A Very Interesting CD-23

by: Matt Glazer

Thu Aug 31, 2006 at 05:06 PM CDT

In another twist, The AFL-CIO has already picked their guy.

The Texas AFL-CIO Committee on Political Education (COPE) endorsed San Antonian Albert Uresti in the special election in the newly drawn Congressional District 23, Texas AFL-CIO President Emmett Sheppard said today.

The AFL-CIO mentioned the reasons for their endorsement to include:

Uresti, a retired district fire chief in the San Antonio Fire Department and a long-time member of the San Antonio Fire Fighters Union, is challenging U.S. Rep. Henry Bonilla, R-San Antonio, in a district that newly includes a large portion of South San Antonio. Past election results suggest the district is closely divided on a partisan basis. Uresti is the brother of state Rep. Carlos Uresti, D-San Antonio, who is the odds-on favorite to be the next District 19 state senator.

“Union members in C.D. 23 are impressed with Albert Uresti’s understanding of the issues that concern working people,” Sheppard said. “They also are persuaded he will run a proactive campaign in a district that is somewhat similar to the one in which his brother is campaigning so effectively.”

“In an era of gerrymandering, this is clearly a winnable election for a strong challenger against an incumbent who has voted an agenda that is counter to the interest of working families.”

Is this the gold star Uresti needed to catapult himself to become the candidate in CD-23?

This endorsement by the AFL-CIO evens out what was a one sided field of support and money for Lukin Gilliland. It also serves as a fatal blow to Rick Bolanos, the Democratic candidate pre-re-districting.

Again from Quorum Report:

Gilliland should also be considered a factor in south San Antonio, said his consultant Kelly Fero. Gilliland might reside in Alamo Heights but he made his name stumping for candidates throughout San Antonio, including the south side, for decades. Because of his ranching background, Gilliland speaks Spanish proficiently. "He has name ID," said Fero, who’s working with Gilliland’s campaign. "The punditry may not have heard of him but Democratic activists have known him for a long time."

Gilliland remains the candidate with the most resources and the one best positioned to benefit from the prevailing anti-incumbent mood, Fero said. The candidate who can authentically drive home the message of change will win the race. In the last week, Gilliland has added $500,000 in contributions and hard pledges to the $500,000 he pledged from his own fortune, according to Fero. That level of financial support should allow him to make significant television buys.

The combination of funds and interest in the race spells runoff with or without Ciro in the race, but man this is one that gets more interesting every day.

Uresti will likely take a large chunk of votes from San Antonio with Gilliland taking the northside votes that elected Mayor Phil Hardberger over Julian Castro (Castro won 7 of the 10 city council districts and still lost by nearly 3,000 votes last year). The race will come down to the other Democratic areas outside of San Antonio and the willingness for Republican’s to vote for Bonilla not once, but likely twice.