Turnout for today’s primary runoff elections in Texas was already expected to be very poor, before bad weather in much of North Texas provided another reason not to go to the polls. The CW is that low turnout will help the more ideologically-driven candidacies succeed, so no one should be surprised if we see another nationally-ignored bumper crop of Tea Party wins in Texas.
The two candidacies that will get at least some national attention if they prove to become Texas Toast are those of Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst (discussed here yesterday) and 91-year old House member Ralph Hall. Hall has a better, if not exactly robust, chance of survival.
Tea candidates are presently favored in GOP runoffs for Attorney General and Ag Commissioner. On the Democratic side, party officiials are mainly hoping to avoid embarrassment by not nominating Larouchie Kesha Rogers for the U.S. Senate or not-exactly-a-Democrat Kinky Friedman (running on a pot legalization platform) for Ag Commissioner.
