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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsWhy Democrats are suddenly competitive in deep-red Texas
By Ella Nilsen at Vox
https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/3/1/17058372/democrats-2018-texas-primary-midterms-congressional-districts
"SNIP........
For the first time in decades, Democrats are making a big play for Texas in 2018.
There are Democratic candidates running in all of the states 36 congressional districts for the first time in 25 years. Democrats know they wont be competitive in every congressional district, but they have their sights set on the three they believe they have the best shot at winning the Seventh Congressional District in Houston against incumbent Rep. John Culberson, the 23rd Congressional District outside San Antonio against incumbent Rep. Will Hurd, and the 32nd Congressional District in Dallas against incumbent Rep. Pete Sessions.
There were signs before 2018 that these three districts could be shifting blue; namely, the fact that Hillary Clinton carried all three by a couple of points in the 2016 election.
Theres a popular Democratic Congress member, Rep. Beto ORourke, challenging (and out-fundraising) Sen. Ted Cruz in the race for US Senate. And though Democrats are facing tremendously steep odds in the governors race against incumbent Greg Abbott, they are still trying, with two strong candidates leading a pack of nine candidates.
........SNIP"
bearsfootball516
(6,377 posts)Just because they felt like it was a hopeless cause. In reality, if they all came out and voted, they could probably turn Texas blue, or at least make it a deeply competitive purple state.
It's also worth noting that Trump won Texas with just 52 percent. For what's supposed to be a deep red state, that's pretty unimpressive and highlights the fact that Texas is flippable in the near future.
NewJeffCT
(56,829 posts)Texas is one of the lower turnout states, I believe.
bearsfootball516
(6,377 posts)You're surrounded by so much red all the time, it's like, what's the point of voting? They're just now realizing how much power they actually have if they GOTV.
gratuitous
(82,849 posts)You never know when lightning will strike and a "safe" seat suddenly is up for grabs. If you don't have a candidate running, you can't take advantage of, say, Louie Gohmert saying something so bone-stupid it actually turns off some of his voters, or a sudden retirement by someone one step ahead of the FBI.
I have to believe that there are even some people in Texas appalled by the Trump shitshow who are looking for different representation.
maxrandb
(15,386 posts)Has to help a hell of a lot in statewide races like Senate and governor
mopinko
(70,337 posts)and in a lot of places, they didnt want to piss off the other side just to lose.
Gothmog
(145,839 posts)We had a county executive committee meeting a couple of weeks ago. At the same meeting in 2016 we had thirty or so precinct chairs. This cycle we had 120+ people there. We have seen great turnout in the large counties during early voting so far
Link to tweet
Evidently early voting numbers in primaries are predictive of the turnout in the general election
Link to tweet