wendy wins! (davis defeats brimer in sd10)

After a grueling campaign in which her opponent continuously plagued the campaign with legal battles, former Ft. Worth city councilwoman Wendy Davis is the winner in Senate District 10.

Tarrant County voters chose to send change to Austin, rejecting the same old divisive Republican tricks offered by Kim Brimer.

Congratulations, Wendy! You endured a hard-fought campaign and we hope you're enjoying this moment- we can't wait for you to get to work in Austin to continue your tradition of making Tarrant County and Texas better with your service. Thank you, and way to go!

are you serious? (brimer-davis battle headed to the big d)

We only thought it was over.

As it turns out, it's only changed venue.

Attorneys are set to make oral arguments before the 5th Court of Appeals in Dallas on Oct. 2 at 1 p.m. on whether former Fort Worth Councilwoman Wendy Davis is ineligible to run against Republican state Sen. Kim Brimer.

Oral arguments had been scheduled here in Fort Worth last week until the Supreme Court of Texas moved the case to the Dallas appeals court last week after 2nd Court of Appeals Chief Justice John Cayce asked that it be moved to Dallas.

Since the case was still up in the air after the August deadline, Davis' name will remain on the ballot no matter what happens in the Dallas appeal. But should Brimer emerge victorious in the newest round, Davis would not be able to hold the seat even were she to win the election. Instead, the seat would remain vacant and would be subject to special election.

We're getting pretty tired of Brimer's sad attempts to get rid of his opponent before the election is even held. Brimer: stop the dirty tricks and let the people be heard. If the voters want to keep you, they will. What are you so scared of?

You can help the Wendy Davis campaign stand up to Republican scare tactics by making a generous donation to her campaign today.

Kim Brimer is only offering more of the same. It's obvious that he wants to play as dirty as he can in the election, so why would we trust him afterward? Come November, we're voting for change.

brimer-davis telenovela set to end friday

Expect to hear a quiet sigh of relief Friday from the Wendy Davis campaign.

Davis, a Democrat who is running against state senator Kim Brimer, a Ft. Worth Republican, has faced several challenges against her candidacy because of "resign-to-run" laws, meaning her opponents don't think she resigned from her city council post early enough before declaring her candidacy for the State Senate.

First, a group of area firefighters said her candidacy was illegitimate, but the motion was denied. Then, Brimer himself tried to get Davis removed from the ballot. State District Court Judge Tom Lowe denied the challenge, allowing Davis to remain a candidate in the election.

The Texas Supreme Court today denied Brimer's request to expedite his appeal, meaning Brimer's last chance will be with the Second Court of Appeals in Ft. Worth.

The deadline to remove a candidate's name from the ballot is this Friday. Here's to an end to this never-ending drama, and a victorious Wendy Davis. We have a feeling Brimer wouldn't be so persistent with this lawsuit if he weren't afraid of losing his seat in November.

wendy for the win! (brimer loses ouster suit)

Despite Kim Brimer's best efforts, it looks as if he'll be facing his worthy adversary Wendy Davis on the November ballot.

The Lone Star Project reported that Brimer lost his court challenge against Davis a few days back.

After very brief deliberation, State District Court Judge Tom Lowe denied Republican State Senator Kim Brimer’s effort to knock his Democratic challenger, Wendy Davis, off the November ballot. Judge Lowe upheld Davis’ position on every important disputed point.

We knew Davis would emerge from this frivolous lawsuit victorious, but Brimer may still appeal the decision according to PoliTex.

So for the time being, this drama may continue.

But Tarrant County needs Wendy! We can't let these Republican scare tactics derail one of the most promising candidacies in North Texas this cycle. Contribute to the Wendy Davis campaign today.

After all, Brimer may be trying to oust her from the race, but we all know why he's trying: he's afraid she'll oust him from the Texas Senate.

Davis Wins Challenge in Appeals Court

Tarrant County native Wendy Davis is free to continue her run for Senate District 10 against incumbent Kim Brimer (R-Fort Worth.)

Matt Angle, of the Lone Star Project, issued a statement after the ruling:

Today, the Texas 2nd District Court of Appeals in Fort Worth rejected an effort by allies of State Senator Kim Brimer to remove former Fort Worth City Councilwoman, Wendy Davis as his Democratic opponent in November. For several weeks, Brimer has been engaged in a frantic scramble of administrative and legal maneuvers to avoid facing Davis and allowing Senate District 10 voters a choice next November.

The merits of the case clearly favor Wendy Davis who, in keeping with State Law, resigned her post on the Fort Worth City Council in order to seek the Senate District 10 seat (See Lone Star Project Report and copy of Democratic Party brief here). Ironically, however, Kim Brimer’s sneaky tactical maneuver whereby he sought to hide his personal involvement in the case by enlisting surrogates to file the complaint on his behalf, gave the Court an easy avenue to deny the claim. Brimer’s "hide and watch" strategy backfired when the Court threw out the case ruling that Brimer surrogates do not have standing and that only Brimer himself can make a legal challenge of this type.

Unfortunately, no one seems to think this will be the end of it. The FWST hints that the firefighters may appeal the ruling.

West and Clear reminds us why the firefighters might have a dog in this hunt.

Does that mean the firefighters won’t appeal? No. Does that mean that Brimer won’t jump in and file suit? No. However, if that happened, it would sort of undermine the position that these three “Democratic” firefighters were acting on behalf of fellow District 10 Democrats. Of course, the fact that the firefighters have already endorsed Brimer and the fact that the firefighters’ union paid Brimer’s consultant Bryan Eppstein $224,000 for his assistance in their collective bargaining campaign would seem to undermine the firefighters’ credibility anyway. Now, $224,000 isn’t exactly Kay Granger kinda money, but it ain’t chump change. Those firefighters must need to pass the boot around a bunch of times to raise that kind of money.

In the meantime, the Davis campaign can be thankful for weeks of free publicity. By contrast, Brimer looks almost desperate. We can't blame him. You'd be worried, too, if you were running against a candidate with Hollywood good looks and a degree from Harvard Law, an experienced public servant known for her honesty and "raw political courage."

Aman Betheja has a complete rundown of the testimony at the FWST's political blog, Politex.

Also at Capitol Annex, Burnt Orange Report, Job's Anger, and McBlogger.

Texas Supreme Court Dismisses Challenge to Davis

Vince Leibowitz at Capital Annex is reporting that the court challenge filed by three firefighters against Wendy Davis' run for Senate District 10 has been denied by the Texas Supreme Court.

.....the Court denied the motion of some Fort Worth firefighters challenging former City Councilman Wendy Davis’ candidacy under resign-to-run laws, instead essentially dropping the ball back to the regional appellate court.

This is good news for Davis. But what's next?

QuorumReport.com says the Supreme Court simply indicated that because there was time, the more appropriate venue was the local Court of Appeals. Latham said that Davis’ name will appear on the ballot for the March 4 primary.

Chairman Brender Concludes Davis Eligible for Senate Dist. 10 Run

Art Brender, Chairman of the Tarrant County Democratic Party, has issued a statement clarifying the eligibility of Wendy Davis' candidacy for State Senate District 10.

At about 2:30 p.m., on December 31, 2007, I received a challenge from three Fort Worth Firefighters, pursuant to the Texas Election Code, claiming that Wendy Davis who had filed as a candidate in the 2008 Democratic Primary for State Senate District 10 was ineligible for the office pursuant to Art. III, § 19, of the Texas Constitution, which provides as follows:

No judge of any court, Secretary of State, Attorney General, clerk of any court of record, or any person holding a lucrative office under the United States, or this State, or any foreign government shall during the term for which he is elected or appointed, be eligible to the Legislature.

This provision has resulted in a landmark decision here, in Tarrant County, that resulted in former State Senator and State Representative Doyle Willis being excluded from seeking election to this same Senate seat in 1964, In Willis v. Potts, the Texas Supreme Court strictly construed this section of the Texas Constitution and excluded Doyle Willis as a candidate despite his resigning from the Fort Worth City Council. In 1982, Woodie Woods, Mayor of Fort Worth, was excluding from the ballot in his attempt to run as Republican Senator in Senate District 12 by this same provision. In 1992, a decision by the Texas Supreme Court, Wentworth v. Myer, 339 S.W.2d 766 (Tex. 1992), modified the ruling in Willis v. Potts. Wentworth involved another challenge to a Texas Senate seat where the nominee, Jeff Wentworth, had resigned his position on the Board of Regents, but had not sought or been subject to the holdover provisions contained in Art. XVII, § 17, of the Texas Constitution. This provision provides that an office holder who resigns his or her office continues to serve until a successor has qualified to hold the office.

On New Year's Eve, three firefighters who vote in the Democratic primaries, made a citizen's challenge, as permitted by the Texas Election Code, to Wendy Davis as a Democratic nominee to the State Senate District 10. The firefighters claimed that Wendy Davis had not resigned as that term is defined under the Texas Constitution, since she had continued to serve on the Fort Worth City Council and received a weekly salary after she had filed as a candidate for the Texas State Senate. The effect of remaining as a holdover candidate and continuing to serve in that capacity was specifically exempted from the Supreme Court decision in the Wentworth case. I have thoroughly researched this matter and consulted, as I am required to do, with the Secretary of State's Office, for an opinion concerning whether or not any Court since 1992 has decided this issue. I am advised by the Secretary of State, as well as by my own research, that this issue has not been addressed by the Texas appellate courts since the Wentworth decision. Since decisions to determine the eligibility of the candidate must be strictly construed AGAINST INELIGIBILITY, I have followed the law strictly and to the letter and have declared this date that Wendy Davis is eligible to run as a candidate in the 2008 Democratic Primary for the position of State Senate District 10. A copy of my decision follows this announcement.

A number of inquiries have been posed by Democrats since this challenge was presented and discussed in the news media. Under the Texas Election Code, if a candidate is declared ineligible to serve in an office by order of a court prior to the 74th day before the General Election, the Executive Committee of the Party whose candidate is disqualified may replace that candidate.

At this time, there has been no lawsuit filed to determine this issue. I am hopeful that none will be. In many instances over the past twelve years I have served as your County Chair, I have represented the Party's and its candidates in challenging the eligibility of Republican candidates, such as Representative Bill Zedler. In this instance, however, I am the official actually making the decision, under the Election Code. Thus, I will not serve as an attorney in the event of any legal challenge to my decision to declare Wendy Davis an eligible candidate. That duty would be undertaken by the Secretary of State's Office and/or the Texas Attorney General's Office. My connection with this matter has officially ended with this decision. Any defense of my decision will be undertaken by the Texas Attorney General or the Secretary of State......

Wendy Davis' Eligibility for Senate District 10 Challenged

According to the Fort Worth Star Telegram, a challenge has been made regarding Wendy Davis' eligibility to file for Texas State Senate District 10 against Kim Brimer.

Three Fort Worth firefighters delivered a letter Monday afternoon to Art Brender, Tarrant County Democratic Party chairman, calling on the party to disqualify Davis from running because she is still a Fort Worth City Council member.

State law forbids sitting council members from running for the Legislature. Although Davis resigned in August, local law requires her to keep her seat until a successor is sworn in. Joel Burns, who won the special election runoff Dec. 18 to replace Davis, is scheduled to be sworn in Jan. 8.

The letter left Brender scrambling for legal clarification and appealing for an eleventh hour backup candidate "in an abundance of caution."

Steve at Caravan of Dreams has some speculation as to who could be behind the challenge.

According to the Startlegram, the letter was sent by Cullen Cox, Rickey Turner and Javier Cerda, three firefighters who support the Democratic Party, according to Rob Gibson, second vice president of the Fort Worth Professional Firefighters Association. If these guys truly support the Democratic Party, why would they derail a candidate who looked to have an excellent opportunity to unseat a very vulnerable and disliked Republican?

As one local Democrat told me this morning, the dots are pretty easy to connect. The political consultant for the Fort Worth Firefighters is Republican political consultant Bryan Eppstein. The political consultant for Kim Brimer is -- you guessed it -- Republican political consultant Bryan Eppstein.

If Eppstein's name is familiar, it's because his fingerprints are all over the North Texas political landscape. He made news last year when J.D. Granger, son of U. S. Rep Kay Granger (R- Fort Worth- a client of Eppstein's), hired him for a lucrative consulting gig with the Tarrant Regional Water District board. The appointment was made without an RFP.

No word on who might replace Davis if her filing is declared invalid.

UPDATE: The FWST is reporting this evening that Fort Worth City Councilman Joel Burns was sworn in today, one week earlier than scheduled.

Burns said he was told by Fort Worth city attorneys that because the runoff election results were canvassed last Thursday, making them official, he could be sworn in any time.

John Hill, a retired appellate judge, administered the oath of office Tuesday at Burns' home in front of a small group of family and friends, Burns said.

There is still some question as to whether this paves the way for Davis to run. Davis filed for office in early December.

Brender said he also notified the Texas Secretary of State's Office regarding challenge.

"It's an issue, unfortunately, that the courts have not ruled on," he said. "The actual issue regarding an officeholder resigning and staying on as a holdover candidate has not been decided by the courts. Although I don't think there would have been any issue had she filed tomorrow and Joel had been sworn in today."

why we still love wendy davis

Wendy Davis may have some skeletons in her closet, and we aren't just talking about the readers of Fort Worth Weekly voting her "Most Likely to Sell Grandma to the Highest Bidder" back in 2002.

After resigning her position on the Fort Worth City Council and declaring her intentions to run for SD-10 against unpopular and unethical Republican Kim Brimer, eager politicos have started to examine her past political contributions. Apparently, she even gave money to George W. Bush in 1999.

Caravan of Dreams notes that contributions to Republicans may help her with a suburban audience, since instead of representing downtown Fort Worth, her district would encompass Grapevine and Southlake. She looks like less of a partisan than the other name being tossed around: Art Brender. Brender is the current chairman of the Tarrant County Democratic Party. But will her nonpartisan past hurt her reputation with the Democratic base?

Brender has already taken some shots at Davis. After announcing that she voted in the 2006 Democratic primary, he reportedly said "I believe like Harry Truman if you run a Republican against a Republican, the Republicans will win every time."

There are two types of people that can't understand why a Democrat would vote in the Republican primary: people that live in blue states and Democratic county chairs.

In the reddest of Republican suburbs in North Texas, some Democrats have been tempted to vote in the Republican primary in order to have a say in who will actually represent them. In many areas, there weren't even Democratic candidates on the ballot. One prime example is in Flower Mound, where Tan Parker and Anne Lakusta faced off in a run-off election for Texas House District 63. The race was irresistible to even some hardcore Democrats that couldn't stand to be represented by the Bush-loving Parker. That race was decided in the primary, because no Democrat stepped up to run for the seat. (Unfortunately, Parker went on to win the election, anyway.)

The truth is that it shouldn't matter. Davis is, from most accounts, a tried and true Democrat. As a councilmember, she remained nonpartisan, which is expected. But her donations, while some need an explanation, show that she supports Democrats. She has recently given campaign cash to Hillary Clinton. She even donated money to Art Brender himself!

One commenter on Burnt Orange Report described Davis this way:

Fair taxes, economic development in the inner city, no school vouchers, pro-choice, solid on GLBT issues, inclusive of minorities, against cutting off access to the courts via tort reform, an advocate for clean air and public transportation, sounds like Wendy Davis is a fine Democrat.

Obviously, Davis' record speaks for itself.

Also consider these glowing endorsements from her fellow council members, via FWST:

Council members praised Davis' service on the council, emphasizing her work on economic development issues.

"She has been at the forefront of many economic deals that have benefited Fort Worth," Councilman Sal Espino said. "And she brings to public life that unique perspective of someone who has worked hard to get where she is at."

Mayor Mike Moncrief said Davis fights for what she believes.

"You have done a masterful job," he said. "You are not afraid to shed a tear every now and then, and you are concerned for the least of us in the city as well as the most."

Councilwoman Kathleen Hicks said Davis has worked hard on issues throughout the city.

"Not only the work you've done in your district, but the work you've done in southeast Fort Worth has challenged me," Hicks said.

Wendy Davis is our best shot at taking back SD-10 from a fund-funneling Republican that has got to go. And if calling her a "DINO" is the best that her primary opposition can do, she has a pretty good shot.

Wendy Davis Officially Declares for SD 10

The FWST reports that Wendy Davis has resigned her position as Fort Worth councilwoman and plans to run for Texas State Senate District 10.

City Councilwoman Wendy Davis resigned Thursday night, announcing that she plans to challenge veteran state lawmaker Kim Brimer for his state Senate seat in 2008.

Davis has represented District 9 since 1999.

She is chief executive of the Fort Worth division of Republic Title.

Davis will run as a Democrat. Brimer is a Republican.

In a tearful speech, Davis told her council colleagues that she feels compelled to fight special interests in Austin.

"Texas is ready for change," she said. "The partnership in Austin is badly broken."

Davis will join Art Brender, another possible challenger to the seat. And at least one of them already has a fan.

Capitol Annex , Burnt Orange Report, Job's Anger and Caravan of Dreams have more. Also, Lone Star Project deconstructs Brimer's response to their recent poll.

Low Polls for Kim Brimer in SD 10

The latest polls on Texas State Senate District 10 show why the race might be drawing some serious contenders in next year's election. (See yesterday's post.) Numbers from the Lone Star Project indicate Republican incumbent Kim Brimer could be vulnerable to the right challenger.

A recent Lone Star Project poll reveals that Republican State Senator Kim Brimer has squandered almost 20 years in public office to remain largely unknown in his own backyard. With little to show for his time in Austin other than negative press accounts detailing questionable ethics, Brimer is clearly vulnerable to an adequately funded mainstream challenger. Without question, Tarrant County activists currently considering a challenge to Brimer are on solid ground (see story here).

The Lone Star Project commissioned the respected polling firm Opinion Analysts to conduct a survey of Texas Senate District 10 to help determine the viability of a challenge to incumbent Republican State Senator Kim Brimer. (see methodology below) The poll confirms earlier Lone Star Project vote analysis indicating underlying strength for a Democratic challenger and surprising weakness by the incumbent Brimer.

Among the more surprising results, 50 percent of the people polled had never even heard of Brimer.

Earlier this year, Charles Kuffner had some interesting statistics on the SD 10 race.

[Brimer's] district is entirely within Tarrant County, which is the one major urban county to remain a Republican stronghold (though that's gradually weakening), so it hadn't occurred to me to look there. But by every measure, Brimer is the Republican Senator in the bluest district.

Kuff includes some tantalizing data from previous races to make his case. Check it out. Tarrant County may not be ready to mirror Dallas' election successes yet, but winning back a senate seat would be a great start.

Art Brender Weighing SD 10 Candidacy

From bloggers blank and Todd Hill at BOR, the Texas State Senate District 10 will likely have a challenger to oppose Republican incumbent Kim Brimer.

Two possible names are being suggested as potential Democratic challengers. The first is Art Brender, currently chairman of the Tarrant County Democratic Party. A second person rumored to be interested is Wendy Davis, a Fort Worth City Councilmember in District 9.

This report from the FWST confirms Brender's interest in the seat, but leaves Wendy Davis' intentions up in the air.

Word has it that a couple of local Democrats are considering challenging Republican state Sen. Kim Brimer for the District 10 Senate seat next year.

Tarrant County Democratic Party Chairman Art Brender, busy gearing up a slate of local candidates for next year's elections, said he is considering making that bid himself.

"I'm looking at it real hard just in light of the changing demographics in that Senate district," said Brender, a Fort Worth lawyer.

And speculation is swirling that Fort Worth City Councilwoman Wendy Davis may be debating the same thing. She declined to comment.

Brimer's district covers about half of Tarrant County, including Fort Worth, Benbrook, Mansfield and part of Arlington. Brimer won the seat in 2002 with 59 percent of the vote.