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GOP Gives House New Dirty Thirty
with Riddle Retribution Bid Best Bet
Capitol Inside
December 15, 2021
Debbie Riddell was the Texas Legislature's original right winger during a stint as a representative that spanned 15 years. Affectionately known among her peers as the Riddler, Riddell coined the concept of shock value with rhetorical alarms on the encroachment of socialism, terrorist baby breeding by immigrants and dangerous transgenders.
But Riddell subtly evolved into a team player for a House speaker who conservatives despised - and she paid the price for her association with the old-guard establishment when State Rep. Valoree Swanson of Spring ousted her in the GOP primary election in 2016.
Riddell has a shot now at both redemption and revenge with a single stone in a belated rematch with Swanson that the former lawmaker initiated when she entered the House District 150 race on Monday before the filing deadline. Riddle's unforeseen resurfacing - fueled by the prospects for a runoff with Brian Le and Valerie McGilvrey in the GOP field as well - the HD 150 payback potential has it crowning the early Capitol Inside list of Texas House Races to Watch in the majority party primary in 2022.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's fight with three brand name challengers appears to be the only truly competitive race on paper at the outset. Land Commissioner George P. Bush, U.S. Rep. Louie Gohmert of Tyler and former Supreme Court judge Eva Guzman are taking aim at Paxton in round one. Limited polling suggests that Paxton is running as the favorite despite a lingering criminal case and the possibility for federal charges with a probe of business dealings under way.
Former congressman Beto O'Rourke is the only celebrity in the Democratic primary's statewide lineup with a race aimed at unseating Governor Greg Abbott next fall. But State Rep. Michelle Beckley of Carrollton gives the slate a second candidate with experience in an elected public office in a bid for the job that Republican Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick is seeking again in 2022.
With Texas Democratic Party Vice-Chair Carla Brailey and 2018 nominee Mike Collier competing with Beckley for the nomination, the Democratic primary battle for lieutenant governor appears destined to be settled by Hispanic voters given the lack of a Latino contender in the race. Collier and Beckley are white. Brailey is Black.
The real action in Texas will be on the congressional and legislative battlefields between now and the March 1 primary election.
At least 30 Texas House Republicans are facing primary foes while eight or more incumbent Democrats drew first round rivals as well. The list of Republicans who had last-second challengers emerge in the past day or two includes State Reps. Gary Gates of Rosenberg, Mike Schofield of Katy and Steve Toth of The Woodlands.
But Swanson's clash Riddle has the potential to be the hottest House race in round one as the ex-legislator's opportunity to demonstrate that she has no rivals when it comes to conservative. Swanson - amazingly - found a way to run to Riddle's right in their first pairing six years ago.
With Swanson tying then-Speaker Joe Straus to Riddle like a noose, the current HD 150 representative eliminated her rival with more than 52 percent of the vote in a field with four candidates for the GOP. Riddle was humiliated with slightly less than 40 percent in her bid for an eighth term in 2016.
more to come ... |
