Tag Archives: primaries

Just leave already

Posted on December 7, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Seriously. State GOP leaders, in a predictable but closely watched vote, have defeated a proposal to ask Texas voters whether they favor secession. In a voice vote Saturday afternoon, the State Republican Executive Committee rejected a measure that would have … Continue reading →

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UT/TT primary poll: Hillary leads the Dems, Trump and Cruz lead the GOP

Posted on November 16, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

For those who care about this sort of thing. U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz and businessman Donald Trump are in a dead heat for the Republican presidential nomination in Texas, according to the latest University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll. With four … Continue reading →

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We still can’t get new maps

Posted on November 7, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Seriously? To avoid confusion and uncertainty, the state’s 2016 elections for Congress and the Texas House will proceed under the current political maps, a three-judge federal panel in San Antonio said late Friday. The court previously approved maps for use … Continue reading →

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School finance ruling expected soon

Posted on October 31, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Hold onto your hats. For decades, the state’s 1,000-plus school districts vied against one another for a bigger piece of the financial pie. Now two-thirds of state districts have joined forces to say the system is unfair because it doesn’t … Continue reading →

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Some early legislative race news

Posted on October 6, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Just a few links of interest. First, the race in SD24 heats up. Republican state Rep. Susan King said Monday that she will join an increasingly crowded primary field to replace retiring GOP state Sen. Troy Fraser. King had earlier … Continue reading →

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2015 Texas Lyceum poll

Posted on October 1, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Issues first, election stuff to come. From the press release: The 2015 Texas Lyceum Poll Finds:  Immigration remains the most important issue facing the state and Texans support lawmakers’ increased spending on border security. Texans’ views on  gay marriage are changing. … Continue reading →

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When might we get a Supreme Court ruling on school finance?

Posted on September 20, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

When they’re damn good and ready is the usual answer for Supreme Court rulings, but in the case of school finance lawsuits they usually act with some measure of speed. Given past rulings and politics — three justices on the … Continue reading →

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2015 candidates’ voting history

Posted on September 3, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Regular commenter Mainstream took the time to investigate and document the recent voting history of the candidates on the 2015 city of Houston ballot. Here it is, for your perusal. A couple of caveats: Data is for Harris County, with … Continue reading →

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Keffer to retire

Posted on June 18, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

The original Straus gang shrinks again. State Rep. Jim Keffer, an Eastland Republican who was one of the earliest supporters of House Speaker Joe Straus, has decided not to seek reelection next year, according to a statement he prepared for … Continue reading →

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Eltife not running for re-election

Posted on June 15, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

He will be missed. After 23 years in elected office, state Sen. Kevin Eltife, R-Tyler, said he will not run for re-election in 2016 to devote more time to family, friends, his work and his community. Eltife said he’s loved … Continue reading →

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On Gene Green and representing Latino districts

Posted on September 16, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I’ve been meaning to blog about this story about Rep. Gene Green and CD29 and how the Houston area has never sent a Latino to Congress, but I kept getting stuck and I finally decided I was overthinking it. Two … Continue reading →

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Greg Enos turns his spotlight to Gary Polland

Posted on August 19, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

This ought to be good. There can be no doubt: Gary Polland is a smart, successful lawyer who knows how to make a lot of money from the practice of law. Polland is politically powerful and able to influence and … Continue reading →

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Some postmortem thoughts

Posted on May 29, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The Trib leads with the obvious. As the results of Republican primary runoffs began to roll in Tuesday evening, Texas Democrats realized they were getting exactly what they wanted — and exactly what they feared. The victories of Dan Patrick … Continue reading →

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Primary runoff results

Posted on May 28, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

So long, Dave. Riding a wave of conservative sentiment that Texas Republicans were not being led with a hard enough edge, state Sen. Dan Patrick crushed Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst in Tuesday’s Republican primary runoff election for lieutenant governor, ending … Continue reading →

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Pratt campaign sign mystery apparently solved

Posted on May 28, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Nice detective work. Last week, when campaign signs for disgraced former family court judge Denise Pratt popped up at some early voting locations in Houston, several sources said they had seen local Republican political consultant Burt Levine putting them up. … Continue reading →

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Runoff Day is finally here

Posted on May 27, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

It’s the day on which the toxic idiocy of the GOP runoffs for Lt. Governor and Attorney General finally come to an end and we get a brief respite before the general election gets into full swing. But first, you … Continue reading →

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Early runoff turnout higher than expected

Posted on May 25, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Not high, you understand, but higher than expected. More than 73,000 Harris County residents cast ballots in person or by mail in the five days of early voting before next week’s primary runoffs. While the total of 73,259 was low … Continue reading →

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What campaign signs?

Posted on May 24, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Denise Pratt says she knows nothing about all those campaign signs advocating her re-election that she says she isn’t running for. Campaign signs urging voters to “Re-elect Denise Pratt” have popped up outside at least three early voting locations this … Continue reading →

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Dewhurst admits he has no control over his campaign

Posted on May 21, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I can’t think of any other way to characterize this. Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst said Monday he was “appalled” by Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson’s decision to publicize court filings detailing Dan Patrick’s past mental health issues and that he tried … Continue reading →

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The Senate is likely to get stupider again

Posted on May 20, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The cause. The Texas Tech University System Board of Regents officially named state Sen. Robert Duncan, R-Lubbock, the sole finalist to be the system’s next chancellor in a press release issued Monday afternoon. Duncan is expected to start in his … Continue reading →

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Early voting begins today for primary runoffs

Posted on May 19, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Harris County voters can prepare to vote in the May 27 Democratic and Republican Primary Runoff Elections by visiting www.HarrisVotes.com to view the contests which will appear on their ballot. Early Voting for the Primary Runoff Elections … Continue reading →

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One thing I won’t criticize Dan Patrick for

Posted on May 17, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

This is just wrong. Sen. Dan Patrick issued a terse statement late Thursday about a period in his life 30 years ago during which he sought medical attention to cope with “mild depression and exhaustion.” Patrick, who is in a … Continue reading →

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SEC complaint filed against Paxton

Posted on May 13, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

We’ll see if anything comes of this. Days after Texas regulators fined Sen. Ken Paxton $1,000 for working for a financial firm without registering with the state, a plaintiff’s lawyer filed a similar complaint with the U.S. Securities and Exchange … Continue reading →

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A deeper dive into the Pratt files

Posted on May 6, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron takes a closer look at some of the people affected by the tenure of now-former Judge Denise Pratt. Kevin Bates’ sojourn through Pratt’s court began in 2012, via a visitation dispute with his ex-wife over their 16-year-old daughter. … Continue reading →

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Early voting for SD04 special election begins today

Posted on April 28, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Go make the best of the bad choices being offered. Early voting begins Monday in a special election to fill the seat vacated last year by former state Sen. Tommy Williams. The Woodlands Republican left the upper chamber last October … Continue reading →

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Paxton’s disclosure issues

Posted on April 23, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Oopsie. State Sen. Ken Paxton, the leading Republican candidate for attorney general, has launched an internal review of his disclosures to state regulatory authorities and the Texas Ethics Commission to determine whether he violated any laws by failing to report … Continue reading →

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Mail ballots being mailed out for primary runoffs

Posted on April 18, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: The first batch of over 38,000 postal ballots for the May 27, 2014 Primary Runoff Elections have been mailed and will be arriving in voters’ mailboxes this week. This mailing represents the highest number of mail ballots … Continue reading →

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Pratt Mess gets messier

Posted on April 7, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

How much worse can it get? Hundreds of divorce, child support and custody cases dating back to 2012 will have to be revisited – and possibly sent back to trial – as a court administrator sorts out what he called … Continue reading →

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How can we miss you if you won’t go away?

Posted on April 3, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Denise Pratt is a gift that keeps on giving. Denise Pratt may not be gone just yet. Two days after announcing her immediate resignation as presiding judge of the 311th family District Court – and the suspension of her re-election … Continue reading →

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Precinct analysis: Republican primary election

Posted on April 2, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I’ve done the Democrats, so now let’s take a look at the Republicans. In this case, I did have a few specific questions in mind, so my approach here will be a little different. First, we all know that Steve … Continue reading →

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Pratt resigns

Posted on March 30, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Good riddance. Under investigation by Harris County prosecutors for dismissing hundreds of cases without notice, embattled family court judge Denise Pratt resigned Friday, abruptly ending her re-election bid. The freshman Republican jurist campaigned as a conservative advocate for children and … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: DMN goes Kinky

Posted on March 28, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Since pretty much every newspaper endorsed Hugh Fiztsimons for the Democratic nomination for Ag Commissioner in the primary, they now have the choice of picking a new candidate for the runoff or ignoring it and hoping it goes away. The … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: None of the above

Posted on March 24, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Farm Bureau is unhappy with its choices in the Ag Commissioner runoffs. The political arm of the Texas Farm Bureau, the state’s largest farming organization, will refrain from endorsing a candidate in the GOP runoff for agriculture commissioner … Continue reading →

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GOP primary turnout comparison

Posted on March 18, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

There’s been plenty of focus on Democratic turnout in this past primary, and while Republican turnout gets a nod in there, I haven’t seen it be the focus of any stories yet. In part, I suspect that’s because Wendy Davis … Continue reading →

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