Sen. Mario Gallegos. Candidates for this special … Continue reading →

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And it begins in SD06

Posted on December 12, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I’m only going to do this kind of post once, because I agree with Rick Noriega that the special election in SD06 needs to be about the issues and leadership, not just for that district but for the state as … Continue reading →

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City settles with Treasures, county still on the case

Posted on December 12, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Noted for the record. Prominent strip club Treasures, hauled into court as an alleged public nuisance and haven for crime by city and county attorneys seven months ago, has agreed to put $100,000 in a nuisance abatement fund as part … Continue reading →

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Is there more redistricting for Texas in the cards?

Posted on December 11, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The short answer is it depends. For the most part, Republicans are content to keep the interim map used for the 2012 elections — if the courts allow it. “I don’t sense a lot of anxiousness from either the state … Continue reading →

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The Lege does not need term limits

Posted on December 10, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a silly idea, and no time should be wasted on it. State Rep. Lyle Larson has filed a proposal to let Texans vote on whether to limit to 12 years the time state officials may serve in one position. … Continue reading →

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Rick Noriega statement on SD06 special election

Posted on December 8, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The following was sent to the SEIU Screening Council by Rick Noriega in response to a request that he screen with them for SD06. He shared it with me for publication here: December 8, 2012 SEIU Screening Committee SEIU Texas … Continue reading →

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Still waiting for Perry to call the special election

Posted on December 8, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Patti Hart reviews the bidding. On Tuesday, Jan. 8, your elected representative and senator will convene under the state Capitol’s distinctive pink granite dome in Austin for the first day of the 83rd session of the Texas Legislature. That is, … Continue reading →

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It’s the vote spread that matters

Posted on December 6, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I had an email conversation with Judge Mark Davidson regarding my post about straight-ticket voting and its effect on judicial races. He said I misunderstood the point he was trying to make in that Chron story. From his email, quoted … Continue reading →

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Precinct analysis: A closer look at the Latino districts

Posted on December 5, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s a more in-depth look at the Latino districts in Harris County. I’m particularly interested in the question of how President Obama did in comparison to the other Dems on the ballot, since as we know he lagged behind them … Continue reading →

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Straight ticket voting and judicial races elsewhere

Posted on December 4, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

You may be wondering, after reading my post about straight ticket voting and judicial races if the same thing is true in counties other than Harris. I got to wondering that myself, so I checked out the results from a … Continue reading →

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Getting out the vote in Bexar County

Posted on December 3, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Stace pointed me to this Express News story about the Bexar County Democratic Party’s ground game for the November election. Many factors influence the outcome of an election, and precise analysis is not always available. But putting $600,000 into a … Continue reading →

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This is what a full-scale Latino outreach program looks like

Posted on December 2, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

This is what I’m talking about. President Barack Obama’s campaign team realized even before Romney was nominated that the growing Latino vote was the key to a second Obama term. And they acted to sew it up with an early, … Continue reading →

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Pity the poor judges

Posted on November 30, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

It’s hard out here on a judge. For longer than anyone remembers, you had to be a Democrat to be a district judge in Texas – or just about any other political office. When the Democratic Party split apart in … Continue reading →

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Let the endorsement race begin!

Posted on November 30, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

We may not have a date for the SD06 special election, but that doesn’t mean the race hasn’t begun. In particular, the race to begin collecting endorsements has begun, and both major declared candidates have announced wins. Sylvia Garcia has … Continue reading →

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Precinct analysis: The range of possibility

Posted on November 29, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s a look at selected districts in Harris County that shows the range of votes and vote percentages achieved by Democratic candidates. I’ve thrown in the Obama and Sam Houston results from 2008 for each to provide a comparison between … Continue reading →

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Precinct analysis: City propositions

Posted on November 28, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

And we come to the city of Houston bond referenda, of which there were five on the ballot. Here’s the usual breakdown of them: Dist A Yes A No B Yes B No C Yes C No D Yes D … Continue reading →

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We should expect boring Congressional races for the foreseeable future

Posted on November 28, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

That’s my takeaway after reading this. For Pete Sessions, election night ended with yet another resounding send-off to Washington. He won a ninth term, with 58 percent of the vote. But an analysis by The Dallas Morning News raises questions … Continue reading →

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Precinct analysis: HISD and HCC

Posted on November 27, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I was reasonably confident that the HISD bond referendum would be successful, mostly because there wasn’t any real opposition from officials or constituencies that would normally be expected to support it. It had a much smoother path than the 2007 … Continue reading →

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When will we have that special election in SD06?

Posted on November 27, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Sylvia Garcia would like to know. Senate District 6 candidate Sylvia Garcia, today called on Governor Rick Perry to set an election date to fill the senate district seat as soon as possible. “This is a simple taxation without representation … Continue reading →

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Demographic change in the Panhandle

Posted on November 27, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

What’s happening in other parts of Texas is happening in West Texas, too. Whites no longer are the majority group in 17 counties in the Texas Panhandle/South Plains region, including Potter County, according to U.S. Census Bureau estimates. And based … Continue reading →

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Precinct analysis: Metro

Posted on November 26, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The first rule of precinct analysis, at least as I do it, is that you really can’t learn much by doing it on lopsided elections. The Metro referendum, which passed with 78% of the vote, is Exhibit A of this … Continue reading →

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Is immigration reform likely to happen now?

Posted on November 23, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

With President Obama’s victory powered in part by overwhelming support from Latino voters, and a dawning if grudging recognition from the GOP that they can’t continue to alienate this growing segment of the electorate, some kind of deal on immigration … Continue reading →

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How’s that GOP Latino outreach going?

Posted on November 21, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

There are issues. On Election Day, it became clearer than ever how important Hispanics, as the fastest growing portion of the U.S. population, are to national political success. Republican Mitt Romney earned only 27 percent of Latinos’ support in his … Continue reading →

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Precinct data: County Commissioner precincts

Posted on November 20, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I wish they called County Commissioner precincts by some other name, because it’s confusing to refer to them as such when one is discussing canvass data, which is data from the thousand-plus voting precincts in Harris County. But that’s the … Continue reading →

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