Waiting for the MSM to retract their breathless predictions for Texas...


For all the talk of renewed Democratic energy heading into the 2018 midterms, Texas Republicans have set a new benchmark for turnout in a midterm election.

More than 1.5 million people voted Tuesday in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate, won by incumbent Ted Cruz. That beats the previous record of 1.48 million in 2010, during former President Barack Obama’s first term.

The 2010 election was a massive wave for Republicans, who took control of the U.S. House.

Texas remains a deeply conservative state that hasn’t elected a Democrat statewide since 1994.

At least 1 million people voted in Tuesday’s Democratic primary for Senate.

https://nypost.com/2018/03/07/...sets-midterm-record/


Texas holds first 2018 primary amid surge of Democratic voters

Democrats see signs of a surge in Texas

Leftist Democrats launch fierce primary battles against moderate incumbents. Fox News contributor Karl Rove gives his take.

The midterm election season officially kicks off on Tuesday, when Texas voters head to the polls for the nation’s first primary of 2018.

With early voting already suggesting a record turnout for Democrats, and widespread speculation about what effect an endorsement by President Trump will have on Republican candidates, the Texas primaries are being looked at as both a bellwether for the rest of the nation - and a sign the red state could be turning purple more quickly than expected.

“What these primaries really boil down to is one issue: Trump versus anti-Trump,” Cal Jillson, a political science professor at Southern Methodist University, told Fox News. “There is relatively little talk about the issues for either party. It’s a race to the margins. Democrats are all against the president, while with Republicans it’s about staying close to Trump, and whether that hurts or helps them.”

More on this...

While initially skipping some major Republican candidates in the Lone Star state, Trump went all in early last week when, in a series of tweets, supported a number of top-tier Texas Republicans.

"I want to encourage all of my many Texas friends to vote in the primary for Governor Greg Abbott, Senator Ted Cruz, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, and Attorney General Ken Paxton. They are helping me to Make America Great Again! Vote early or on March 6th," Trump tweeted.

Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush also got Trump’s endorsement, with the president saying the nephew and grandson of two former presidents “backed me when it wasn't the politically correct thing to do, and I back him now.”

Unlike Cruz, Abbott, Patrick and Paxton – incumbents who are expected to easily win the GOP nomination in their campaigns – Bush is facing a tough battle against his predecessor in the land office, Jerry Patterson. A recent University of Texas/Texas Tribune poll found that when voters were allowed to be undecided, Bush mustered only 36 percent of the vote in his race.

It remains to be seen whether a Trump endorsement will hurt or help Bush. But either way, it puts the politician in a strange situation as he tries to merge the backing of the anti-establishment president with that of his storied political family. The Bush dynasty was built on moderate conservative policy positions, and was strongly against Trump in the 2016 race, where George P.’s father, Jeb, ran against him.

“What Bush would like to do is establish an identity as someone who is new and going to shake up the status quo. This is doubly difficult when you have a famous last name,” Daron Shaw, a political scientist at the University of Texas at Austin and former campaign strategist for George W. Bush, told the Houston Chronicle. “Bush is attempting to reinforce the notion that he is his own man and a politician for the 2020s, not the 1980s.”

A recent poll from UT Austin/Texas Tribune found 83 percent of Texas Republicans supportive of Trump.

Experts say Republicans will need a big turnout if the party hopes to counter the groundswell of interest for the Democrats.

Despite midterm elections drawing much less interest than presidential election years, by Saturday more than 885,000 people in Texas had voted early or by mail in the state’s most populous counties. That's a 50 percent increase from 2014, which marked the previous high of 592,000.

The early numbers also indicate that for the first time since 2008, more Texas Democrats will vote in their primary than Republicans. By Saturday, the Texas Secretary of State’s office noted 465,000 people voted in the Democratic Primary in the state’s 15 largest counties, compared to just about 420,000 Republicans.

There are a number of reasons for the uptick in Democratic voter turnout – more female candidates, the emergence of closet Democrats and a dislike of both Trump and the socially conservative Texas Republican Party – and analysts say this should worry Republicans.

“This Democratic surge looks really impressive,” Jillson said. “Having Democratic turnout surpass Republicans is a big deal in Texas, and should have the GOP scared.”

But Jillson noted the surge in Democrats voting will likely not be enough to turn the state blue as incumbent Republicans, both in national and statewide races, are unlikely to be toppled.

Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, for example, is likely to face Democratic challenger Beto O’Rourke who, despite being a fundraising powerhouse and an emerging party favorite, is not considered a true contender. A recent Texas Politics Project poll found nearly 40 percent of Texas voters have no idea who O’Rourke even is.

“The Democratic surge will show some results, but not enough to flip the state,” Jillson said. “They’re on a slow march, but unless the GOP fumbles this election really badly, Texas will not turn blue.”

http://www.foxnews.com/politic...mocratic-voters.html

TX might some day be blue, but it is not this day.

Let’s remember, too, that this was

1. A primary, not the general election.

2. Many of the races were multiple Dems vying for a chance to run against a Repub.

3. According to the Texas AG about the early voting, 86% of the Dems voting had voted in the last 2 general elections, so these are not new Dems voting. This is the base tryin to pick their candidates.

Long way from a blue wave.

quote:

Originally posted by 12131:
TX might some day be blue, but it is not this day.

Texas was blue for 100 years. We didn’t like it.

When the doper dirtball hippy draft dodgers took over Old Blue, that was it.

My wife and I voted yesterday, at a new place, a small church built in the shadow of a huge flood control dam. I wondered why it wasn’t called “The Church of the Dam.”

Anyway, there was a line out the door, even at mid-morning. Every little while, the precinct judge would come out on the front step to holler, “Are there any Democrats in line?” with few takers.

They are also basing it off of early voters.
How many of these early voters were voters but NOT early voters in the general election.

The MSM won’t retract jack shit, they will:

A. Ignore it

or

B. Suddenly act like this was expected all along

Last night was caucus night. I was elected precinct committee person and meeting chairman (nothing really). I was also elected to serve as a delegate to our 3 assemblies. The big news of the day was only 7 people showed up from my precinct, including myself. Not totally unexpected for a non-Presidential year though. I had called over 100 Republicans from my precinct and encouraged them to attend.

I hope some other forum members here attended their caucus and were elected as a delegate. Last election there were several forum members who were unfamiliar with the process and expressed frustration with it. The non-presidential year is a good way to get familiar with the caucus process...a dry run so to speak.

Blue wave of tears, more likely! Am I hearing this right that Beta isn't even mexican but he's using a spanish nickname to get the hispanic vote?

quote:

Originally posted by lkdr1989:
Blue wave of tears, more likely! Am I hearing this right that Beta isn't even mexican but he's using a spanish nickname to get the hispanic vote?

O’Rourke?

quote:

3. According to the Texas AG about the early voting, 86% of the Dems voting had voted in the last 2 general elections, so these are not new Dems voting. This is the base tryin to pick their candidates.

I live in a very red area. I voted early and asked the poll workers if the historic ~3:1 Republican/Democrat early voting was seen this primary, and they said Yes.

quote:

Originally posted by Opus Dei:

quote:

3. According to the Texas AG about the early voting, 86% of the Dems voting had voted in the last 2 general elections, so these are not new Dems voting. This is the base tryin to pick their candidates.

I live in a very red area. I voted early and asked the poll workers if the historic ~3:1 Republican/Democrat early voting was seen this primary, and they said Yes.

In this county, according to the announced vote totals this morning, there were about 15,000 Republican voters and about 4,000 Democrats yesterday.

Tonight, Senator Ted Cruz easily, handily won the primary as expected. The news is that once again, turnout for Republicans stomped Democrat turnout (even though the press is only reporting that Dem turnout was higher than usual.)

It was a good night.

quote:

Originally posted by lkdr1989:
Blue wave of tears, more likely! Am I hearing this right that Beta isn't even mexican but he's using a spanish nickname to get the hispanic vote?

There was (is) a state Representative from San Antonio named Trey Martinez Fischer. Mexicans, anyway, tend to have the surname of the father as their middle name and their mother as surname. Don't really see that among multi-generational Hispanics, though. I have a friend whose mother is Hispanic and yet his surname is that of his father.

So, is that his given name? Maybe. Did he re-invent himself for political viability? Considering he identifies as Hispanic, the cynic in me says Yes.

quote:

My wife and I voted yesterday, at a new place, a small church built in the shadow of a huge flood control dam. I wondered why it wasn’t called “The Church of the Dam.”

you owe me a new keyboard

quote:

Originally posted by JALLEN:

quote:

Originally posted by Opus Dei:

quote:

3. According to the Texas AG about the early voting, 86% of the Dems voting had voted in the last 2 general elections, so these are not new Dems voting. This is the base tryin to pick their candidates.

I live in a very red area. I voted early and asked the poll workers if the historic ~3:1 Republican/Democrat early voting was seen this primary, and they said Yes.

In this county, according to the announced vote totals this morning, there were about 15,000 Republican voters and about 4,000 Democrats yesterday.

Your early voting totals is greater than my county population! Historically, it's ~80% (R) total vote count, although in a US congressional district determined by McAllen voters.

quote:

Originally posted by Opus Dei:

quote:

Originally posted by JALLEN:


In this county, according to the announced vote totals this morning, there were about 15,000 Republican voters and about 4,000 Democrats yesterday.

Your early voting totals is greater than my county population! Historically, it's ~80% (R) total vote count, although in a US congressional district determined by McAllen voters.

That isn’t early voting. I believe it is the entire total, 100% precincts reporting.

quote:

Originally posted by nhtagmember:

quote:

My wife and I voted yesterday, at a new place, a small church built in the shadow of a huge flood control dam. I wondered why it wasn’t called “The Church of the Dam.”

you owe me a new keyboard

I was by a dam site born in a dam hospital....

Back OT, I voted in the evening at a place I'd never been before, and it appeared that there were more Republicans than Democrats; however, some of the Democrats were voting at a different location.

flashguy

quote:

Originally posted by Opus Dei:

quote:

Originally posted by lkdr1989:
Blue wave of tears, more likely! Am I hearing this right that Beta isn't even mexican but he's using a spanish nickname to get the hispanic vote?

There was (is) a state Representative from San Antonio named Trey Martinez Fischer. Mexicans, anyway, tend to have the surname of the father as their middle name and their mother as surname. Don't really see that among multi-generational Hispanics, though. I have a friend whose mother is Hispanic and yet his surname is that of his father.

So, is that his given name? Maybe. Did he re-invent himself for political viability? Considering he identifies as Hispanic, the cynic in me says Yes.

Opus - Hispanics use two last names, with that of their father being first. It is not a middle name.

For example, John M. Browning would be John M. Browning Child, using this convention.

quote:

Originally posted by reloader-1:

quote:

Originally posted by Opus Dei:

quote:

Originally posted by lkdr1989:
Blue wave of tears, more likely! Am I hearing this right that Beta isn't even mexican but he's using a spanish nickname to get the hispanic vote?

There was (is) a state Representative from San Antonio named Trey Martinez Fischer. Mexicans, anyway, tend to have the surname of the father as their middle name and their mother as surname. Don't really see that among multi-generational Hispanics, though. I have a friend whose mother is Hispanic and yet his surname is that of his father.

So, is that his given name? Maybe. Did he re-invent himself for political viability? Considering he identifies as Hispanic, the cynic in me says Yes.

Opus - Hispanics use two last names, with that of their father being first. It is not a middle name.

For example, John M. Browning would be John M. Browning Child, using this convention.

For practical matters in the US, it is a middle name. And it's pretty easy to look at birth announcements in newspapers to see that naming convention is all but gone.

quote:

Originally posted by JALLEN:
I wondered why it wasn’t called “The Church of the Dam.”

Is there a village nearby?



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