By Joe Farkus, NDG Contributing Writer
With the Dec. 11 deadline for candidates running in the 2018 elections passed, campaign season is heating up in important political races all over Texas. With so many candidates to keep up with, NDG has you covered on the latest on who’s running for what in the 2018 March Primary and November General elections.
U.S. Senate Race
After losing to Donald Trump in the 2016 Republican presidential primaries, Senator Ted Cruz failure to endorse Trump at the Republican National Convention has made him vulnerable from ruffled Republicans as well as Democrats who view him as demagogic and too conservative to represent a state as diverse as Texas.
Two Republicans are challenging Cruz in the March primary: self-described moderate and accountant Mary Miller and Geraldine Sam, the first African American Mayor of La Marque. Texas (she was subsequently recalled by voters in 2011). The three Democrats filed to defeat Ted Cruz in next year’s election are the leading candidate in the race Congressman Beto O’Rourke (CD-16), Democratic Socialist Sema Hernandez, and Edward Kimbrough.
Congressional District 32
Congressman Pete Sessions is facing both a primary challenge this election cycle and a Democratic opponent from the largest field of potential challenges in recent memory. His primary challenge comes from Paul Brown, a military veteran and Sessions’ opponent in 2016.
The Democratic field contains a slew of candidates including: former Obama administration State Department staffer Ed Meier, civil rights attorney and former professional football player Colin Allred, long-time WFAA investigate reporter Brett Shipp, entrepreneur and attorney Lillian Salerno, immigration lawyer George Rodriguez, 2016 Electoral College elector Chris Suprun, small business owner and craftsman Todd Maternowski, retired aerospace engineer Ron Marshall, transgender rights activist Dani Pellett, web developer Awbrey Hughlett, Steve Love, and David Henry.
“One of the biggest problems I have with Pete Sessions isn’t just his policies,” Democratic candidate Colin Allred told the North Dallas Gazette. “He doesn’t care about the people of this area.
Democrats across the country – and especially here in North Texas – are looking for a new generation of leadership. When we stand for opportunity and we stand for people who don’t have a voice, that’s when we always win.”
Congressional District 6
With current Congressman Joe Barton not seeking re-election due to lewd photos he’d sent to women surfacing online this year, three Republicans and five Democrats have filed to replace him. The three Republicans who have filed to replace him are former Barton Chief of Staff and most recent Tarrant County Tax Assessor Ron Wright, retired naval fighter and businessman Jake Ellzey, and conservative activist Deborah Gagliardi, who attacked Barton in a crude tweet regarding the Barton scandal.
Five Democrats have officially filed to challenge the Republican field: Barton’s challenger in 2016 and the only African American in the race Ruby Faye Woolridge, grassroots organizer for the Bernie Sanders campaign Justin Snider, the former journalist and political fundraiser Jana Lynne Sanchez, U.S. Navy veteran Levii Shocklee, and HIV/AIDS activist John Duncan.
Texas Senate District 23
State Senator Royce West has filed for re-election to his current seat in District 23. He is unchallenged in the Democratic Primary and will not face a Republican opponent in the general election.
Texas House District 100
State Representative Eric Johnson has filed for reelection to this current seat in District 100. First elected in 2010, Johnson will not face a Republican opponent in the general election. He is, however, facing one Democratic opponent: Sandra Crenshaw, who twice ran for Texas House District 110 and once ran for City Council District 4 in 2015. Johnson is reportedly considering a run for Speaker of the Texas House if re-elected.
“Texas needs leaders who will represent all of the people, not just one political party’s primary voters,” Johnson said in an official press release. “Single party rule has proven to be as disastrous in Texas as it is in Washington. If I decide to run for Speaker, it will be to change that.”
Texas House District 109
After serving 13 terms in the Texas House, Helen Giddings has decided to retire, leaving four Democrats to fight over who will fill her seat: former DeSoto Mayor Carl Sherman Sr., DeSoto City Council member Deshaundra Lockhart Jones, attorney Christopher Graham, and Victoria Walton.
Dallas County Democratic Party (DCDP) Chair
Current Chair Carol Donovan is facing off against two challengers in the March 2018 primary: civil rights attorney and progressive activist Chris Hamilton and former DCDP precinct chair and former Lancaster ISD board member Carolyn Ann Morris. Read NDG’s story covering a recent debate between the three candidates for DCDP Chair for more insight on this hotly contested race.
