Looks to me as if the Texas Democratic Party has some work to do — I mean plenty of work to do — if it hopes to regain its footing as a competitive political organization in this great state.
I lost count of the emails and text messages I got from Democratic senatorial nominee Colin Allred proclaiming how he had Sen. Ted Cruz on the run, that he had caught the Cruz Missile in the fight for his U.S. Senate seat.
On Election Day, Allred fell — shall we say — far, far short of the mark. Cruz rolled to re-election. Allred now has to find another job, as he surrendered his Dallas House seat to compete for the Senate.
That was the story across the state. Democrats everywhere met the same kind of electoral fate that befell Allred.
Oh, and the presidential vote total? Donald Trump rolled to an easy win over Kamala Harris, capturing the state’s 40 Electoral College votes that seemed to be in the bag since before Harris became the nominee this past summer.
Texas Democratic Party chair Gilberto Hinojosa has resigned. Good! See ya around, Mr. Chairman.
Democrats have been talking bravely about a potential turnaround in Texas since 2018, when Beto O’Rourke came within 2 percentage points of defeating Cruz. It’s been downhill for Democrats ever since.
What’s the answer for Texas Democrats? How about starting from scratch? Perhaps the party should stop seeking to placate different racial and ethnic groups. Maybe it should forgo trying to warm up to LGBTQ groups. Perhaps the party should stop fighting the last key court decision.
A turn toward authenticity could be one answer. I remember when Texas Democrats were led by individuals who portrayed themselves as who they were. Shouldn’t that be enough?
The Democratic Party — and I am in their corner — need to get real busy real fast if it wants to be competitive in Texas.