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MRT (free): Early Voting Shows High Turnout in Hill Country, Low Turnout in Valley // State Refuses Federal Election Monitors // Cruz-Allred Down to the Wire
Here's What You Need to Need to Know in Texas Today.
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MustReadTexas.com – @MustReadTexas
BY: @MattMackowiak
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MONDAY || 11/4/24
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TOP NEWS
“Early voting data: Texas counties with highest and lowest turnout percentage,” KVUE's Paul Livengood — “The early voting period in Texas ended on Friday night, and the final opportunity to cast a ballot in the November election will be on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 5.
Early voting numbers are kept online through the Texas Secretary of State Office, and WFAA kept track of the North Texas voting totals here.
We also looked into which counties around the state showed the highest and lowest turnout percentages during early voting. Here is a breakdown of those numbers (***cumulative in-person AND mail votes through Nov. 1***):
Texas Early Voting totals: Counties with highest turnout percentage
1. Blanco County: 66.84% (7,362 votes)
2. Mason County: 65.65% (2,152 votes)
3. Kendall County: 65.52% (25,525 votes)
4. Llano County: 64.63% (11,928 votes)
5. King County: 64.24% (106 votes)
6. Armstrong County: 63.12% (902 votes)
7. Borden County: 62.63% (305 votes)
8. Comal County: 61.58% (88,485 votes)
9. Mills County: 61.09% (2,215 votes)
10. Gillespie County: 60.63% (13,268 votes)
11. Bandera County: 60.38% (11,487 votes)
12. Rockwall County: 60.34% (53,058 votes)
13. Kerr County: 60.07% (24,066 votes)
14. Somervell County: 59.42% (4,409 votes)
15. Loving County: 59.38% (76 votes)
Texas Early Voting totals: Counties with lowest turnout percentage
1. Taylor County: 1.6% (1,435 votes)
2. Brazoria County: 6.97% (17,413 votes)
3. Hudspeth County: 16.14% (357 votes)
4. Titus County: 21.14% (3,810 votes)
5. Willacy County: 26.25% (3,072 votes)
6. Parmer County: 27.76% (1,263 votes)
7. Winkler County: 27.78% (1,135 votes)
8. Jim Hogg County: 27.9% (990 votes)
9. Zavala County: 27.94% (2,182 votes)
10. Culberson County: 28.06% (479 votes)
11. Frio County: 28.15% (2,682 votes)
12. Knox County: 28.65% (639 votes)
13. Lamb County: 29.46% (2,322 votes)
14. Starr County: 30.28% (11,027 votes)
15. Crosby County: 30.37% (1,105 votes)" KVUE
“Texas sued New Mexico over Rio Grande -- then the feds intervened,” San Antonio Express-News' Martha Pskowski — “When Judge D. Brooks Smith traveled from Pennsylvania to Colorado, he passed over the 98th Meridian, the longitude line separating the water-rich East from the arid West.
The former chief judge of the U.S. 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals left a land of rushing rivers and ample rainfall in western Pennsylvania to gather facts in a case called Texas v. New Mexico Supreme Court over water rights from the Rio Grande.
Now a senior judge in the 3rd Circuit, Smith is serving as a special master to advise the U.S. Supreme Court on what is one of the longest-running disputes over dwindling water in the West, which also involves the federal government.
Smith traveled for a five-hour status conference in late October at Denver’s federal courthouse involving attorneys representing the states, the federal government and several intervenors known as friends of the court.
At issue is the water Texas and New Mexico are entitled to under the Rio Grande Compact, signed in 1938 to allocate the waters of the Rio Grande among the states. Texas brought the current lawsuit against New Mexico in 2013, alleging that farmers pumping from groundwater wells in southern New Mexico were diverting water that the compact allocates to Texas.
The states reached a proposed settlement agreement in 2022 out of court. But the federal government opposed the deal. The Supreme Court then ruled in June that the case could not be settled without the federal government’s consent. Now the states and the federal government must resolve their disagreements to avoid going to trial in federal court, and Smith has ordered the parties to return to mediation no later than Dec. 16 in Washington, D.C.
The outcome of Texas v. New Mexico could fundamentally change how groundwater is managed in the Rio Grande basin in New Mexico and far West Texas, both for the agricultural industry and cities like Albuquerque and Las Cruces, in New Mexico, that pump water from aquifers. It also will be a bellwether for how deeply the federal government can intervene in interstate water conflicts, which are likely to increase as drought and aridification grip the Western United States.
“(The United States) is going to have to take some sort of action to get a handle on groundwater over-pumping,” said Burke Griggs, a professor of water law at Washburn University in Topeka, Kan. “They really do want to keep the case alive.”" SAEN ($)
“Colleagues condemn Tarrant County GOP leader for repeated use of slurs,” Texas Tribune's Robert Downen — “Tarrant County Republican Party Chair Bo French is under fire this week for a series of recent social media posts in which he repeatedly called his political opponents slurs for gay people and people with disabilities.
“This is the gayest ad in history,” French, 55, wrote in an Oct. 11 response to a Democratic advertisement on X, formerly known as Twitter. “Guarantee every one of these ‘dudes’ is a homo. There is literally nothing manly about any of them.”
“Retard strength,” he wrote Tuesday under a video from the Major League Baseball World Series. "Never go full retard," he said in response to former Republican U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney on Oct. 4.
In another post, French polled his 14,000 followers about the upcoming election between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump. “If you believe Harris’ policies are better for Americans than Trumps’ policies, you are:” he asked before listing four choices. “Ignorant,” “A liar,” “Retarded,” or “Gay.”
The posts have prompted public condemnations from a handful of Republican officials in Tarrant County and other parts of the state, some of whom said French's behavior is part of a broader normalization of hateful and dehumanizing rhetoric in the party.
Tarrant County is the nation’s most populous Republican-led county, but has steadily tilted blue in recent election cycles. Backlash to French’s comments comes days before Republicans in the fast-diversifying county hope to maintain control over powerful seats in local government, and ahead of statewide races in which Tarrant’s 1.3 million registered voters will likely weigh heavily.As party chair, French has been open about his goal is to “make Tarrant County inhospitable for Democrats,” and in August he unsuccessfully tried to pressure local Republican officials to close polling sites on college campuses for this year’s election — a move that the party explicitly said was meant to disadvantage Democrats.
French has for years been a fixture of a sprawling political empire funded by Tim Dunn and Farris Wilks, two West Texas oil tycoons who have spent tens of millions of dollars cleansing the Texas GOP of more moderate members while simultaneously employing white nationalists and associating with well-known antisemites. Groups funded by the billionaires gave French roughly $375,000 for his unsuccessful Texas House campaigns in 2016 and 2018, and he was backed by their network in his successful bid last year to lead the local party." Texas Tribune
2024
“Texas refuses federal election monitors on Election Day,” Fox 7 Austin's Alex Boyer — “Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson says the state will not allow federal election monitors at polling locations on Election Day. Nelson says it is a violation of state law.
The Justice Department said it would be sending monitors to 86 jurisdictions in 27 states on Election Day, including eight counties in Texas. Those counties included both Dallas and Palo Pinto.
Nelson sent a letter to the Justice Department on Friday saying they would not be allowed, because it violates state law.
"If the Secretary of State wants to say no to federal observers, it has that right now under the current federal law," said David Coale, a constitutional law attorney not involved in the issue.
The federal government routinely sends election monitors to polling locations across the country to watch for any potential voting rights violations.
Historically, the authority to do so came from the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which looked to equalize voting access.
A Supreme Court ruling in 2013 changed that.
"Federal election monitors have to either get permission from state agents, such as the Secretary of State in Texas, or they have to be operating under a federal court order, which does happen every now and then, but certainly isn't something that happens every day," said Coale.
Nelson told the federal agency that their monitors aren't allowed inside Texas polling sites or in locations where ballots are counted under state law.
"Texas can be confident in the state's strong measures to ensure election integrity," said Nelson in her letter." Fox 7 Austin
“In final days of Senate race, Cruz courts Latino voters along the border and Allred rallies in his hometown,” Texas Tribune's Jasper Scherer, Berenice Garcia, Matthew Choi, and James Barragan — “U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz spent the final weekend of his reelection bid campaigning in El Paso and McAllen, taking his statewide tour to two of Texas’ metro areas with the biggest concentrations of Latino voters as he looks to bolster his support among one of the state’s key voting blocs.
The two border cities served as fitting backdrops for Cruz to take on an issue at the heart of his campaign: immigration.
“I recognize coming to El Paso and telling you about the border is a little bit like going to Noah and telling you about the flood — you know!” Cruz said at a Sunday afternoon rally at a jet terminal in east El Paso. “It is the worst invasion in our nation’s history.”
Hours later, at a McAllen burger restaurant, Cruz accused his Democratic challenger, U.S. Rep. Colin Allred, of backing what he described as the Biden administration’s “open borders” policies. But he also hit Allred for taking votes that ran counter to the state’s oil and gas industry and the natural gas fracking it relies on.
“I have spent 12 years as the leading defender of oil and gas in the United States Senate,” Cruz told a packed crowd at University Draft House in downtown McAllen, where he was joined by conservative commentator Ben Shapiro.
Meanwhile, Allred used his final days on the campaign trail to mobilize support in his hometown of Dallas, one of several Democratic strongholds where he will need to maximize turnout to become the first Democrat in 30 years to win a statewide election in Texas.
Making his final pitch to voters at a packed rally at the Kessler Theater in Dallas’ bohemian Bishop Arts District, Allred cast Cruz as a self-centered, underperforming lawmaker who puts his personal ambitions ahead of legislating.
“You don't have to spend all of your time pitting folks against each other,” Allred said. “That's my biggest issue with Ted Cruz. It’s that he spent 12 years not trying to serve us, but 12 years getting attention for himself and finding the seams in our society and pulling them apart for his own benefit.”
Both candidates are making their closing arguments at the culmination of a competitive and expensive race which could decide control of the U.S. Senate and shape the next several years of Texas politics, as Allred looks to score an earth-shattering upset and Cruz aims for a decisive win that could dispel talk of Texas going blue." Texas Tribune
“Ted Cruz vs. Colin Allred race draws national interest,” Dallas Morning News' Gromer Jeffers, Jr. — “The U.S. Senate showdown between Republican Ted Cruz and Democrat Colin Allred is one of the most watched Election Day contests in the nation, and its result will play a role in determining which party controls the Senate.
The outcome also will serve as a barometer on how firm a grip Republicans have on Texas, which for decades has been a reliably red state.
Allred, a Democratic congressman from Dallas and former NFL player, is trying to give his party its first statewide victory since 1994. Cruz, the Republican incumbent, is seeking his third term and doesn’t want to fumble away a seat in what polls show is another close election.
Here are some factors that could shape Tuesday’s election.
The Texas race for president
In 2020 Donald Trump beat Joe Biden in Texas by 5.6 percentage points, which meant he underperformed other Republicans on the ballot, including Sen. John Cornyn, who beat Democrat MJ Hegar by 10 points.
If Trump improves on his 2020 Texas totals against Vice President Kamala Harris, that should help Cruz. A Trump slip could give Allred an edge after Cruz defeated Beto O’Rourke by only 2.6 percentage points in 2018.
Harris’ performance will be important as well. Allred needs her to turn out Democrats, particularly in the state’s urban areas, and a late-October rally that drew 30,000 enthusiastic Harris supporters to a Houston arena could be a wild card.
In many ways, the Senate race has enough distinguishing qualities that presidential coattails aren’t as critical as they are for down-ballot candidates who are unknown to voters. Still, most people turn out in presidential elections to vote for president, so it’s all connected.
The new voters
Since Ted Cruz ran for reelection in 2018, the number of registered voters in Texas grew by nearly 3 million, giving both campaigns little or no information on their voting patterns, particularly for those who recently turned 18 and have no voting history at all.
Cruz is a national figure and well-known to voters across the country. It’s likely new voters have formed an opinion of him — negative or positive. Allred is lesser known, and the party affiliation of new voters is not always clear.
Encouraging unknown voters to cast a ballot can be risky, sending an opponent’s supporters to the polls.
Previous elections show the swelling voter rolls have not changed the state’s partisan power dynamic, though the results of statewide elections are closer than they were a decade ago, when Texas Gov. Greg Abbott beat Democrat Wendy Davis by 20 percentage points. Abbott won his latest race by 11 points in 2022.
Urban versus rural
Republicans win in Texas by crushing Democrats in small towns and rural areas and winning the outer suburbs. If Cruz repeats the formula, he’ll likely be headed to victory.
“I’m watching the suburbs, places like Williamson County and Tarrant County,” said political consultant Brendan Steinhauser.
Allred has focused much of his campaign on wooing independents and some Republicans. While the success of that effort is important, he’ll need a big turnout from the five largest counties in the state.
Matt Angle, director of the Lone Star Project, said it would be ideal for Democrats and Allred if the five largest counties comprised 42% of the overall turnout.
“There’s a concentration of Texans in the urban areas who support Democrats and are represented by Democrats, so it’s critical for Democrats to turn out voters in those urban areas,” Angle said." DMN ($)
“Dan Patrick debunks claims about Texas voting machines switching votes,” Texas Tribune's Xiomara Moore — “Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick publicly debunked claims that voting machines in the state are changing the selections voters make.
Republican National Committee Co-Chair Lara Trump, whose father-in-law is GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump, posted on social media that Texas had looked into claims about voting machines in Tarrant County switching voters' selections and the "error has been corrected with the voting machines."
But Patrick, who is also a Republican, quickly corrected the national party leader on social media. The lieutenant governor said fewer than 10 people out of the nearly 7 million Texans who had already cast ballots across the state claimed that their selections were changed, but officials could not confirm a single instance of that happening.
"There were actually no errors to correct once we investigated those few cases," Patrick wrote on X.
One person out of 591,885 who had already cast ballots in Tarrant County claimed that the voting machine switched his selection for president from Donald Trump to Democratic nominee Kamala Harris. Tarrant is Texas’ most populous battleground county.
Tarrant County officials believe the man made the wrong selection while using the machine. His original ballot was canceled and he was allowed to cast a new one.
Lara Trump reposted Patrick's statement debunking claims about switched votes.
"We will keep a watchful eye on our elections," Patrick wrote in his post. "If you see anything concerning, call the Secretary of State office overseeing our elections."
The Secretary of State’s Office can be reached at 800-252-8683 or online." Texas Tribune
STATE GOVERNMENT
“Texas buys two ranches near border, including massive 350,000 acres near Big Bend,” Dallas Morning News' Nick Wooten— “The Texas General Land Office announced this week that it purchased two ranches near the nation’s southern border.
The first property is a smaller 1,402-acre property in Starr County where state leaders plan to build a 1.5-mile stretch of border wall along the Rio Grande. The second is the massive 353,785-acre Brewster Ranch near Big Bend National Park.
The state land office did not immediately respond to questions from The Dallas Morning News regarding the transaction. News releases from the agency did not reveal the purchase prices. This story may be updated with responses.
Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham said the Starr County property’s frontage on the river makes it an ideal location for enhancing border security.
She alleged that the federal government has “abdicated its job to secure our southern border.”
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced the state’s plan to build a border wall three years ago. By July, the state had built about 34 miles of steel wall — far from the 1,254 miles needed. The state has paid roughly $25 million per mile of wall, the Texas Tribune reported.
Buckingham told told the Texas Tribune that there are a variety of leasing options for the larger Brewster Ranch, including hunting, agriculture, mineral and the storing of atmospheric carbon dioxide in the soil.
In a news release published by the Land Report, Buckingham said she bought Brewster Ranch to prevent “foreign adversaries from purchasing this land.” Buckingham did not elaborate further on interested parties.
Brewster Ranch was previously owned by Brad Kelley’s Texas Mountain Holdings. Kelley, a tobacco tycoon who lives in Tennessee, is Texas’ largest private landowner. He owned more than 940,000 acres in the state, according to the 2024 Land Report 100.
The Brewster Ranch was the largest of his Texas holdings, according to the report. The asking price was more than $245 million." DMN ($)
BUSINESS NEWS
“Southwest Airlines names Rakesh Gangwal as new board chair,” Dallas Morning News' Alexandra Skores -- “Southwest Airlines has named former US Airways CEO Rakesh Gangwal as its new independent chair of the board of directors.
Gangwal joined the board in July, shortly after activist investor Elliott Investment Management disclosed a stake in the Dallas-based airline and called on the company to make board changes. Previously, Southwest’s board was led by former executive chairman Gary Kelly, but he and six other directors retired on Nov. 1.
“We are embarking on the next era of change at Southwest as we build upon its many successes and storied past,” Gangwal said in a release. “Our critical priority as a newly constituted board is to come together to work closely with Bob Jordan and the rest of the management team to return the carrier to superior financial performance.”
The company has also named new board committee chairs: Lisa Atherton will serve as chair of the compensation committee; Douglas Brooks will serve as chair of the audit committee; David Hess will continue to serve as chair of the safety and operations committee; Chris Reynolds will serve as chair of the nominating and corporate governance committee; and Gregg Saretsky will serve as chair of the finance committee. Saretsky was one of Elliott’s candidates to join the board.
The board shake-up is among many changes happening to return the airline to profitability after calls from Elliott to make changes that would benefit shareholders. Southwest is currently rolling out a plan for assigned seating, doing away with a 50-year-old policy of open seating. It has also added a global airline partner and expanded reach for its flights on Google Flights, Kayak and Skyscanner.
Southwest avoided changing corporate leadership after striking a deal with Elliott for a major overhaul in the board of directors. Elliott added five of its hand-picked nominees to Southwest’s board. Jordan managed to keep his job as CEO, but former CEO Kelly had to retire earlier than previously announced.
“On behalf of the entire company, I look forward to working with our new board as we execute our plan and deliver for our shareholders,” Jordan said in a release." DMN ($)
NEWS FROM AROUND THE STATE
> TX TRIB: "Texas OB-GYNs urge lawmakers to change abortion laws after reports on pregnant women's deaths" TX TRIB
> TX TRIB: "Electoral misinformation in Texas: What you should know to avoid it." TX TRIB
> DMN: "Election Day comes with heightened vigilance, safety preparations in North Texas" DMN
> DMN: "From president to propositions, ballot choices abound for North Texas voters" DMN
> HOU CHRON: "This southeast Texas town ranks as one of the worst small cities in the U.S." HOU CHRON
> FWST: "How many people voted early in Tarrant County ahead of Election Day on Nov. 5" FWST
> AP: "Trump talks about reporters being shot and says he shouldn’t have left White House after 2020 loss" AP
> TPR: "Texas tells U.S. Justice Department that federal election monitors aren’t allowed in polling places" TPR
> AAS: "Early voting has ended in Texas. Here are takeaways from voter turnout" AAS
> DMN: "Mitch McConnell leaving Senate GOP leadership post. Will John Cornyn snag the role?" DMN
> HOU CHRON: "Marathon Oil to lay off hundreds in Houston after ConocoPhillips merger" HOU CHRON
> THE TEXAN: "Ted Cruz, Outspent by Colin Allred, Banking on Rural Voters in Contentious Re-Election Bid" THE TEXAN
> HOU CHRON: "Massive industrial park breaks ground in northwest Houston" HOU CHRON
> KXAN: "Woman’s death highlights divide over abortion ban in Senate race" KXAN
> COMMUNITY IMPACT: "METRO's $1.9B FY 2024-25 budget prioritizes increasing ridership, improving services" COMMUNITY IMPACT
> COMMUNITY IMPACT: "Armand Bayou Nature Center receives 1,137-acre expansion" COMMUNITY IMPACT
> TPR: "Where, when and how to vote in the Nov. 5, 2024, election in San Antonio" TPR
> COMMUNITY IMPACT: "Evacuations underway as wildfire burns in Bastrop County" COMMUNITY IMPACT
> SAEN: "Two of the hottest Texas House races this year are in San Antonio" SAEN
EXTRA POINTS
Last weekend's Texas sports scores:
Fri
> NHL: Florida 6, Dallas 4
> NBA: San Antonio 106, Utah 88
Sat
> NCAAF: South Carolina 44, #10 Texas A&M 20 AP
> NCAAF: Texas Tech 23, #11 Iowa State 22 AP
> NCAAF: Houston 24, #17 Kansas State 19
> NCAAF: #20 SMU 48, #18 Pittsburgh 25
> NCAAF: Baylor 37, TCU 34
> NCAAF: UTSA 44, Memphis 36
> NCAAF: Rice 24, Navy 10
> NCAAF: Middle Tennessee State 20, UTEP 13
> NBA: Golden State 127, Houston 121
> NBA: San Antonio 113, Minnesota 103
> NHL: Dallas at Florida
> NWSL: San Francisco 3, Houston 2
Sun
> NFL: Atlanta 27, Dallas 21
> MLS: Seattle 1, Houston 1 (7-6)
> NBA: Dallas 108, Orlando 85
Tonight's Texas sports schedule:
> 11am: NCAAB: UNT-Dallas at UT-Arlington (ESPN+)
> 6pm: NCAAB: Texas A&M-Corpus Christi at Purdue (Big Ten Network)
> 6pm: NCAAB: #13 Texas A&M at UCF (ESPN+)
> 6:30pm: NCAAB: Dallas Christian at Northwestern State (ESPN+)
> 6:30pm: NCAAB: Texas Southern at Xavier (FS1)
> 7pm: NCAAB: Jackson State at #4 Houston (ESPN+)
> 7pm: NCAAB: Avila at Houston Christian (ESPN+)
> 7pm: NCAAB: Texas A&M-Commerce at Iowa (B1G+)
> 7pm: NCAAB: UT-Rio Grande Valley at Nebraska (B1G+)
> 7pm: NCAAB: Eastern Michigan at Texas State (ESPN+)
> 7pm: NCAAB: Florida A&M at TCU (ESPN+)
> 7pm: NCAAB: Trinity at UTSA (ESPN+)
> 7:30pm: NCAAB: Tarleton State at SMU (ACC Network)
> 7:30pm: NCAAB: Dallas at Stephen F. Austin (ESPN+)
> 7:45pm: NBA: New York at Houston
> 8pm: NCAAB: Sul Ross State at UTEP (ESPN+)
> 8:45pm: NBA: Indiana at Dallas
> 9pm: NCAAB: Ohio State vs. #19 Texas (TNT)
> 9pm: NCAAB: Incarnate Word at California Baptist (ESPN+)
> 9:30pm: NBA: San Antonio at LA Clippers
> 10:30pm: NCAAB: #8 Baylor at #6 Gonzaga (ESPN2)
DALLAS COWBOYS: "Tim Cowlishaw's Cowboys-Falcons report card: Not a great day for coach Mike McCarthy" DMN ($)
DALLAS COWBOYS: "Cowboys' Jerry Jones addresses players with season on the brink" DMN ($)
TEXAS MEN'S BASKETBALL: "Texas men's basketball: Move from Big 12 to SEC ushers in a new era" AAS ($)
SAN ANTONIO SPURS: "Spurs' Gregg Popovich won't be on 2-game road trip to LA and Houston, the club announced" SAEN ($)
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