Flores attorney Randall "Buck" Wood stated last week that he has evidence several ineligible votes were cast April 8, including those by people who voted in the Republican primary and Democratic runoff, as well as votes cast by felons and incorrectly registered voters.
Cuellar attorney Martha De Llano said Flores has until July 1 to specifically list those people by name, address, voter registration and category ...
On Monday, [Rick Flores] issued a statement accusing the Cuellar camp of using the same techniques Laredo-area congressman and Cuellar's brother, U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, used during his 2004 race against Congressman Ciro Rodriguez.
"Henry's scheme involving endless court battles and a draw on resources, use of the courts and the appeals process, is déjá vu in the 2008 sheriff's race and ironically appears to be the same scenario with the same attorneys, which forced Congressman Rodriguez out of the race," Flores' statement reads. "That's not going to happen to us."
Perhaps the strangest part of the story is that Flores, who had been attending a training seminar at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, reportedly received a threat while he was in Cambridge.
Flores also said in his statement, issued Tuesday evening, that the "heat is being turned up in the sheriff's race" and that he received a threat Monday while in Boston.
According to a police report filed by Flores with the Harvard University Police Department, a man called Flores' cell phone "and said ‘cuidate y cuidad a tu familia' (sic), which means take care of yourself and take care of your family."
The report states Flores felt the threat was legitimate and informed the reporting officer that there had been a recent surge in violence in Webb County.
Calls to the university's police department were not returned. The police report indicated the case has been closed.
Tessie Medina, Webb County Sheriff's Department spokeswoman, said local deputies were providing extra security for the Flores family while Middlesex County and Harvard police were charged with protecting Flores during the seminar.
We will continue to keep an eye on this race, which seems to get more interesting by the day. As always, any readers (like Colin) who have special knowledge about this race, please don't hesitate to share it with us.
Challenger Martin Cuellar and incumbent Sheriff Rick Flores were the two to emerge from a crowded field in the March 4 Democratic Primary for Webb County Sheriff.
Cuellar and Flores met in the April 8 runoff. On election night, Cuellar held a slim 37 vote lead. But the race wasn't over.
A May recount by the Webb County Democratic Primary reversed the decision and gave Flores the lead.
Yesterday, a court-ordered recount overseen by a state district judge gave Cuellar, the brother of Congressman Henry Cuellar, back his original victory, this time by a 39 vote margin.
But the race still doesn't seem to be over. Flores has hired well-known Austin attorney Buck Wood and appears to be heading towards contesting the election.
Because Flores indicated in his response to the original petition filed by Cuellar and his attorneys that he would be prepared to allege certain instances of voter fraud during the April Democratic runoff, he reserves the right to pursue an election contest.
His attorney, Austin-based Randall "Buck" Wood, said that would indeed be Flores' next step.
[State District Judge David] Peeples said Tuesday's events left no doubt in his mind that the original intent of the voters was realized.
"On election night, Cuellar had a 37-vote margin," he said. "In this room, after an all day recount, a 39-vote margin. It wasn't exactly the same votes, but that's as close to perfect as you can get." ...
Wood, Flores' attorney, pointed toward other irregularities in the second recount.
"We've already filed the election contest on the basis that this might happen," he said. "But one of the things you should be aware of is that it's not like it only changed two votes. It changed up and down all over the place. It just netted out two votes. And there was a 52-vote change in the electronic voting, and that should never happen."
I know there are BOR readers who know a lot more about Webb County politics than I do. What are your thoughts?
Now that we've all survived, more or less, the Democratic Presidential Primary and the Texas State Democratic Convention time to take stock and prepare for the run up to the general election.
For Texas Kaos, that includes filling some additional front page slots to flesh out our coverage of Texas news and politics more fully. We're looking in particular for bloggers in rural Texas, San Antonio and El Paso. Also, Latino, African and Asian-American writers may consider themselves actively being recruited.
Ed. Note - Charles Kuffner, of Off the Kuff, is among the most well-respected members of the blogosphere -- not just here in TX, by anywhere. Texas Monthly named him one of the 35 people who will shape our future. On this, his birthday, we give him this space to showcase the incredible number of interviews he has done for all of us. Happy birthday, Charles!
Today is my forty-second birthday, which I feel should bring me one step closer to understanding what life, the Universe, and everything is all about. If I get any blinding insights, I'll be sure to share them. As always with my birthdays, the truly important things to note are that I share the date with Justine Bateman, and that I'm exactly one day older than Cindy Crawford. I mean hey, with references like those, how can I lose?
Today is also the first day of early voting in Texas for the March 4 primary. Those of you in Harris County, you can find early voting information and locations here (PDF). I highly recommend voting early this year, as turnout projections are incredibly high, and I wouldn't want to get caught in the chaos that's sure to occur on the fourth. Of course, that means you have to figure out who you're voting for once and for all. I'll post an incomplete list of people for whom I'll be pushing the button tomorrow, for what that will be worth to you. Some choices are easier than others, but they're all important. Please make sure your voice is heard.
Here's a sorted list of the candidate interviews and Q&As I've done for the Democratic primary. I hope this helps you make your decisions. Thanks very much, and go vote!
It's Monday, and that means it is time once again for the Texas Progressive Alliance Weekly Blog Round-Up. So, as you recover from Super Bowl Sunday, check out this week's round-up, compiled by Vince from Capitol Annex.
My hometown Democratic county chair George Keller is once again organizing what should be a large gathering of Hill Country Democrats in two weeks out in Fredericksburg. Both US Senate campaigns will be there as well as other Democratic candidates including one of my personal favorites- Daniel Boone who is running as a Democrat this year in District 73 (formerly held by Carter Casteel and now James Leininger Nathan Macias).
The Forum is sponsored by the Hill Country Democratic Coalition, composed of Democratic organizations from Bandera , Gillespie, Kendall and Kerr Counties. Attendees are expected from many other surrounding counties and all potential voters are welcome. The event will be held on Sunday afternoon, October 28 at Lady Bird Johnson Park in Fredericksburg and will start at 2:00 P.M. to be followed with a "bring your own picnic basket" at 4:00 P.M. Lady Bird Johnson Municipal Park is very beautiful, especially in the late afternoon.
Speakers will include Rick Noriega from the 'Noriega For Senate Campaign' and Tommy Calvert, Jr. representing the 'Watts Senatorial Campaign'. Judge Susan Criss candidate for the Texas Supreme Court, Place 8, will also speak followed by Fred Crider who is mounting a campaign for U.S. House of Representatives , District 11 and Daniel Boone who is running for The Texas State House of Representatives, District 73.
Put this on your calendar, as this may be the only opportunity you have to see these exceptional candidates before the March 2008 Election. If you would like more information please call Gillespie County Democratic Headquarters at (830) 456-1066.
(Expect a tidal wave of announcements after Labor Day - promoted by Matt Glazer)
In what is a small surprise to many Tylerites, State Representative Leo Berman (R-Tyler) has decided to seek a 6th term in the Texas House of Representatives. Berman, who seems to care more about illegal immigration than he does about his district, is sure to face opposition in his campaign. Many are expecting a challenge from Republicans, as well as a Democratic challenger.
Berman remains an adamant supporter of the current occupant of the Speaker's office and a dinosaur of the worst kind in the legislature.
I'll be keeping you up to date with all that is happening in District 6 over the next year running up to the election.
The good Christian people of Longview have now taken to denying homes to children who are victims of abuse.
Willowbend RTC, as it is known, provides a safe home and treatment for children who have been victims of abuse. According to Willowbend Administrator Shane Harrold: "These are kids that have been through the worst experiences you could go through next to being killed." You would think that our community would be proud that we had a program like the one offered by Willowbend.
Shari Pulliam, who works for the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, has indicated that the state needs an expanded Willowbend facility.
New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said he is investigating whether the athletic departments steered students to lenders in exchange for kickbacks, as well as how team names, mascots and colors may have been used to suggest the company was a school's preferred lender.
At [the University of Houston], the athletic department's Web site features a prominent advertisement for University Financial Services.
With a red and blue border, the ad encourages "Cougars" to consolidate their student loans at a lower monthly payment. The lender identifies itself as "a proud paying sponsor of University of Houston Athletics."
The student loan industry has grown substantially over the past few years, in large part because the skyrocketing cost of tuition. Incidentally, since 2003 when the GOP legislative leadership passed tuition deregulation, the cost of tuition and fees at state-supported universities in Texas has shot up 39%.
The New York Times reports on a "fast spreading, Velco-like aquatic fern" that, in 1950's horror-movie fashion, seems to be taking over Caddo Lake. Any East Texans have any first hand experience they'd like to share in the comments?
The House of Representative passed a reauthorization and expansion of the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) yesterday, which since 1997 has provided affordable health insurance for millions of children whose parents can't afford to buy insurance on their own yet make too much money to qualify for Medicaid. Vince at Capitol Annex is all over the House floor debate from yesterday, including some unfortunately predictable shenanigans from Texas Republicans.
Starting this fall, the pledge to the Texas flag will have a little more God in it, thanks to a bill Rep. Debbie "Pit of Hell" Riddle authored and passed this session. This was little reported, but Rep. Scott Hochberg and she had a pretty good exchange during debate on the legislation:
HOCHBERG: Tell me why you picked out, you said last night that you were trying to essentially conform our pledge to the national pledge, and if I'm misstating what you said, please clarify that for me.
RIDDLE: No, that, I think, is what I made very clear, that in our national pledge, we say, "one nation under God." I felt like it was altogether right and appropriate for us to have in our state pledge, that we would say, "one state under God."
HOCHBERG: We also, in the national pledge, if I'm not mistaken, say, "with liberty and justice for all." You didn't include that in your bill, I don't believe. Was there some reason that you didn't include that, but you did include the "under God" part?
RIDDLE: No.
HOCHBERG: No? Would you take a third reading amendment to add, "with liberty and justice for all?"
RIDDLE: No.
The whole exchange (which you can read here) was pretty funny; Riddle seemed stunned by the question, and ended up saying she wanted to mirror the national pledge without explaining why she didn't want "liberty and justice for all." Apparently "liberty and justice for all" doesn't deserve repeating in Texas, but "under God" does. Go figure.
I have a big ask to make of everyone who reads this!
My home base, the Denton County Democratic Party, is getting low on funds. We seriously need some supporters to donate to our party, either as a one time donation or recurring sustaining member.
Since I am so fond of ActBlue, I decided to create a fundraising page for the party with my own touch. I want everyone to Kick Some "Donkey" for the party and chip in.
We have a great executive director who just lost an apartment to fire and needs a salary sometime soon, not to mention the party needs to pay the light bill! So please, help us out if you can. Thank you in advance!
