Good morning,

A former Californian has a message for his fellow Texans: “Don’t vote for what I fled.”

Here is today's Texas Minute.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

Thursday, March 12, 2020
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• Ballot-counting mistakes are raising more questions about the competence of a Democrat election official in Texas’ second-most populous county. Erin Anderson reports Dallas County Elections Administrator Toni Pippins-Poole is under fire for what many view as a botched election. Pippins-Poole was forced to petition a court to order a partial recount of Dallas County’s primary so she could find the votes that were “unaccounted for” in her original tallies.
      
• Dallas County Commissioner J.J. Koch isn’t satisfied with Pippins-Poole’s performance and is urging an immediate investigation. “The time has absolutely come for Toni Pippins-Poole to step down as elections administrator.”
     
• Under her watch, Anderson notes, Dallas County elections have been the subject of multiple mail-ballot fraud investigations, including allegations that some elections department employees were involved in the schemes. A number of complaints have charged her office with misconduct for failing to follow proper procedures. She was even caught soliciting cash donations from vendors.
    
• Republican “refugees” from a Democrat-controlled state have a message for their new Texas neighbors: Don’t vote for what we fled. Check out Erin Anderson’s article about the newly formed “Keep Texas Red PAC.”
     
• “Don’t California my Texas. Don’t vote for what I fled.” – Rohit Joy, now of Plano and formerly of California
     
• We know the primary election results, but Robert Montoya wanted to find out what issues were motivating people to vote. He interviewed voters outside two polling places to get a sense of what was important to them. While his interviews were conducted in Tarrant County, you will probably find thoughts and concerns shared by many around the state.
   
• Our friends at The Texan report Rice University has canceled in-person classes for the next several weeks due to concerns about the Wuhan coronavirus. Texas A&M will delay resuming classes after spring break, while the University of Texas is “working on a contingency plan that allows the university to move classes online.”

• Earlier this week I asked this Texas Minute audience in a One-Click Survey if the “blue wave” threatening the Lone Star State was an actual threat or a wishful thinking by the Democrats. And boy did I get answers!
    
• By a margin of 59.8 percent to 40.2 percent, the respondents believe the Democrats’ assault on Texas is a legitimate threat. Here are a few comments that were also sent in...
     
• Joshua K. said he hopes the primary election results show Republican voters are enthused right now but “it’s going to take a lot of work to keep them excited down the ballot.”
     
• Amanda P. said she thought the “blue wave” was a myth right up until she “saw my neighbor, who goes to my church, and claims to be pro-life, put a Biden sticker on her car.”
      
• Patti J. noted that while the “blue wave is a threat... I don't believe there are that many stupid Texas residents.” She added that “not enough is being done to insure every genuine vote is counted, every false vote is tossed.”
     
• On the other hand, Jess B. is of the opinion the whole thing is a marketing ploy by out-of-state Democrats... but quickly added that conservative voters and politicians “should not take a single election for granted, ever.”