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  • 2010: Lubbock or Leave It

    By Morgan Smith

    Low voter turnout means that in a downballot statewide race like that between Debra Lehrmann and Rick Green the winner could be decided by chance — whose name comes first, or whose name sounds the friendliest. Green and Lehrmann are working to combat that dynamic in an unlikely place: Lubbock. Full Story 

    Rick Green and Judge Debra Lehrmann at a Young Republicans debate in San Antonio.
    Credit: Morgan Smith

  • 2010: Trouble in the Chavez Camp

    By Brandi Grissom

    Three sources close to the campaign of Democratic state Rep. Norma Chavez in Austin and El Paso today are reporting that some of her closest local campaign staffers are abandoning ship just a week before the April 13 election. Full Story 

    Norma Chavez works attaches a campaign button to the sweater of one of her supporters at an El Paso senior center before the 2010 Democratic primary election.
    Credit: Brandi Grissom

  • To Dump or Not to Dump?

    By Erika Aguilar, KUT News

    Andrews County's hazardous waste holdings might be expanding soon. A proposed rule would allow more low-level radioactive waste to be transported, processed and stored in West Texas, and regulators are listening to public comments, Erika Aguilar of KUT News reports. Full Story 

    State Representative Lon Burnam, D-Fort Worth, speaks out against a proposed rule change at the State Capitol. The Texas Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Compact Commission will decide whether more states can send their waste to West Texas.
    Credit: Erik Reyna, KUT

  • Two Hours in Juárez

    By Brandi Grissom

    What I saw was not entirely what I expected. I expected charred buildings. I expected soldiers with automatic weapons everywhere. I expected empty streets and residents skulking around in fear. To be sure, there were signs of danger — but in many parts of Juárez, there were also people determined to remain, to do their best to live as normally as possible. Full Story 

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    Credit: Brandi Grissom

  • "I Won't Stop Dispensing Justice"

    By Emily Ramshaw

    Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins won’t go so far as to compare his support to the near-divine fervor of President Obama’s. But Watkins, who gained national prominence for using DNA evidence to exonerate nearly two dozen wrongfully convicted people in one of Texas’ notoriously tough-on-crime jurisdictions, will come close. “It’s a religious experience to vote for Craig Watkins,” Texas’ first African-American D.A. says without irony. Like Obama, he says, other Democratic candidates are “hanging their hats” on his re-election — and on the minority voters he draws to the polls. Like Obama, he’s got “a big target” on his back. “I’ve got to fight the political attacks coming at me from all directions," he insists. “I’ll say it publicly: If you throw punches at us, we’ll drop a bomb on you.” Full Story 

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    Credit: Jacob Villanueva

  • 2010: HD-66 Special Election Set

    By Reeve Hamilton

    State Rep. Brian McCall, R-Plano, the soon-to-be Chancellor of the Texas State University System, resigned his seat at the end of last week. That means the voters of House District 66 have a special election coming their way . Full Story 

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  • HuTube: Inside TribLive

    By Elise Hu

    We have a busy month of TribLive events ahead, featuring lengthy chats with the likes of Karen Hughes, Deirdre Delisi, and Francicso Cigarroa. To mark the occassion(s), our latest HuTube vlog entry features footage of our dress rehearsal for the very first TribLive. Full Story 

    Evan Smith speaks to the crowd during TribLive, a monthly conversation with Texas public officials.
    Credit: Jacqueline Mermea

  • 2010: Chavez: No to Gay Marriage. Yes to Civil Unions?

    By Brandi Grissom

    State Rep. Norma Chavez, D-El Paso, says the reason her opponent Naomi Gonzalez's sexual orientation is important as a political issue is because it could affect her vote on legislation involving gay marriage. Texas legislators and voters statewide already prohibited gay marriage in this state with a constitutional amendment in 2005. So, the story got me wondering whether Chavez voted against that measure. Full Story 

    Naomi Gonzalez (left), Norma Chavez (right)

  • The Brief: April 5, 2010

    By Morgan Smith

    The April runoff is the plain, forgotten cousin of the March primary. Even so, today — the start of early voting — marks the beginning of the end for the April election cycle. That means it’s time to recap. Full Story 

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  • The Runoffs: HD-84

    By Ross Ramsey

    The runoff between John Frullo and Mark Griffin shares one important characteristic with the adjacent race in HD-83: It pits inside-the-tent Lubbock Republicans against a coalition of social and libertarian conservatives who are distinctly unhappy with government in Washington and Texas. In that frame, Frullo's the insurgent and Griffin represents the establishment. Full Story 

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    Credit: Ross Ramsey

  • The Runoffs: HD-83

    By Ross Ramsey

    Delwin Jones, who was first elected to the Texas House in 1964 after two unsuccessful attempts, says he has handed out 765,000 promotional emery boards since his start in politics. His tenure and those files weren't enough to win a bruising primary outright last month, though, and the veteran legislator now finds himself in a runoff against Tea Party organizer Charles Perry, who's capitalizing on voter anger at incumbents. Full Story 

    Rep. Delwin Jones (standing) talks to voters in a Lubbock diner.
    Credit: Ross Ramsey

  • The Runoffs: HD-76

    By Brandi Grissom

    Naomi Gonzalez calls state Rep. Norma Chavez, D-El Paso, a GOP darling, a drinker and a public embarrassment. Chavez calls Gonzalez homosexual, naive and a Republican. The bashing and brawling in this heavily Democratic district is truly something to behold — and there's still more than a week until runoff day. Full Story 

    Naomi Gonzalez (left), Norma Chavez (right)

  • The Runoffs: HD-14

    By Emily Ramshaw

    "The 2011 session is no time to test the learning curve a freshman member," says state Rep. Fred Brown, R-College Station. But former Brazos County Tax Assessor-Collector Gerald "Buddy" Winn thinks new leadership is precisely what this Central Texas House district needs — even if he's "not the shiniest penny in the pile." Full Story 

    Gerald "Buddy" Winn and Fred Brown

  • The Decider

    By Ross Ramsey

    It's like finding out the last season of your favorite TV show was a dream sequence: Kay Bailey Hutchison was never really leaving the U.S. Senate after all. Full Story