Wherefore art thou, Mario?

It's just never a good thing for a reelection campaign when a former stripper files a lawsuit against you in which she alleges "emotional and physical pain during a 17-year affair". Which is what happened to State Sen. Mario Gallegos yesterday.

In the lawsuit, Susan Delgado also asks for $14,000 to repay cash loans she said she made to Gallegos.

In a prepared statement, Gallegos' attorney, Mike Gallagher, expressed outrage at the allegations and said the suit will be "appropriately and vigorously fought."

Delgado, 39, a former stripper who now works as a waitress at a strip club, also seeks unspecified "exemplary damages" for distress she said Gallegos inflicted, including "spankings, slappings and hair pulling" during "intimate relationships."

Included in the allegations were a Sept. 20 incident at a motel on the Gulf Freeway, where she said Gallegos threw her to the floor during a spat.

Gallegos, who faces opposition in the Democratic primary in March, did not directly respond to the allegations.

Gallagher said that a Houston police investigation found the allegation of physical abuse Sept. 20 to be "baseless and not credible." Gallagher said Gallegos "fully cooperated with all authorities in that investigation and was completely exonerated."

"In circumstances such as this, it has become commonplace to make allegations that focus elections on all issues than those relative to how well Senator Gallegos has served his district," Gallagher wrote in the statement.

Yowza. And it's not the only legal action pending against Gallegos, either.

On Jan. 26, a constituent filed a lawsuit in state district court alleging that Gallegos does not live in Senate District 6, which he has represented since 1995, and asked the court to order him off the ballot.

Gallegos has said that he and his wife spend most of their time at the home of his mother, former Houston school trustee Olga Gallegos, who lives in the district.

The lawsuit is based on the homestead tax exemption that Gallegos and his wife claim on another residence outside the distr

When I first heard that Gallegos had a primary opponent, I dismissed it as a typical quixotic bid that had no chance. Now I'm not so sure. I'm in Senate District 6, so this directly affects me. I guess I'd better take a good look at Yolanda Navarro Flores and see what I think.

Posted by Charles Kuffner on February 06, 2004 to Election 2004 | TrackBack