Ethnic pride vs. professional rivalry

The campaign for the Texas House of Reps District 87 seat has taken on an interesting dimension.

Mexican restaurants all across Amarillo are posting campaign signs touting the name of one of their competitors, who also is running in the Republican primary set for March 2.

Victor Leal — who is campaigning against Walter “Four” Price for the GOP nomination to the District 87 seat — has run a restaurant in Amarillo for the past half-dozen years. I’m guessing he has drawn some business from many of the more established eating establishments that feature the same type of cuisine.

However … when you drive around the city these days you see big “Leal” campaign signs on these competitors’ property. And it’s not just in the Potter County portion of Amarillo, which lies inside the District 87 boundary. I’ve noticed several such signs in front of Mexican restaurants near my neighborhood, which is in Randall County.

I’m not yet sure what all this means, except that perhaps ethnic pride — Leal is Mexican-American — trumps the restaurant business’ competitive nature.