State Sen. Chris Harris, R-Arlington, won’t seek another term in the Texas Legislature, he said Monday, and he encouraged Victor Vandergriff to get into the race. UPDATE: Vandergriff says he’s in.
2012 elections
Posted inState Government
Texas Puts the “T” in ATM
Texas is a lock for Republicans at the statewide level, from the president on down. So color the state red and stop talking about the electoral map. Talk instead about the financial primary.
Posted inState Government
No Easy Path to Winning Michigan for Perry
Gov. Rick Perry came in a distant second in the Michigan straw poll over the weekend. And his top opponents’ ties to the state may make it impossible to do any better come primary day.
Posted in
Politics
When Second Place is the Same as Last
Nobody is required to pay attention to you just because you’re running for office. Not the news media, not the money people and not the voters. But where is the line on who’s in and who’s out?
Posted in
State Government
Campaign Chatter
Rep. Charles Schwertner, R-Georgetown, will run for Steve Ogden’s Senate seat. Ogden isn’t running, and Williamson County has become the 300-pound gorilla of that district in terms of population. Rep. Larry Gonzales, R-Round Rock, won’t run.
Posted in
State Government
Higher-Octane Partisans
Partisan changes in the Legislature are on ice for now. The more important game to watch is for which kinds of Republicans and Democrats are coming to Austin every two years.
Posted in
Politics
The Texas Weekly Index: March Fights, November Peace
General elections in Texas will be less competitive than ever under the redistricting maps approved by the Legislature earlier this year. The political threats to incumbents, if any, will come in primaries and not in general elections.
Posted in
State Government
Ogden Won’t Seek Another Term
The Texas Senate’s chief budget writer — Sen. Steve Ogden, R-Bryan — won’t seek re-election, he announced this morning.
Posted in
State Government
Shapiro Won’t Run Again; Others Jump In
After two decades in the Texas Senate, Plano Republican Florence Shapiro said this afternoon that she won’t seek re-election. State Rep. Ken Paxton, R-McKinney, starts as a strong replacement candidate.
Posted inState Government
In Galveston, an Intriguing Alternative to the “Ponzi Scheme”
Gov. Rick Perry calls Social Security a “Ponzi scheme” and says people ought to control their own retirement money. But if the social safety net created in 1935 were eliminated what might take its place? In Galveston, a possible answer.