Tag Archives: Lamar Smith

CD21 poll: Davis 48, Roy 47

Posted on September 13, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Second poll in this district. Between August 31 and September 4, Garin-Hart-Yang interviewed a representative sample of 401 likely general election voters in Texas-21st CD. The survey, which was conducted on both landlines and cell phones, was fully representative of … Continue reading →

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Rep. Mac Thornberry to retire

Posted on October 1, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Six down. U.S. Rep. Mac Thornberry, R-Clarendon, announced Monday that he will not seek reelection in 2020, making him the sixth GOP congressman from Texas to say he’s retiring in recent weeks. “It has been a great honor for me … Continue reading →

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Rep. Will Hurd to step down

Posted on August 2, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Wow. I did not see this coming. The U.S. House’s last black Republican member, Rep. Will Hurd of Helotes, announced Thursday that he is retiring from Congress. President Donald Trump’s racist comments about elected officials weighed heavily on Hurd, who … Continue reading →

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Wendy for Congress?

Posted on April 8, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

The great 2020 candidate shuffle continues. Wendy Davis says she is not running for U.S. Senate in 2020 and instead is considering a bid for the U.S. House. “I’m looking very seriously at Congressional District 21,” the former Democratic nominee … Continue reading →

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Two stories on Joseph Kopser in CD21

Posted on November 3, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Article One, which focuses on Kopser’s background in science. Crowded around a circular wooden table in a loud bar on Sunday night, Joseph Kopser raises his voice in an effort to be heard, as rock music duels with a football … Continue reading →

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Dems keep posting very strong finance reports

Posted on July 17, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Wow. There are few bigger warning signs for a member of Congress that their re-election may be in doubt than when a challenger outraises them. In Texas, it just happened to seven incumbents, all Republicans. Since last week, when U.S. … Continue reading →

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Filing roundup: Other Congressional races, part 2

Posted on December 28, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

See part 1 here, and the spreadsheet with all the Democratic Congressional filings here. These are the races that are objectively most likely to produce a flip, so there are fewer of them. Let’s dive right in. CD06 So long, … Continue reading →

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Opinions differ about Congressional prospects

Posted on November 14, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

I’m gonna boil this one down a bit. Moments before the polls closed in Virginia’s Democratic sweep, Houston-area Republican Ted Poe, across the Potomac River on Capitol Hill, announced his retirement in 2018 after 14 years in Congress. Poe cast … Continue reading →

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Rep. Ted Poe to retire

Posted on November 8, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

We’re verging on a mass exodus here. U.S. Rep. Ted Poe, R-Humble, announced Tuesday evening that he will retire from Congress. “Thanks to the good Lord, I’m in good health, but it’s time for the next step,” Poe said in … Continue reading →

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More on Democratic Congressional candidate fundraising

Posted on November 5, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

From the Statesman, with a focus on Austin-area candidates, but also with a more holistic view of what the atmosphere is like. “Trump’s lower than average net approval ratings for a Republican in Texas, as well as anger and dismay … Continue reading →

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Lamar Smith to retire

Posted on November 3, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Good riddance. U.S. Rep. Lamar Smith, R-San Antonio said Tuesday he is retiring from Congress. “For several reasons, this seems like a good time to pass on the privilege of representing the 21st District to someone else,” he wrote in … Continue reading →

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October campaign finance reports: Congress

Posted on October 31, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Here are the Q2 fundraising reports for Texas Democratic Congressional candidates. I’ll sum up the data below, but here’s the Trib with some highlights. After Democratic challengers outraised four Texas Republicans in Congress earlier this year, some Republicans recaptured fundraising … Continue reading →

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July 2017 campaign finance reports – Congress

Posted on July 24, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

It’s July, and that means it’s campaign finance report season. Everyone has reports due at the end of June, so at every level of government there are reports to look at. I’ll be working my way through them, starting today … Continue reading →

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Will we have enough candidates for the opportunities?

Posted on July 23, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

There’s always something to worry about. With the Texas case moving forward, the boundaries of the congressional districts remain in question with the 2018 elections less than 18 months away. The Lone Star State’s primary filing deadline is in six … Continue reading →

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Tom Wakely

Posted on July 21, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

As noted in the update and comments to Wednesday’s post about our first Democratic candidate for Governor, we now have a second such candidate, Tom Wakely. PDiddie brings word of Wakely’s announcement, which he made on Down with Tyranny, a … Continue reading →

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Precinct analysis: Congressional districts

Posted on May 1, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Legislative Council now has full data from the 2016 elections on its site, so this seemed like as good a time as any to take a look at the data from Congressional districts. I’m much more limited in … Continue reading →

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Look out, Lamar

Posted on April 30, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

There’s big money coming after you. The anti-incumbent super-PAC Campaign for Primary Accountability is coming back for 2014 after shutting down last election cycle — and it’s already making a wish list of targets, including Reps. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) and … Continue reading →

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Sidelining themselves on immigration reform

Posted on February 1, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t know what’s going to happen with the comprehensive immigration reform proposals that are out there now. It’s long overdue, and the political stars all seem to be aligned for it, but we said the same things about health … 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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Interview with Candace Duval

Posted on August 29, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Texas is unfortunately full of lousy Congressmen. Lamar Smith of CD21 has been on that list for over 20 years. Candace Duval is running to take him off it. Duval is an entrepreneur and realtor who once worked on the … Continue reading →

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Will SOPA sink Smith?

Posted on May 7, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Probably not, but I sure don’t mind seeing his opponents use it against him. Republican long-shot candidates are citing high-tech discontent over Rep. Lamar Smith’s proposed government regulation of the Internet in an attempt to knock off the 13-term incumbent … Continue reading →

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DC court sets date for preclearance trial, primary dates still up in the air

Posted on December 14, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Via email from the Lone Star Project: [Monday], a three-judge panel of the District of Columbia Federal District Court set January 17, 2012 through January 26, 2012 as the trial dates to formally review the Congressional, State House and State … Continue reading →

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Taking aim at the Voting Rights Act

Posted on August 8, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

In responding to a petition by State Rep. Marc Veasey and State Sen. Wendy Davis to intervene against the state in its lawsuit to get the federal court to pre-clear the new maps, the Attorney General responded by saying that … Continue reading →

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Will Perry call a special session to force the Lege to draw a Congressional map?

Posted on May 26, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Maybe. Gov. Rick Perry today said state lawmakers should be the ones to draw new congressional districts, not judges. “I do think that the responsibility is with the members of the Legislature,” Perry said this morning. “To allow the courts … Continue reading →

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Lege officially punts on Congressional redistricting

Posted on May 24, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

If you had told me at the beginning of the session that this would happen, I would not have believed you. The chair of the Senate Redistricting Committee, Kel Seliger, R-Amarillo, just confirmed to LegeLand that it won’t happen this … Continue reading →

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Still going after Doggett

Posted on May 20, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Scott Stroud suggests there’s a new ploy by Republicans in the works to get rid of Rep. Lloyd Doggett. Congressman Lamar Smith, the Republican charged with redrawing Texas’ congressional districts, has floated a map that would transform Doggett’s district into … Continue reading →

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Smith v. Barton on redistricting

Posted on April 6, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From Politico: A bitter, behind-the-scenes fight has broken out among Texas Republicans over redistricting, pitting Rep. Lamar Smith against longtime colleague Rep. Joe Barton. The dispute is over the makeup of four new congressional districts for the Lone Star State, … Continue reading →

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Don’t fall for it, Mr. President

Posted on December 27, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I have two things to say about this. Congressional Republicans are pronouncing President Obama’s proposal that the next Congress overhaul the country’s immigration laws as dead before arrival. In his year-end news conference Wednesday, Obama said his biggest regret about … Continue reading →

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A redistricting compromise?

Posted on April 2, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t know how realistic this is, but if an agreement on how to divvy up the new Congressional districts can be worked out before the start of the legislative session, it would at least allow for more attention to … Continue reading →

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Johnny Sutton resigns

Posted on April 12, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

As is the norm when a new President is inaugurated, US Attorney Johnny Sutton of the Western Judicial District of Texas has resigned his position. Sutton’s resignation was voluntary, [spokeswoman Shana] Jones said, and his future plans were not immediately … Continue reading →

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