GOP Runoff Quick Takes: Basically A Muddle

"Moreover you shall select from all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place such over them to be rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens."
Exodus 18:21

[Note: We didn't really do that...but what else is new.]

We don't really feel like doing a long analysis of what happened, but some thoughts:

• Abbott had an ok night.  But it wasn't anything special.  He's not really an asset, but neither is he toxic.  Long-term fate remains TBD.

• Dan Flynn and J.D. Sheffield prove that incumbents with really bad records can still get popped.

• Justin Berry and Glen Rodgers prove that, in open seat races where you can pretend to be all things to all people, good ol' boy cash can get you across the finish line.

• Speaking of those two, it's going to be fascinating to see what happens to their districts after redistricting...but we suspect both will have to introduce themselves to a lot of new voters in two years.

• Carrie Isaac and Shelby Slawson prove that good candidates win.

• Kathleen Wall proves that, no matter how much of your own money you light on fire, baseless, over-the-top accusations rarely stick.  Such a waste.  Congratulations Kathleen, you're the new David Dewhurst.

Bottom Line: A bunch of stuff we already knew got proven all over again.

Wall Builds Name ID

"A man’s heart plans his way,
But the Lord directs his steps."
Proverbs 16:9

CD-22 GOP runoff candidate Kathleen Wall has a new ad out:



The ad itself is whatever. Way too Trump humpy for our tastes. But it's certainly factually accurate.

That being said, we find the degree to which it's gotten people talking to be very interesting.

Texas Scorecard:

PushJunction:

The Trib:

As a general matter, voters are ignorant about down ballot runoffs.  Anything one can do to get people talking (within certain obvious limits) is generally good.  That's even truer under current...unique...circumstances.

That being said, we do find this quote from the Democrat candidate astounding:

"Irresponsible, race-baiting comments like these from Kathaleen Wall are unacceptable and dangerous to TX-22’s large Asian American and Pacific Islander population, who are intimately aware of the FBI warning about the recent surge of hate crimes against their community," Democratic nominee Sri Preston Kulkarni said in a statement.

Ok dude.

If this Sri Kularni character wants to argue that it's somehow racist to point out that this virus originated in China...well...good luck with that.

Bottom Line: In a low-profile runoff, anything that can get people talking about you has got to be considered a win.