Over the last week or so the entire newly-elected Executive Committee of the Camino Real Mexican-American Democrats resigned from the organization, with the exception of State Rep Norma Chavez who recently lost her re-election bid to Naomi Gonzalez.
The members of the Executive Committee were elected in July and include the Chair Willie Gandara Sr. (Mayor of Socorro, Texas), Vice-Chair Dora Oaxaca (staffer for Willie Gandra Jr, El Paso County Commissioner, and Secretary Alfredo Longoria (local El Paso businessman).
The only member of the Executive Committee to not resign was out-going State Representative Norma Chavez. Chavez has played a leadership role since the beginning of the organziation and has never been out of Executive Leadership. Many characterize the organization as "Norma's group".
The members resigned following the revelation by Chavez that the organization was set-up as a proprietorship, which raised questions among the Executive Committee about taxes, reporting, etc.
The resignation is another addition to an already bad year for Representative Chavez following her defeat to Gonzalez, and a falling-out with several members of her close political inner-circle.
In an email to membership dated August 6th, 2010, Chavez characterized the recent departures as an "organizational restructure".
Related postings can be found at www.thelionstarblog.blogspot.com
Now, as the conventional wisdom appears to be that Chavez is behind in her race to win a sixth term, things have gotten personal. Chavez has said that Gonzalez is a lesbian and should publicly come out.
Chavez claims that the issue is relevant because it may influence their legislative opinions. Chavez opposes gay marriage. Gonzalez has not stated her personal opinion on the issue but has said she will respect the wishes of Texas voters, who voted to add an amendment banning gay marriage to the state constitution in 2005.
The El Paso Times reported that many El Paso Democrats, including County Party Chair Danny Anchondo, have shown disapproval for Chavez's tactics.
"If somebody is lesbian or gay, our arms are open to all these individuals," Anchondo said. "All these people are part of the party, so I don't understand why someone would be using those terms to attack somebody."
Early voting in this race (and all other Texas runoffs) begins tomorrow.
Updated: A reader from El Paso sends in this video from the Lion Star Blog of the candidate forum during which Chavez brought up Gonzalez's sexual orientation. The statement begins around the 6:29 mark.
There are another two weeks until Election Day, but the back-and-forth attacks in the Democratic runoff in El Paso between State Rep. Norma Chavez, a ten year incumbent, and challenger Naomi Gonzalez, a 31-year old assistant county attorney, are well under way.
Chavez is no stranger to tough political battles, but the challenge from Gonzalez represents her most serious test since entering the Texas House in 1999. Gonzalez has been able to run a better campaign due in the large part to the generosity of Texans for Lawsuit Reform. TLR made over $146,000 in in-kind contributions to Gonzales over the course of three weeks in January and February. In that same time period, Chavez took more than $90,000 from Texans for Insurance Reform, a trial lawyer funded group founded to counter TLR.
The El Paso Times reported that TLR, who in past years had supported Chavez, has given a total of $169,000 to Gonzalez. She has raised a total of $192,000, a strong number for a challenger but still behind the $272,000 that Chavez has received.
Each candidate has accused the other of being a Republican. Gonzalez has sent out a mailer showing Chavez kissing George W. Bush and hugging Rick Perry. Chavez was also one of the first Democrats to support Tom Craddick for speaker in 2003 and was rewarded with an appointment as chair of the House Border Affairs Committee.
Chavez, predictably, has attacked Gonzalez for her heavy reliance on TLR money. Chavez told El Paso Inc, “I’m not calling [Gonzalez] a closet Republican, I’m calling her a Republican. She’s already bought and paid for."
While Chavez has relied on strong grassroots support to overcome past controversies and challenges, Gonzalez seems to have established herself as the favorite. Gonzalez led Chavez 48 to 46 percent in the initial primary. The only Democratic House runoff will be decided on April 13. Early voting begins on Monday, April 5.
(I'm also happy to promote this local report from the Western edge of Texas! - promoted by Karl-Thomas Musselman)
Many in El Paso and in some parts of Texas were expecting to see a shoot out here in El Paso over the Senate seat left vacant by Senator Shapleigh who made the decision not to seek re-election back in October. The presumed participants in the shootout go by the last names Rodriguez and Chavez.
Rodriguez, being long-time El Paso County Attorney Jose Rodriguez, a man who was a one point a farmworker, and Chavez being long-time State Representative Norma Chavez, who at one point worked for the United Farmworker's Union.
That's how many people thought it was going to play out. They were half right.
Rodriguez is a candidate, but State Representative Norma Chavez chose to stay in the House and run for re-election. Chavez has been the senior Chicana in the El Paso delegation and the two Democrats appear to be on the road to reconsiliation.
Unless a Democratic challenger arises for Rodriguez he will face another Chavez (no relation), but in November from El Paso Republican businessman, Dan Chavez. Dan Chavez has previously run for several offices but has never won.
Rodriguez has received the support of El Paso's major Republican contributors earlier this month and many feel that was a signal that the Republicans were going to concede the seat to Rodriguez. The entrance of Dan Chavez in to the race is not considered to be a development that will cause Rodriguez to lose any sleep. El Paso County is overwhelmingly Democratic and Dan Chavez has never won an election at any level in El Paso.
In the end, the race is still Rodriguez V. Chavez, just not the way most people thought it would be.
State Rep. Joe Pickett (D-El Paso) has decided not to enter the race to replace retiring State Sen. Eliot Shapleigh, who announced he would not seek reelection last week.
Pickett said he could not justify giving up his chair of the House Transportation Committee because it was too important to El Paso. From the Statesman:
“I am incredibly grateful and appreciative for all the support and encouragement I have received over the past few days. I received phone calls from numerous legislators on both the House and Senate side, as well as calls from constituents, friends, and family urging me to strongly consider running for the open Senate seat.
“After serious consideration and prayer, I have decided that I can best serve my constituents, the citizens of El Paso, and the State of Texas through my current position.
“It is a tremendous honor for me to serve as the Chairman of the House Transportation Committee and it is simply a position that I cannot, in the best interest of my constituents and the residents of El Paso County, relinquish. As a Chairman, I possess the ability to influence legislation that will best serve the region of El Paso and this is an opportunity that El Paso has never before possessed.”
State Rep. Norma Chavez and County Attorney Jose Rodriguez both have expressed interest in running. El Paso Mayor John Cook has said he likely will not run, but has not ruled anything out. Judge Richard Barajas is also said to be considering entering the race.
Houston Mayor Bill White and State Sen. Eliot Shapleigh. Photo Credit: Bill White for Texas.
After leaving Netroots Nation, where Bill White spoke at a lunch with Texas and national bloggers and participated in a energy security panel, the Houston Mayor and U.S. Senate candidate was off to El Paso.
While in El Paso, White received the endorsements of Congressman Silvestre Reyes, State Sen. Eliot Shapleigh, State Rep. Chente Quintanillla, State Rep. Joe Moody, State Rep. Marisa Marquez, Mayor John Cook, Commissioner Willie Gandara, Jr. and nearly half a dozen school board officials.
The only two Democratic membesr of El Paso's state legislative delegation not to have endorsed White are State Reps. Joe Pickett and Norma Chavez. Chavez has endorsed John Sharp and Pickett is currently neutral.
John Sharp speaks to El Paso Democrats. Photo Credit: Newspaper Tree, 7/21/09.
Both Democratic U.S. Senate candidates seem to be focused on El Paso. Sharp visited recently (and ate grasshopper tacos). The former Texas comptroller, who visited El Paso for a shorter time than White, held one public event organized by Chavez and city Rep. Eddie Houlgin and hosted by the Camino Real Mexican-American Democrats. The Newspaper Tree reported attendance of slightly more than 100 people.
White's trip included a Sunday night event with 250 people and a Monday event with a 150 person turnout. White's daughter, Elena is also working in El Paso for her father's campaign and she may deserve part of the credit for the large disparity in endorsements.
You can read more about each candidates's recent visit at their respective campaign websites (Bill White and John Sharp).
A poll commissioned by the El Paso Times and El Paso News Channel 9 found John McCain leading Barack Obama 38 percent to 36 percent, with 26 percent undecided.
The automated poll to 3,348 households of registered voters had a margin of error of 2 percent, meaning McCain's slight lead is within the MoE.
However, in a county where John Kerry received just over 56 percent of the vote in 2004, the results certainly raised some eyebrows.
State Rep. Norma Chavez, a Craddick D who was the only member of the El Paso delegation to support Obama in the primary, did not seem too concerned.
"We have a strong Democratic base in El Paso that supports the Clintons, and a lot of people are waiting to see how Hillary is treated at the convention before fully supporting Obama," said state Rep. Norma Chávez, D-El Paso, who is going to Denver for the party's national convention, which will begin Monday.
"The numbers will change next week, and I expect McCain's numbers to stay flat and Obama's to increase," said Chávez, who is one of Obama's main organizers in El Paso and Texas.
Russell Autry, the chief of operations of the El Paso-based polling company The Reuel Group, said that Obama's Democratic support in El Paso County was "softer than what was expected."
"The El Paso County Democratic Party has its work cut out for them," [Autry] said.
Autry may be right, but the problem may not be as large as the polling indicates.
Danny Anchondo, chairman of the county Democratic party, said that he isn't worried about El Paso turning Republican, and he points to the large number of undecided voters as people who will vote as Democrats in November.
"Everyone here is waiting to see what the Clintons do," Anchondo said.
The state representative race between Democrat Joe Moody and Dee Margo, who defeated Pat Haggerty in the Republican primary, also could be effected by the presidential race.
"Those who were for Hillary are either going to be voting on our side or not voting at all," [El Paso County GOP Chair Michael Moore] said. "I think this is going to help us down in the ballot.
Among those who hope Moore's analysis is correct is Republican state representative candidate Dee Margo. The El Paso businessman is running against Democrat Joseph Moody in the November election. Both are seeking to replace Pat Haggerty, who lost in the Republican primary.
"I certainly don't think it hurts," Margo said of the poll's results. "It shows that voters in El Paso are thinking more about the candidates than about party affiliation."Moody, a lawyer, said the presidential poll results will not weigh heavily in his race.
"Presidential politics do not determine what happens in a state house race," he said. "Ours is a local race that centers on issues important to our community."
It goes without saying that in order for statewide candidates like Rick Noriega, Linda Yanez and Sam Houston to win, they will need a high turnout and excellent showing in El Paso.
This is not a good newspaper lead to have featuring you, especially if you're a state representative.
Neighbors say State Rep. Norma Chavez made their 10-year-old cry twice in about [the past] (sic)year, shouting profanity-laced threats to have the little girl's puppy taken away.
"She really lost it," said Javier Marquez, the girl's father, who has lived in his Central El Paso home behind Chavez's family for decades. The Marquezes have filed two police reports, including one Monday night, complaining that Chavez became enraged about their howling young Husky, Lola.
Chavez said the family is lying and that she wasn't in El Paso on Monday night. No charges were filed against Chavez, and police said the complaints were not investigated.
"I'm a public official," Chavez said. "I know how to conduct myself."
According to the police reports, Chavez screamed swear words at Javier Marquez, his daughter, Christina, and his 73-year-old mother, Delfina, and came pounding on their door late at night. El Paso Police Department spokesman Chris Mears said the family filed complaints on Nov. 24, 2006, and on Monday.
The report from last year, he said, alleges Chavez, yelling over a rock wall separating the two yards, swore at Christina Marquez and told her she would have authorities come to take away her dog.
To be fair, Rep. Chavez has provided evidence that she wasn't even in El Paso on Monday evening and that she intends to file her own complaint against the family for making a false police report.
Chavez produced a Southwest Airlines itinerary that showed she was scheduled to fly to Austin during the time of the alleged incident Monday. Airline officials said she was issued a boarding pass for the flight, and a receipt Chavez provided showed she earned mileage credit for the trip.
That's pretty good evidence, but it's interesting that "scheduled to fly," "issued a board pass", and "earned mileage credit for the trip" dance close to but don't actually confirm that a person took a flight. It's hard to tell with fights between neighbors exactly who is telling the truth, but regardless, what a weird story.
Whether one supports or opposes the actions of the Craddick D's last session, they chose to establish themselves as a separate group in the Texas Legislature. Calling themselves "Democrats for Reform," they laid out an agenda at the start of session. At the end of session, they claimed their agenda was a success, and that the key successes for Democrats this session were the result of the deals they had struck with Speaker Craddick. They also touted the personal victories they won for their district by supporting Craddick, and many were proud to call themselves "Craddick D's."
It should be noted, though, that only a handful of those who attended the first press conference (announcing the Democrats for Reform, at the start of session) attended the second (after the challenge to Craddick at the end of May). More over, the voracity to which "their agenda" can be called a success was called into question.
With the announcement that Chairman Robert Puente will retire, I thought it would be appropriate to see exactly how those "Democrats for Reform" are doing today. This is merely meant as an update -- trying to keep track of our Democrats in the Texas House. I select them out as a group not out of hostility, but because they chose to set themselves apart from the House Democratic Caucus.
Update: To clarify, I designated whether or not any of the following State Representatives would "still vote for Craddick" based on their last known public position -- which I sourced as best as possible in the middle column. Any additional news that any of the Members or anyone else wish to share, please send me an e-mail or post a comment, and I will update the chart appropriately.
The Craddick D's: Where We Are Today - October 22, 2007
Voted "present, not voting" during Rep. Haggerty's roll call speech; Rep. Chavez was quoted in the Houston Chronicle saying she would support new leadership in 2009.
No
Deshotel, Joe
Voted "against" Craddick during Rep. Haggerty's roll call speech.
No
Dukes, Dawnna
Though there were rumors that some in Austin were looking for a primary challenger, none have surfaced. The last known public statement was that Rep. Dukes stands by Craddick - though I'm not certain she'd vote for Craddick again.
Was one of the handful of Democrats proudly trumpeting the "Democrats for Reform" agenda at the end of session. No other public indication of her stance, and no primary news to date.
Yes
Guillen, Ryan
No challenger, no news. Though if the budget committee is still this hard, would he want it?
On the motion to vacate at end of session, was said to be "flip-flopping." No news, though with Rep. Puente's retirement, she is the only Craddick-supporter in San Antonio.
Of the 15, there are definitely 5 fewer supporters for Craddick, two "maybes" (three, if you include Rep. Turner), three Craddick D's facing primary challenges, and maybe a few more who would no longer call themselves Craddick D's.
Remember the Craddick 15. The 15 Democrats who helped Tom Craddick retain his seat as Speaker of the House. As a result, here are the assignments Papa Bear Craddick gave to his children:
Sylvester Turner: Speaker Pro Tempore; CBO of Regulated Industries; Calendars; Appropriations
Kevin Bailey: CHAIR of Urban Affairs; Business & Industry; General Investigating & Ethics
Norma Chavez: VICE CHAIR of Calendars; Appropriations; CBO of Financial Institutions
Joe Deshotel: CHAIR of Economic Development; Redistricting; Transportation
Dawnna Dukes: CBO of Culture, Rec & Tourism; Appropriations; Calendars
Kino Flores: CHAIR of Licensing & Administrative Procedures; Redistricting; Ways & Means
Helen Giddings: CHAIR of Business & Industry; VICE CHAIR of House Administration; Higher Education
Ryan Guillen: VICE CHAIR of Appropriations; Calendars; Natural Resources
Harold Dutton: CHAIR of Juvenile Justice & Family Issues; General Investigating & Ethics; Public Education
Tracy King: CHAIR of Border & International Affairs; Environmental Regulation
Eddie Lucio: CBO of Environmental Regulation; Appropriations; Local & Consent Calendars
Ruth Jones McClendon: CHAIR of Rules & Regulations; CBO of Pensions & Investments; Appropriations
Aaron Pena: CHAIR of Criminal Jurisprudence; Ways & Means
Robert Puente: CHAIR of Natural Resources; Local Government Ways & Means
Patrick Rose: CHAIR of Human Services; Higher Education
