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Democrat Dan Barrett led in all voting for the race to replace Rep. Anna Mowery in House District 97. You can see the full numbers from my post on the race, and I've reproduced the important results below:
| Candidate | Early Vote
| Percent
| Total Votes | Percent
| Dan Barrett (D) | 1918 | 32.48%
| 5575 | 31.54%
| Mark M. Shelton (R)
| 1138
| 19.27%
| 4047
| 22.89%
| | Bob Leonard (R) | 1287
| 21.8%
| 3294 | 18.63%
| Craig Goldman (R) | 956 | 16.19% | 2947 | 16.67%
| | | | | | | | Total Votes Cast | 5905 | | 17678 | |
Given those results, let's look at the "price per vote" based on the 8-day out report -- therefore not even counting the cash-on-hand that was spent in the final days, the $25,000 contribution to Leonard in the final days, or the $50,000 Shelton loaned to his own campaign: | Candidate | Total Votes
| Expenditures
| Average "Price-per-vote"
| Dan Barrett (D)
| 5575 | $35,877 | $6.44 | | Mark M. Shelton (R) | 4047 | $37,096 | $9.17 | | Bob Leonard (R) | 3294 | $83,096 | $25.23 | | Craig Goldman (R) | 2947 | $107,327
| $36.42 | | Totals | 15368 | $263,396
| $17.14
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Democrat Dan Barrett got almost twice as many votes as Craddick's top candidate, Craig Goldman, and he did so by only spending 17.7% as much per vote. IMAGINE what can be done with a well-funded campaign! Barrett leads going into the runoff, and that's with spending the least amount of cash of any competitor. Now that he's proved he can compete, Barrett is sure to get the attention of Democrats across the state. And who knows what will happen in the run-off, especially given the stakes. Barrett is on the right side of many of the issues, too. He's an unquestionable supporter of CHIP, and is opposed to the expanding boondoggle that is the Trans-Texas Corridor. And, perhaps most importantly, he is clearly opposed to Speaker Craddick -- successfully using Craddick in the "6 pawns" direct mail piece. And running against Craddick, as the numbers showed us tonight, is a successfuly strategy.Craig Goldman, who finished fourth, was strongly backed by Speaker Craddick and Texans for Fiscal Responsibility. Craddick even showed up and hosted a fundraiser for Goldman in Austin. And what did Craddick's support earn him? Fourth place. Craddick's support automatically taints any candidate it touches -- actually harming candidates in the process. This very well could prove the different for Barrett, and allow him to win the special election. Shelton, who is heading for the run-off, is also a strong supporter of Craddick. Is he just as doomed to meet his fate? Only time will tell, but a year out from one of the most important election cycles in the history of the Texas House, the Republican Speaker is performing terribly. Meanwhile, donate to Barrett's campaign, and let's add another Democrat to our numbers in the Texas House.
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