Rep. Ortiz, replacing Vilma Luna, serves up some delayed Karma as he's not voting for Tom Craddick for Speaker. Luna, who resigned to become a lobbyist for HillCo thanks to her close ties to Speaker Craddick, may soon be served a second helping of ironic justice if we see a Speaker Pitts come into being Tuesday.
The office of Representative Solomon Ortiz Jr. is looking for interns for the 80th legislative session. Responsibilities may include legislative research, office duties, constituent service, data entry, and assisting the representative at committee hearings. Undergraduate government majors, law or public policy students are preferred, but anyone may apply. Proficiency in Spanish a plus. Hours are flexible.
Please send resumes to Will.Krueger-AT-house.state.tx.us or call (512) 463-0484.
Perry has announced the special election to fill the remainder of Delay's term will coincide with the general election on November 7. Via the Houston Chronicle:
The winner of the special election will serve DeLay's district in Congress from the day the election results are certified until a new Congress begins in January.
At that point, the winner of the general election will take over as the representative of Congressional District 22.
If the same person wins the special election as the general election, it will give that person a leg-up in seniority over other incoming members of Congress.
Leaving the 22nd district vacant and unrepresented may serve the political purposes of Tom DeLay and Rick Perry, but Texans, and particularly those in the 22nd District, pay a significant price. For more than four months, Tom DeLay will have succeeded in more than just redrawing Texas congressional districts to his liking. He will also have succeeded in effectively reducing the number of Texas congressional districts from 32 to only 31. Governor Perry, with the approval of Tom DeLay, is willing to leave Texas a vote short and the residents of District 22 without a vote at all during this critical time period.
Over the last three congressional election years (’00, ’02, ‘04), an average of 289 roll call votes has been taken on the House floor between June 30th and November 7th.
Read the Lone Star Project on the new Delay/Perry record for more details.
Also, a special election will also occur on Nov. 7 to fill the seat of Senator Frank Madla and Rep. Vilma Luna until the Texas Legislature reconvenes in January.
Hoping to move past a schism in the Nueces County Democratic Party, Solomon Ortiz Jr. is setting his sights on Tuesday, when he'll find out who will be his opponent in the race for the Texas House District 33 seat.
Ortiz emerged the party's nominee for the seat by three votes Sunday, defeating longtime educator Danny Noyola Sr. in a campaign to be placed on the November ballot that came down to the minute.
The party's 44 precinct chairs from the district seemed split up until the vote Sunday afternoon, with a final decision of 23-20 in favor of Ortiz.
"I'm at a loss for words," Ortiz said after learning he'd earned the party's nod.
Republicans will choose their nominee at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Nueces County Republican Party Headquarters, 4458 S. Staples St.
Noyola, 53, and Ortiz, 29, announced they would seek the Democratic nomination the same day state Rep. Vilma Luna, D-Corpus Christi, resigned last month. Luna, who had been in office since 1993, announced her resignation July 5 and later took a lobbying job.
(I'm doubting this will be the last of possible candidates to express interest in HD-33. - promoted by Karl-Thomas Musselman)
Update: She is not running. I just got off the phone with Gloria and she said, "I am totally flattered and overwhelmed but this is not the right time for me to run. I am very grateful and thankful to all who considered me as a possible candidate."
Much ado has been raised about prospective candidates for the soon to be vacated seat (HD-33). On everyone’s short list is the son of the local congressman and a high school principle who was just reassigned for still unknown reasons.
A new name has risen up from all the speculation. The possible candidate’s name is Gloria Perez. I met Gloria around the campaign trial in Corpus Christi and I instantly liked her. It may be because she was volunteering but as I discovered more about her, the more I was impressed.
A quick evaluation of her life shows that she is testament the American dream that hard work can overcome obstacles and lead to a successful life professionally and personally. Gloria, now in her early 50s, was a young mother when she had her first child.
“Perez became a single parent at age 18. As my friends were going off to school, I didn’t have that option,” she says. “I wasn’t going to have my parents help me because I felt I needed to accept my responsibility. I was going to take care of my daughter myself so I needed to go to work.” Southwestern Bell gave Perez the portal she needed to begin a successful 29-year career with the company.”
Perez also relocated several times across Texas to climb the corporate ladder, including moves to San Antonio, McAllen, Harlingen, Laredo and Corpus Christi. “I had to move every time I was asked because it was the only way I could advance. But, there were sacrifice”
Since retiring from the telecommunications industry two years ago, Perez has put her energy full-time into her own three businesses, which fall under Asiel Enterprises, Inc. She’s also looking at a fourth business–a partnership that would offer small business owners discounted corporate services under one umbrella, including payroll, insurance, safety, job training, tax preparation and other services that many small businesses can’t handle or sometimes can’t afford.
She has led a life of example. She is a Latina woman done well for herself and her family. I want a representative that understands the value of hard work and knows the difficulties of trying to raise a family and be a professional.
According to a Nueces County Precinct Chair just called by 'candidate' Danny Noyola, Sr. mentioned in the previous article, he is not only actively calling chairs for their support but told this one that he now has the 23 votes needed among the 45 potential chairs which would win him the nomination.
Of course, each chair might just be hearing that as a campaign strategy. Needless to say, it didn't take long for things to get moving.
(Here's a good introduction as to who may be running to replace Vilma Luna in HD-33. - promoted by Karl-Thomas Musselman)
Although this shake-up comes as a surprise to many, it is not completely unexpected. One of the candidates expected to run is former Nueces County Chair Solomon Ortiz, Jr. When Ortiz, Jr., son of the longest-tenured Democratic Congressman in Texas announced his intention not to run for re-election, many assumed that he had higher ambitions (including rumors about challenging Luna for her established Democratic seat).
Also expected to seek the nomination for District 33 is Danny Noyola, Sr., a community leader and high school administrator. Noyola was recently ousted as principal of problem-ridden Miller High School in Corpus Christi. He took over the school deemed "low-performing" by the federal government and made little progress during his tenure. He served only one year in his position before being "re-assigned" to an assistant principal position at neighboring Moody High School. Several teachers disapproved of his leadership style and the cause for his demotion is still unclear.
Noyola, Sr. has been active throughout the community. He has served as President of the Corpus Christi Barrios Association, a neighborhood improvement organization. His brother Jesse Noyola is a powerful City Councilman and his son Danny Noyola, Jr. was recently elected to the State Democratic Executive Committee for SD 20.
It is also worth noting that Noyola is disliked by many in the Corpus community for his support of Republican candidates in several races. They include Mayor Loyd Neal and County Commissioner Joe McComb.
The seat has no Republican challenger for the November election. Since the 45 precinct chairs of the 33rd State House District will decide the person to replace Luna on the ballot, that group will basically be selecting Corpus Christi’s newest State Representative. The only other way to win the seat would be a well-orchestrated write-in campaign.
The vote has yet to be called by Nueces County Chair Alex Garcia. It should be close. Solomon Ortiz, Jr. is respected throughout the community and knows many of the precinct chairs from his role as County Chair. Noyola knows many of the precinct chairs himself., including his wife Precinct 116 Chair Alma Noyola.
Incidentally, outgoing State Rep. Vilma Luna works for trial lawyer Mikal Watts in Corpus Christi. He has emerged as a powerful player in South Texas politics and will likely seek the Presidency of the Texas Trial Lawyers Association during the next election. He has funded Luna extensively over the years, as well as County and State House candidates in this election cycle. At this point, it is unclear who Mikal Watts supports, but his opinion most definitely matters to candidates seeking the election in District 33.
