Early voting has started in the May 29 Texas primary. The race to watch this year is the Senate race on the GOP side. Whoever wins that is the odds-on, locked in favorite to succeed retiring Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison. Democrats have not won a statewide race in Texas in a generation, and there are no signs of that changing any time soon.
Two major candidates and a pair of less-known candidates — Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst and former solicitor general Ted Cruz, and then former Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert and former ESPN host Craig James, respectively — are vying for the seat. Being a GOP primary, the candidates are all running as the authentic conservative and they all do mostly agree on the big issues, though Leppert has some leftish baggage from his Dallas days to explain. But there are differences within each candidate’s public statements and platforms. One key difference truly stands out: Only one of the four candidates has signed the Repeal ObamaCare pledge. And that’s Ted Cruz.
Cruz also recently won the endorsement of former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin. According to campaign manager John Drogin, that endorsement has kicked the Cruz campaign into overdrive.
“Phones are ringing, online contributions are pouring in, and supporters are more excited than ever on our social networks,” Drogin wrote, adding that he’s seen a “flood” of donations but has yet to tally them.
Name recognition and money favor Dewhurst going into the primary, but given the number of candidates in the race the May 29 result is likely to head to a run-off. At that point, one would expect to see more activist-minded voters turn out, voters who pay close attention to who has signed which pledge, and who has won whose endorsements. Those factors favor Ted Cruz.
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