What's Her Name Runs To Become the Next Tom DeLay

NPR's Political Junkie, Ken Rudin, thinks Shelley Sekula-Gibbs might have trouble because of her name. That's a huge issue for SS-G, especially considering that she was Shelley Sekula, then Shelley Sekula-Rodriguez and just Sekula-Gibbs for the last couple years since her TV newsman/husband Sylvan Rodriguez died and Shelley married anew.

(What's her name with her mentor Tommie D)


Actually, a set of great questions arise about writing in SS-G. Will the name have to be complete? Will a hyphen be necessary? What if the name is mis-spelled? Can the election judges help? (I doubt it and I'm sure the Democratic judges like me will make sure there's no extra discussion between voters and GOP election judges) And of course, there's all the fun of trying to do a write-in with the goofy electronic voting machines used in Harris County, with the dial a letter system. It will take five minutes for the computer savvy to do it. Who knows how long for an older, less computer literate person!

Plus, on the state-wide ballot we have the other name confuser, Carol Keeton Rylander, etc. etc. Her name issues are so bad that she wanted to change the ballot to call her, "Grandma!" Of course she also used to be a Democrat before becoming a Republican before becoming an independent to run in this race for Texas Gobnor. No wonder her son is so confused he went to work as W's Press Secretary!

Anyway, SS-G is the best candidate the limpy GOP can get to try this swing for the fences strategy that Tommie D foisted on his party...


NPR's Political Junkie Comment Whether a Write-in can Win

Political Junkie
By Ken Rudin
NPR
8/23/06

Q: What are the chances the Republican write-in candidate for Tom DeLay's old House seat in Texas can beat Democrat Nick Lampson in November? I don't think the GOP has enough time to pull it off. -- Robert Cooper, Washington, D.C.

A: Obviously, given the fact that only three people accomplished the feat in the past half-century, it's not an easy task trying to win election to the House as a write-in candidate. It may be even more difficult, given the fact that the GOP may have some divisions over how they came to endorse their write-in candidate, Houston Council member Shelley Sekula-Gibbs. She was nominated at a meeting of 22nd District Republican precinct chairs over Sugar Land Mayor David Wallace.

Wallace had initially indicated he would remain in the race as a write-in candidate, suggesting that the endorsement of Sekula-Gibbs was a sham and unrepresentative of the district's "grass roots." But with national Republicans insisting that the only way they would fund the race -- they were pledging $3 million -- was if the GOP field was limited to one candidate, Wallace withdrew this week. Part of the decision to bypass Wallace may have been based on his decision to take on and defeat the incumbent Republican mayor of Sugar Land in 2002.

I don't have intimate knowledge about the campaign skills of either Sekula-Gibbs or Wallace, but I would venture a guess that writing in the name of the latter would be easier than the former. And there's another complication: Some Republicans have suggested that the best way to deny Lampson a return to Congress is to vote for Bob Smither, the Libertarian Party nominee, who is already on the ballot.

If Lampson wins in November, as well he might, look for Wallace to seek the GOP nomination in 2008. And if he does win this year, the blame rests with DeLay, under indictment in Texas, whose decision to run and then withdraw was a major miscalculation.

And wouldn't that be something if the Democrats won the House by one seat -- Tom DeLay's.

Now, on to the question: Does the GOP have enough time to unite behind Sekula-Gibbs and hold onto the seat? While the odds don't look so good, it might be helpful to look at what happened in Arkansas in 1958, where the winning write-in candidate launched his effort just one week to go before the election. Here's a look at that situation, as well as the other two times a House candidate won on a write-in:

DALE ALFORD, Arkansas, 1958

The issue here was President Eisenhower's sending in federal troops to integrate Central High School in Little Rock. Most Arkansas politicians opposed the intervention, but Rep. Brooks Hays (D) tried to mediate the standoff between the federal government and Arkansas Gov. Orval Faubus (D). This inflamed segregationists in the state, who rallied around a Citizens Council candidate in the Democratic primary. Hays prevailed by a 3-2 margin. Then, with a week to go before the November election, Alford, a member of the Little Rock school board, launched a write-in bid against Hays. Backed by Faubus' allies, Alford won in a major upset by just over 1,200 votes (51-49 percent).

JOE SKEEN, New Mexico, 1980

Five-term Rep. Harold Runnels, a conservative Democrat, was so popular in his district that the Republicans didn't even put up a candidate against him, either in 1978 or '80. Then, on Aug. 5, 1980, Runnels, 56, died of cancer. The state attorney general, a Democrat, announced that the Democrats could replace Runnels on the ballot but that it was too late for the Republicans to do so. Enraged Republicans rallied behind a write-in effort by Skeen, a former state senator who twice ran for governor and who was well-known in the district. The Democrats also had their problems: They nominated David King, the nephew of Gov. Bruce King, to replace Runnels on the ballot. David King had only moved his voter registration into the district some 10 days after Runnels died. Worse, he defeated Runnels' widow Dorothy for the nomination, which led her to launch a write-in candidacy as well. The Democratic disarray enabled Skeen to win as a write-in candidate with 38 percent of the vote.

RON PACKARD, California, 1982

Eighteen Republicans were running in the primary for the seat being vacated by Rep. Clair Burgener (R). The winner was political novice Johnny Crean, whose family wealth bankrolled his saturation of the airwaves in the district, situated just north of San Diego. Crean spent well over $750,000 in the primary, then a substantial amount, mostly attacking his fellow Republicans, while ducking candidate forums and personal appearances. Crean defeated Carlsbad Mayor Ron Packard in the primary by 92 votes out of more than 83,000 cast. Furious, Packard announced a write-in effort. Fearful that the GOP split in this overwhelming GOP district could end up electing a Democrat, there was great pressure on Packard to end his bid. But he refused, and won the seat with 37 percent of the vote. The Democrat finished second with 32 percent; Crean received 31 percent.