I’m running out of election season! So here are some quick and dirty Republican Primary recommendations (beyond the very obvious one of Ted Cruz for President) on the last day of early voting:
Statewide Races
Railroad Commissioner: Wayne Christian: Christian is a solid conservative. Gary Gates, who has poured a lot of money into the race (if the number of flyers I’ve received is any indication) concerns me mainly because his Texas Citizens Coalition seems to lean heavily on the Joe Straus wing of the party. (Noted for the record: former senate candidate Grady Yarbrough is one of three candidates running on the Democratic side.)
Texas Supreme Court Place 3: Michael Massengale: Debra Lehrmann isn’t horrible, but Massengale has earned the endorsements of Michael Quinn Sullivan and Texans for Lawsuit Reform.
Texas Supreme Court Place 5: Paul Green: See this post for all the reasons to choose Paul Green over Rick Green.
Texas Supreme Court Place 9: Eve Guzman: Guzman has done a solid job and her opponent has long ties to the Democratic Party (his father was a Democratic state rep) and he was fined by the state bar for actions that “unnecessarily increased the costs and burdens of litigation.”
Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Place 2: Ray Wheless: This recommendation is based mainly on the impressive number of conservative endorsements he’s racked up.
Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Place 5: Steve Smith: Mainly voting for Smith due to his role in litigating Hopwood.
Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Place 6: incumbent Michael Keasler: Keasler is a lifetime Republican and his opponent Richard Davis has run a sketchy, all-but-invisible campaign.
Williamson County Races
Sheriff: William “Bill” Kelberlau: Mainly based on Cahnman’s write-up on the race. “Bill Kelberlau is running to be a constitutional sheriff.” I may not agree with Cahnman on everything, but he’s not a squish. I was willing to consider Robert Chody (who has a strong lineup of Republican endorsements), but then he went and touted his Statesman endorsement on one of his flyers…
District Attorney: Shawn Dick*: I’ve been leery of Jana Duty since at least her 2012 race, and her obvious support from Democrats and unions in that race. Cahnman, again, has more on Duty. And even though Holly Hansen hasn’t updated her site since she moved to Harris County, she has lots of good (which is to say bad) information on Duty as well.
Constable Precinct 1: Vinnie Cherrone: Wins by default as his opponent, Leo Enriquez, has been invisible during the campaign.
County Commissioner Precinct 1: Landy Warren: The candidates were close, and this is one case where Warren emphasizing conservative themes in his flyers pushed me over the top.
*Corrected. I had originally reversed his names, inadvertently making him into the star of Springtime for Hitler in The Producers…
There’s a couple of Williamson judicial races where I’m still seeking additional information, but I don’t want to delay putting this up any longer.
Remember to vote either today or Tuesday!
Addition Resources:
Guide from the Texas League of Women Voters
Community ImpactVoter Guide