Bosquez To Run For District 87 Seat

Progressives here in the Texas Panhandle got a bit of good news yesterday. Republican first-term representative, Walter Price, will have an opponent in the Texas House District 87 race in the 2012 election. Democrat Abel Bosquez (pictured above), who had been considering running against Price, announced that he will indeed be running for Price's seat.

Bosquez told the Amarillo Globe News that his issues would be education and jobs. He said, "I am going to start hammering at why the Republican Legislature cut the budget for schools and how the cuts are hurting the kids."

Bosquez knows he will be the underdog in the race. The Texas Panhandle is probably the reddest area in the state, and has elected nothing but Republicans for quite a while now (since it is a hotbed of fundamentalists and teabaggers). In fact, the Republicans have such an iron grip on the Panhandle that Democrats didn't even field candidates in most races in the 2010 election.

This will be the second time Bosquez has run for the House District 87 seat. He lost the election to Price in 2010, when he was the only Democrat running for a state House or Senate seat in the area. I hope not, but the possibility exists that he will be the only Democrat running again. He said, "I know other people are reluctant to run. I may be the only sacrificial lamb, but it's important to do it. Sooner or later we'll win."

He's absolutely right. The area may be solidly Republican right now (and Bosquez will be a definite underdog), but the changing demographics of the Panhandle show that will probably change in the future. It is just a question of how fast the change will happen. The White (and Republican) population in the area is aging, and a big percentage of younger Whites are moving out of the area for more lucrative opportunities elsewhere. Meanwhile, Hispanics are moving in to the area in substantial numbers.

Hispanics are already the majority in several small Panhandle counties, and eventually they will be the majority in all of the Panhandle counties. After that demographic change takes place, it is very unlikely that Republicans will be able to maintain their hold on the area (considering the racist and anti-immigrant policies they continue to support). While the present may be bleak, the future looks very bright for Panhandle Democrats.

But you can't win a race unless you have a candidate in that race. That's why it's very important for good people like Abel Bosquez (who is well-qualified for the office he is seeking) to run now. And more good Democratic candidates are needed. The people of the Panhandle need to know they have a choice in every election and every race. Running candidates now, even though they might be underdogs, will hasten the day when Democrats start to win in the Panhandle -- and that day will come.

Democrats and Panhandle progressives owe a debt of gratitude to brave candidates like Abel Bosquez -- who is willing to try to climb a very tall political mountain. He has my respect and my vote, and my undying gratitude for his political courage.

Swinford Says No To Re-Election Bid

David Swinford (pictured) has been the representative for House District 87 in the Texas Panhandle for the last 19 years, but it looks like that's coming to an end. The veteran Republican state legislator says he is not filing for another re-election bid.

Rep. Swinford said, "I do love the House and I always will, because it's a fabulous institution, but it's time for someone else to represent House District 87. If I were to run for re-election, I would be 70 years old in the next session. I've been a public servant for a long time and I want to spend more time with my family, enjoy my grandchildren and see my friends here more often."

This is somewhat good news for Democratic candidate Abel Vasquez. It means he's is now running for an open seat and won't have to face an entrenched incumbent. He said, "It makes it more of a 50-50 race, because we are both running for an open seat."

That may be a bit too optimistic, because any Democrat running for office in the Panhandle has a hard row to hoe. This is still the reddest area in Texas. In addition, the only daily newspaper here in Amarillo is little more than a propaganda organ for the Republican Party.

I'm not saying it's impossible for Vasquez to win, because upsets do happen from time to time in politics. But a Democratic win in House District 87 would be a shocker to political pundits statewide.

It's not yet known who the Republicans will be running for the office. So far, names being thrown around are Amarillo mayor Debra McCartt and president of the Amarillo I.S.D. Board of Trustees Anette Carlisle.

UPDATE -- Victor Leal, owner of Leal's Mexican Restaurant in Amarillo, says he will toss his hat in the ring as a Republican.

Bosquez To Run Against Swinford

There is little doubt that the Texas Panhandle is now the reddest part of the state. There are three House Districts in the Panhandle, and a Democrat has not won one of the seats since 1994. That was Warren Chisum, who immediately changed his party affiliation to Republican after winning the seat (thereby increasing the IQ level of both parties).

The three seats are currently held by Republicans David Swinford, John Smithee and Warren Chisum. None of them has even had a Democratic opponent since 2002, when Swinford defeated Jesse Quackenbush. It looks like at least that may change for one of the districts next year.

At the Amarillo Central Labor Council's Labor Day Picnic today, Potter County Democratic chairman Abel Bosquez (pictured) will announce that he will be a Democratic candidate for House District 87. Since he is the only candidate for the position in the Democratic primary, that will pit him against David Swinford in the general election.

Bosquez says he'll make education, jobs and health care his main campaign issues. He realizes that the odds are against his winning the seat, but says, "I think I can because the tide is changing. I think I can get a lot of votes because there are a lot of people here who don't vote because they don't think their vote counts. Those are the people who will help me win this race."

I give Bosquez credit for running. The Democrats should be running candidates in all three of the races. And he may be right about large numbers of people not voting. But my question is who is going to get these voters to the polls?

Bosquez might stand a chance if he had done a better job in organizing the Democratic Party in Potter County. But it is far from organized. Half of the county's precincts don't even have a precinct chairman. How do you turn out votes in precincts without organization and leadership in those precincts?

I hate to be the voice of doom, but Bosquez looks like little more than a sacrificial lamb to me. Even so, I will vote for him and try to support him in my own precinct.