40/40: Get to Know House District 47
By Phillip Martin
On Monday, I introduced candidates Jason Earle and Valinda Bolton, the top two Democratic names in the March primary who are hoping to fill the seat Republican Terry Keel is leaving. After taking yesterday off for the HD 48 Special Election (Go Donna!), it's time to pick back up with this week's 40/40 and take a closer look at House District 47.
House District 47 makes up the southwestern part of Travis County. To see a map of the district, click here. Briarcliff, Lakeway, Bee Caves, and Circle C are the major communities/subdivisions in the area, with approximately 90% of the district living in urban/suburban areas. Over 80% of the population lives in a home valued over $100,000 (over twice the state average), and the population breaks down to about 73% Anglo and 18.5% Hispanic.
The most interesting part about HD 47, though, is its recent election trends. Though Republican Terry Keel has held the seat since 1997, the district is very, very winnable for a Democrat. Here's a look at some key election statistics from the 2004 General Election:
PRESIDENT AND VICE-PRESIDENT
*BUSH/CHENEY (R) --- 40,955 -- 53.3%
KERRY/EDWARDS(D) -- 35,872 -- 46.7%
COURT OF APPEALS DIST. 3, PL.4
GREEN, BILL (R) ----- 35,332 -- 47.8%
PATTERSON, JAN (D) - 38,660 -- 52.2%
COURT OF APPEALS DIST. 3, PL.6
PEMBERTON, BOB (R) - 37,145 -- 50.3%
HENSON, DIANE (D)--- 36,634 -- 49.7%
353RD DISTRICT JUDGE
ANASTASIADIS, DEMETRI (R) - 34,291 -- 47.0%
COOPER, MARGARET (D) ----- 38,661 -- 53.0%
As you can see, Bush only carried 53% in the district. What's most telling about the district, though, is that two different Democratic women beat out Republican men in down ballot races, and a third -- Diane Henson -- came within a little more than 500 votes of victory. These numbers would suggest that a Democratic woman has an excellent chance to win HD 47, so long as she can carry those 3,000-4,000 swing voters in the district.
Check back to the 40/40 later in the day for interviews with Valinda Bolton and Jason Earle, and see what they're doing to try and turn HD 47 blue.
Posted by Phillip Martin at January 18, 2006 09:22 AM
| TrackBack
