October 12, 2007

Mesquite Lawyer Giving Democrats First
Shot at House Seat in Past Eight Years

By Mike Hailey
Capitol Inside Editor

Democrats haven't represented Texas House District 101 since 1985 - and now they're refusing to concede the seat for the first time in eight years.

While the freshman legislator who won the seat a year ago braces for a serious battle in next year's Republican primary, Mesquite attorney Robert Miklos is waiting in the wings as the first Democrat to seek the post since the year 2000.

Miklos - a specialist in real estate litigation for the Hughes & Luce law firm - has been quietly plotting a campaign for HD 101 while the GOP primary fight between State Rep. Thomas Latham of Sunnyvale and former Mesquite Mayor Mike Anderson commands the spotlight.

Miklos plans to play up his experience as a former prosecutor during a stint as an assistant city attorney in Dallas, where he waged a fight against sexually-oriented businesses and child predators. Miklos also is expected to make public education, health insurance and lower electricity bills central issues in his campaign for the House.

Latham, a former Garland policeman, claimed the seat in 2006 after ousting longtime incumbent Elvira Reyna in the Republican primary election and posting an easy victory over a Libertarian foe with no opposition from Democrats last fall. Reyna represented the district for 14 years after winning the seat initially in a special election that was required when Republican Bill Blackwood died in 1993.

Reyna, who had the distinction of being the only Hispanic Republican in the Texas Legislature, faced only two Democratic challengers in seven bids for re-election. The first fell without much of a fight when Reyna beat Democrat Bob Mason with more than 69 percent of the vote the first time she was up for re-election in 1994. Six years later, Reyna had to overcome a more competitive challenge when she defeated Democrat Bruce Archer with only 58 percent of the vote that time around.

But while Democrats have been giving Republicans free passes in HD 101 since Archer's defeat there, the voting in the district has been trending increasingly Democratic during the past three election cycles. After capturing 60 percent of the vote in HD 101 in 2002, Republican statewide candidates claimed only 58 percent in 2004 before dropping to 56 percent in last year's competition.

During his first House term, Latham hasn't exactly been the enemy in the eyes of the chamber's Democrats. Latham - for example - was the only freshman Republican to side with Democrats and renegade Republicans in an attempted overthrow of House Speaker Tom Craddick at the start of the regular session early this year. Even though Latham was believed to be in Craddick's corner during another attempted coup near the end of the session, he kept his cards to his chest. Latham's initial opposition to Craddick's re-election as the chamber's top leader was attributed to the fact that he'd won the seat with substantial help from education forces that had encouraged him to back Republican State Rep. Jim Pitts or another alternative candidate in the election for speaker in January.

But Miklos may never get the chance to unseat an incumbent like Latham did if political odds makers in the Dallas area are on the money with predictions that Anderson will win the Republican nomination in HD 101 in 2008. Anderson served for 10 years as the mayor of Mesquite - the largest city by far in the east Dallas County state House district - before stepping down in August to pursue a bid for the Legislature. Whoever the Republican nominee turns out to be, the bout between Anderson and Latham has the potential to be one of the most competitive primary fights on the Texas House battleground next year.

Mesquite makes up 83 percent of Latham's district, which includes Balch Springs and Sunnyvale. While the district is still largely suburban, it has a working-class population with an increasing number of minority voters who tend to vote for Democrats.

Miklos, who's the president of the Mesquite Bar Association, is expected to generate significant grassroots support from the Democratic base at a time when Democrats are hoping to benefit from a backlash against Republicans at the state and national levels. Democrats picked up six House seats in 2006 while successfully defending several others that Republicans thought they could win. On paper, HD 101 should be one of the Democrats' best shots at seats in the lower chamber that are currently held by Republicans.