Tag Archives: Election 2020

Pence asks for deranged Gohmert lawsuit to be dismissed

Posted on January 1, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Here we go. Vice President Mike Pence has asked a federal judge to throw out a lawsuit brought against him by Republicans seeking to empower him to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. The suit, brought by Rep. … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020, Legal matters, The making of the President | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Do we still have to worry about the Elections Administrator’s office?

Posted on December 31, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I’m a little hesitant to bring this up, but… This year, Harris County began the process of consolidating the two offices that have historically handled elections — the county clerk and the tax assessor-collector’s office — under one roof. Isabel … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Precinct analysis: Other cities

Posted on December 30, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Introduction Congressional districts State Rep districts Commissioners Court/JP precincts Comparing 2012 and 2016 Statewide judicial Other jurisdictions Appellate courts, Part 1 Appellate courts, Part 2 Judicial averages I mentioned in an earlier post that I might look at election results … Continue reading →

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HD68 special election set

Posted on December 30, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Welcome to your first election of 2021. Gov. Greg Abbott has selected Jan. 23 as the date of the special election to fill the seat of state Rep. Drew Springer, R-Muenster, who recently won a promotion to the Texas Senate. … Continue reading →

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Okay, so *this* is the last pointless gesture

Posted on December 29, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

You can always count on Louie Gohmert to find the stupidest thing possible to do. Vice President Pence was sued Sunday by Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas) and several other Republicans in a far-fetched bid that appeared aimed at overturning President-elect … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020, Legal matters, The making of the President | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Abbott appoints another statewide judge

Posted on December 29, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

From before the holidays: Jesse McClure, a trial judge on a criminal court in Houston, will join the state’s highest court for criminal matters in the new year. Gov. Greg Abbott appointed McClure, a Republican, to the Court of Criminal … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Precinct analysis: The judicial averages

Posted on December 28, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Introduction Congressional districts State Rep districts Commissioners Court/JP precincts Comparing 2012 and 2016 Statewide judicial Other jurisdictions Appellate courts, Part 1 Appellate courts, Part 2 As you know, I use the average totals and percentages from local judicial races as … Continue reading →

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One last (?) pointless gesture

Posted on December 28, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Because true desperation never dies, I guess. Rep. Lance Gooden of Terrell is one of the latest members of Congress to say he is going to object to the Electoral College certification on Jan. 6. Now, he says he just … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020, The making of the President | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

The proper level of seriousness

Posted on December 27, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Meet John Fetterman (if you haven’t already), Lt. Governor of Pennsylvania and America’s foremost Dan Patrick troll. All John Fetterman wants for Christmas is the $3 million he says Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick owes him. The Democratic lieutenant governor … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

The Harris County Election Security Task Force

Posted on December 26, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I hadn’t realized that this was a thing, but it was and I’m glad it was. A task force formed to ensure the security of the November election in Texas’ biggest county has found no evidence of wrongdoing after finishing … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Ken Paxton’s attempted jihad against Harris County

Posted on December 24, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Wow. Attorney General Ken Paxton tried to get the Trump administration to revoke millions in federal COVID relief funding that Harris County budgeted for expanding mail-in voting earlier this year, newly revealed records show. Paxton wrote in a May 21 … Continue reading →

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Precinct analysis: Appellate courts, part 2

Posted on December 23, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Introduction Congressional districts State Rep districts Commissioners Court/JP precincts Comparing 2012 and 2016 Statewide judicial Other jurisdictions Appellate courts, Part 1 Here’s the more traditional look at the Court of Appeals races. Unlike the Supreme Court and CCA, all of … Continue reading →

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More on the TDP 2020 audit

Posted on December 23, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I’m very much looking forward to seeing the final report, but I don’t have a clear idea of the objectives from this story. [Unsuccessful State House candidate Brandy Chambers’] election night confusion mirrors the second-guessing going on within the Texas … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

You’d think with all that voter fraud out there, they could actually find some

Posted on December 23, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

So much effort, so little to show for it. The Texas Attorney General’s office this year almost doubled the amount of time it spent looking into and working on voter fraud cases in 2018 — more than 22,000 staff hours … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Precinct analysis: Appellate courts, part 1

Posted on December 22, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Introduction Congressional districts State Rep districts Commissioners Court/JP precincts Comparing 2012 and 2016 Statewide judicial Other jurisdictions My next two posts in this series will focus on the 1st and 14th Courts of Appeals. These courts are a little strange … Continue reading →

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A closer look at the Aguirre/Hotze debacle

Posted on December 22, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

This WaPo story was pointed out in the comments here, and it’s worth your time to read. I should note that while the Houston Chronicle has not (at least so far) identified the air conditioning repairman that Aguirre attacked, this … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

SCOTUS mostly punts on Census apportionment shenanigans

Posted on December 22, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

They seem to be hoping that the problem will solve itself, while applying a partisan litmus test to when it is appropriate for them to step in. The Supreme Court dismissed a challenge to Donald Trump’s final sabotage of the … Continue reading →

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Precinct analysis: Other jurisdictions

Posted on December 21, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Introduction Congressional districts State Rep districts Commissioners Court/JP precincts Comparing 2012 and 2016 Statewide judicial You may be wondering “Hey, how come you haven’t reported on data from SBOE and State Senate districts?” Well, I’ll tell you, since the SBOE … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

TDP asks SCOTUS to review age discrimination claim in mail voting

Posted on December 21, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Today, the Texas Democratic Party and voters filed their final brief with the U.S. Supreme Court, seeking its review of the case filed last Spring which challenged the constitutionality of Texas’s law that limits voting by mail, … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020, Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Aguirre’s arraignment

Posted on December 21, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

The latest update on the Aguirre/Hotze fever-dream “vote fraud” case. An ex-Houston police officer on Friday swore he is “done” with private investigations after being arrested and charged with assaulting an air conditioning repairman he claimed was involved in a … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Springer defeats Luther in SD30

Posted on December 20, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Congratulations. State Rep. Drew Springer of Muenster prevailed over fellow Republican Shelley Luther in a special election runoff for a state Senate seat that was animated by Gov. Greg Abbott and his handling of the coronavirus pandemic. Luther is the … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

It’s runoff day in SD30

Posted on December 19, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Truly the final election of 2020. Gov. Greg Abbott stayed out of the September special election for a Texas state Senate seat in rural North Texas, content to let his coronavirus response become a flashpoint between two members of his … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Hotze spews some BS

Posted on December 18, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

That could be a perennial headline, like a pinned tweet, but here it’s for a specific purpose. Conservative activist Steven Hotze said Wednesday he does not know if the former Houston police captain he hired to investigate voter fraud really … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Can Ken Paxton be sanctioned for his seditious lawsuit?

Posted on December 18, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

One group is going to try. I wish them luck. A national lawyers group on Monday called for professional licensing bodies to investigate what it called a “breach of ethical rules” by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and 17 of … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

The real danger of unhinged conspiracy theories

Posted on December 17, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Because sometimes malevolent people act them out, with potentially deadly consequences for others. An air conditioning repairman was driving in south Houston around 5:30 a.m. on Oct. 19 when a black SUV rammed the back of his truck. When he … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

The Lege will start out with masks

Posted on December 17, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

We’ll see how it goes from there. People attending the opening day of the 2021 legislative session will be required to wear a mask and asked to take a coronavirus test ahead of the event, the chair of the House … Continue reading →

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Precinct analysis: Statewide judicial

Posted on December 15, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Introduction Congressional districts State Rep districts Commissioners Court/JP precincts Comparing 2012 and 2016 We’re going to take a look at the seven statewide judicial races in this post, with all of the districts considered so far grouped together. You’re about … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Precinct analysis: Comparing to 2012 and 2016

Posted on December 14, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Introduction Congressional districts State Rep districts Commissioners Court/JP precincts I had meant to get to this last week, but SeditionPalooza took up too much of my time, so here we are. The intent of this post is to compare vote … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Tarsha Jackson wins District B runoff

Posted on December 13, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

The long saga comes to an end. . Congratulations @tarshajackson for winning the #DistrictB runoff election. I look forward to working with you as we continue to build a city of hope and opportunity for all. — Sylvester Turner (@SylvesterTurner) … Continue reading →

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Now we wait on SCOTUS

Posted on December 12, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

The state of Texas filed its reply to the defendants’ responses to its democracy–killing lawsuit, and, well, it’s something. This brings us the Texas AG Ken Paxton’s reply–or, rather, replies, as there are multiple filings, including a motion to enlarge … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020, Legal matters, The making of the President | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 26 Comments

“Natasha Ruiz” indicted

Posted on December 12, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

At long last, an update to the weirdest local election story of the year. A grand jury has indicted two Houston residents on election fraud charges, accusing them of orchestrating a phony candidacy of a woman that forced longtime state … Continue reading →

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The states respond to Paxton

Posted on December 11, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Now we wait for SCOTUS. I sure hope they’re quick about it. Each of the four battleground states targeted by a Texas lawsuit seeking to overturn President Donald Trump’s election defeat issued blistering briefs at the Supreme Court on Thursday, with … Continue reading →

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Patrick will push to lower the Senate threshold for voting on bills

Posted on December 11, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Completely unsurprising, except that I’d have thought he’d go all the way. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick announced Wednesday that he wants to lower the threshold of support legislation needs to make it on to the Senate floor to match the … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

HISD Board selects a successor for Wanda Adams

Posted on December 11, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Meet Myrna Guidry. Houston ISD trustees unanimously voted Tuesday to appoint lawyer Myrna Guidry to the board seat vacated last month by Wanda Adams, who represented parts of south Houston. Trustees considered eight applicants over two days before landing on … Continue reading →

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