So when you don't have real grassroots support and you're trying to veil your relationship with Tom "Absolute Power" Craddick, along with his money, what is a Republican like Bill Zedler to do? You invent your own Political Action Committee and file the wrong disclosure statements with the Texas Ethics Commission of course!
The Texas Values in Action Coalition sent a complaint to the Texas Ethics Commission today demanding that Zedler, in the race of his life against Democrat Chris Turner, file the correct disclosure forms with the state, which is after all, required by law.
This, from Patt Pangburn with TEXVAC:
"The Zedler campaign needs to immediately stop using and replace incorrect and misleading disclosure statements, and correctly identify who is paying for their campaign material," said Pat Pangburn, a TEXVAC board member who also filed the complaint with the Texas Ethics Commission. "He should not play hide the ball with voters about the facts that Tom Craddick and his allies are financing his campaign."
Terrific news this morning in the race to defeat the horrific Republican incumbent, State Rep. Bill Zedler: Democrat Chris Turner -- endorsed months ago by TexBlog PAC -- has received a stellar endorsement from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
From their editorial, whose headline reads, "Bill Zedler has had enough time to shine as a Texas legislator. He hasn't."
Turner is young and untested, but he is smart and driven by a desire to improve the lives of the residents of District 96 and the rest of the state.
Turner looks at the Oct. 4 school property tax election and the $8.1 million in budget cuts at the Arlington school district this year and sees a common theme: The school funding plan adopted by the Legislature in 2006 has left local districts unable to meet increased costs without raising taxes or dangerously drawing down reserves.
The editorial goes on to tout Turner's forward-thinking public policy positions on commuter rail, transportatioin in general, air quality, and higher education funding opportunities. In other words -- an endorsement of the substance of Turner's excellent public policy positions.
Zedler, meanwhile, is skewered for being the right-wing wacko that he is. Talking about his unfledgling loyalty to the arcane policies of the Texas Conservative Coalition, they wrote:
[...] In practice some of the legislation pushed by the coalition and its members has been downright bad. We’d rather have seen more evidence that the District 96 representative could think and act independently rather than simply support group causes.
Turner has previously been endorsed by Texas Parent PAC, as well as TexBlog PAC months ago. In one of the best opportunities for Texas Democrats to win another seat, Turner is running an incredible campaign based on sound public policies.
(I'm bumping this because Chris just launched a $4,000 in 4 days online fundraising challenge. Chris is reaching a tipping point in his race -- if he can maintain the pressure and momentum he's building, he will be the first seat we win back. Donate today -- make it happen now, and help us take back the House! - promoted by Phillip Martin)
Who he is: It's hard to imagine a first time candidate for office with more political experience than Chris Turner. Before announcing his campaign for state representative, he was the district director for U.S. Representative Chet Edwards, where he supervised three offices in the 12 county-district and oversaw a staff of 10, working to help constituents and coordinate instate projects for the congressman. He also managed Edwards' last four, highly-competitive reelection bids. Why his race matters: There is no state in the country where the consequences of legislative control are more clear than Texas. In 2002, with a little help from Tom Delay, the Republicans took control of the legislature for the first time in 130 years. Now, six years later, Democrats are just five seats away from winning a new majority in the state. A victory for Chris Turner brings us one step closer.
Phil mentioned the first of what seems like very good numbers for Democrats.
With the TexBlog PAC endorsed Chris Turner mind blowing fundraising coming in at nearly a quarter million dollars, it seemed like he was the House candidate to beat. Well, Juan Garcia has done just that.
Garcia is announcing $520,000 cash on hand.
"I'm deeply gratified by the strong support I'm receiving from people who want to continue moving forward, not backward," Garcia said.
Garcia's contributions for the reporting period from January through June of this year came from 409 individual donors, with more than 90 percent raised in Texas, he said.
The largest single donation came from HEB chief and public education champion Charles Butt, who donated $75,000 during the first half of this year and $25,000 in the previous reporting period, for a total contribution of $100,000 in the current re-election campaign.
Donors who gave Garcia $1,000 or more this period include such business leaders as Tony Lamantia, CEO of L & F Distributors; developer Duane Scheumack of Scheumack Investments; restauranteurs Woo Sung Lee of Boat and Net restaurants and Randy Maldonado of Pete's Chicken-N-More; Sam Susser of Susser Holdings; CPA Scott Turner; engineers Dan Leyendecker and John Michael; and architects Bibiana Dykema and Raymond Gignac.
Sixteen medical doctors from House District 32 have also donated to Garcia's campaign, reflecting his strong support for health insurance reform. He has also been endorsed by the influential Texas Medical Association, which represents more than 42,000 physicians around the state.
In addition, State Senator Carlos Uresti, U.S. Congressman Charlie Gonzalez, and former Lt. Governor Ben Barnes also made contributions.
Austin State Rep Donna Howard has some impressive numbers too.
State Representative Donna Howard today filed her latest financial report, showing nearly $161,000 cash on hand as she heads toward the traditional start of the fall campaign season.
[...]
Howard's report shows that she raised $89,915.08 from 190 individual contributors between January 2008 and June 2008. She has $160,868.91 cash on hand and has scheduled numerous fundraisers to make sure she has the resources for a winning re-election campaign.
Our State Senate candidates seem to be doing well too. Joe Jaworski had an early present when a poll revealed fewer than one-third of voters in SD 11 approve of "Toxic" Mike Jackson's job performance. The same poll showed the race in a statistical dead heat and also that Jaworski is commanding a margin of more than 20 percent among independent voters, a critical component of the electorate this year.
Now Jaworski is reporting some solid fundraising numbers.
Texas Senate candidate Joe Jaworski today said that he will report raising more than $801,000 from 1,267 individual contributors in his race thus far, capping another successful fundraising period.
[...]
Jaworski will report a total of $801,218 raised to date, including $345,209.50 during the first six months of this year. His latest report shows more than $410,390 cash on hand after winning his primary race in March.
Larry Joe Doherty had some great numbers to report too. First some good poll numbers came out for LJD, then the Cook Political Report upgraded the race for Democrats, and now Doherty has some cash to spend going into the summer months.
Larry Joe Doherty, Democratic nominee in the 10th Congressional District, will report receiving over $247,000 in campaign contributions from 520 individuals since March 31st, more than doubling his cash-on-hand from the previous reporting period to $259,792.
[...]
Two recent polls put McCaul's lead in single digits. Doherty's internal campaign polling by Goodwin Simon Victoria Research, found McCaul's job approval at an anemic 28%, with 47% of constituents not recognizing McCaul's name. The poll also found George Bush with a disapproval rating of 70%. Full analysis is available here.
The filing deadline is just moments away, and it looks like we are going to have a lot of good news going into Netroots Nation.
TexBlog PAC endorsed House candidate Christ Turner announced that his campaign has raised over $200,000 in the first six months alone -- a tremendous amount so early in the year for a State House candidate! Turner is running against far-right Republican incumbent Rep. Bill Zedler, in the southern area of Tarrant County.
From Chris' press release:
Teachers, business people, health care professionals, lawyers, retirees and students - these are just a few of the hundreds of Texans who are supporting our campaign to bring more partnership and less partisanship to Austin. A few weeks ago, I started knocking on doors and talking to voters about the issues that matter the most to them. I've met a number of people who think we need change in Austin and agree with my goal of bringing more partnership and less partisanship to the Texas House.
What's more, our strong fundraising will give us the necessary resources to compete with the big special interest money that my opponent depends on to finance his campaign. While we still have a long way to go to reach our fundraising goals for the campaign, we have a lot of early momentum to build upon.
As part of TexBlog PAC, we were all eager to help Chris build that early momentum when we donated $5,000 to his campaign. He's got a real shot at winning -- you'll be hearing a lot about this race in the coming weeks. For now, take some action and help us elect Chris Turner to the TX House:
(Yesterday, we endorsed Chris Turner for TexBlog PAC -- which will come with continued online outreach and a $5,000 check from supporters like you! Give to TexBlog PAC today and help us raise more for our excellent House candidates! - promoted by Phillip Martin)
Friends,
Thank you for your support and endorsement of my campaign. I am honored to have the support of TexBlog PAC and its members. The blog community in Texas has done an amazing job over the last several years of galvanizing netroots support for causes we believe in and bringing in so many new people to the political process.
This is a critical election year for Texas. The future of our state will be shaped by the people we elect to the Legislature this November, and the stakes could not be higher. We can continue the failed policies of the last several years – policies supported by my opponent, Rep. Bill Zedler – or we can chart a new course for Texas.
I am running for the State House because I think we need more partnership and less partisanship in Austin. That means putting the interests of Texas families ahead of the special interests.
We need to give our hard-working public school teachers pay raises, which Rep. Zedler has opposed.
We need to stand up to people like James Leininger and say “no” to his radical private school voucher plan, a plan my opponent supports.
It’s time we fully restore the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) for working Texas families, because it was wrong when Rep. Zedler and others voted to kick 230,000 kids off of health care five years ago.
It’s time we do something about our sky-high utility rates and homeowners insurance in Texas.
And we need to get serious about protecting our natural resources – especially our air and water quality – in the Lone Star State.
If we elect the same partisan leaders to office, we’ll just get more of the same results. I think Texas deserves better than that, and that is why I am running. By working together, I know we can make a real difference for Texas families.
Thank you again for your support – it means a lot to me!
House District 96 contains most of the southern areas of Arlington and Fort Worth, along with the communities of Crowley, Kennedale and Rendon and parts of Mansfield and Burleson.
In 2006, Republican Bill Zedler narrowly avoided a loss, managing only 52.46% of the vote:
House District 96 – 2006 Election Results
Vote Totals
% of the Vote
Bill Zedler (R)
19,520
52.46%
Chris Youngblood (D)
16,483
44.29%
Sam Thomas (L)
1,206
3.24%
TOTAL
37,209
-
Additionally, as Turner’s website shows, Democrats turned out in the March primary at a rate almost 2.5 times higher than Republicans – a larger ratio than the statewide average. More Democrats voted in the HD 96 House District in Tarrant County than in any other House District in the County.
About Chris Turner – A Committed, Hard-Working Candidate
Born in Sherman and raised in Dallas, Chris went to Dallas’ Skyline High School and is a UT-Austin graduate with a degree in Government. Before launching his campaign, Chris Turner worked as District Director for Texas Congressman Chet Edwards (D – Waco). During his time with Congressman Edwards, Chris gained experience working across party lines to meet the needs of Texans from all walks of life.
Chris’ experience with the highly successful Congressman Edwards campaign will come in handy as he runs for office in HD 96. From his website:
Chris has also managed Edwards’ last four highly competitive and successful re-election campaigns, during which he was recognized for his leadership ability and organizational skills in the midst of challenging circumstances.
Donate to Chris Turner Today and Help Us Take Back the House!
We will be writing more about Chris in the coming days, weeks, and months. In the meantime, please join our efforts and donate anything you can – $10, $25, or $50 – to help us take back the House as we do our part to turn Texas blue!
House District 96 makes up the southern portion of Tarrant County, and its current State Rep., Republican Bill Zedler, is going to be facing the race of his life against one of the best candidates Democrats have fielded this fall, Chris Turner.
Last night's primary returns gave us an idea of how the district is looking. Democratic voters in HD 96 outnumbered Republican voters by a tremendous margin:
DEMOCRATIC
REPUBLICAN
RATIO, D:R
STATEWIDE
2,857,301
1,380,907
2.07:1
TARRANTCOUNTY
199,567
100,793
1.98:1
HD 96
27,577
11,277
2.45:1
Looking at the numbers in Tarrant County, House District 96 had more Democratic voters than any other House District in the entire county -- showing that HD 96 may be the most politically active district in what is becoming a hotbed of political activity.
Rep. Zedler only won in 2006 with 52.5% of the vote. Turner is former District Director of Congressman Chet Edwards, and has cut his teeth on tough campaigns. The primary numbers suggest that this is a very winnable district for Democrats -- and one Republicans should be worried about every day for the next eight months.
Since Dan Barrett's victory in mid-December, there has been a flurry of activity to get additional Democrats on the ballot, particularly pertaining to judicial races that have, in the past, gone uncontested by our Party locally. Clearly the Barrett surprise victory was the gentle nudge many qualified individuals needed to feel confident in stepping forward and challenging a fractured Tarrant County Republican Party in 2008.
This past Saturday over 40 volunteers showed up at the Tarrant County Democratic Party Headquarters to gather petition signatures from registered voters to grant ballot access to a number of last minute candidates for local judicial races. How incredible it was to see so many volunteers down at Party headquarters the weekend prior to New Years Eve.
UPDATE:The Star-Telegram confirms Turners candidacy for HD 96 late Thursday, which was reported here on BOR Wednesday.
If my sources are correct, then it looks like a great start for Tarrant County heading into the New Year. On the heels of the successful Dan Barrett race in House District 97; a strong challenger appears to have emerged to run in House District 96 in southern Tarrant County.
Reliable sources say that Chris Turner, a long-time aide and District Director to Democratic Congressman Chet Edwards, will file sometime this week to challenge either Craddick supporter Bill Zedler, or Republican primary challenger Lee Jackson in the 2008 General Election.
Barrett's race provided a blue print that I'm sure Turner's campaign will embrace too, which is changing the way business is done down in Austin by putting the people's interests ahead of special interests. There are a number of growing issues facing Texans such as the failed leadership of Republican Tom Craddick, a public education system under consistent Republican assault, out of control utility rates, and the growing uninsured population, or high expense of retaining health insurance for many Texans. This campaign will not be short on issues to run on to say the least.
HD 96 is a highly competitive race so a candidate of Chris Turner's caliber is indicative of the changing political environment in Tarrant County. We couldn't field a candidate who knows the district and the local elected officials and business leaders better then Chris.
As mentioned before, Zedler received 52% of the vote against an unfunded and relatively unknown Democrat in Chris Youngblood. Terri Moore, the twice-Democratic candidate for District Attorney, received 48% of the vote in this district in 2006.
District 96 encompasses parts of Arlington, Fort Worth, Mansfield, and the growing diverse city of Crowley, which at least part of Crowley ISD was part of Barrett's recent electoral success. 96 overlaps with Senate District 10, another key Democratic target with Wendy Davis as our only declared candidate in that race.
Positive news and momentum continues to roll in for Democrats in Tarrant County as we look forward to Turner's apparent filing this week.
