AP is reporting this afternoon:
http://www.statesman.com/...
Republican Gov. Rick Perry on Tuesday called a Nov. 7 special election to temporarily fill the seat left vacant when former U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay resigned.
A special election? WTF? Here is Perry's explanation/excuse:
"Because there were a lot of maneuverings in the court on the Delay question on what could happen with that election, that had to play out then we reviewed all the legal requirements and options," said Perry spokeswoman Kathy Walt.
Clearly, this is just another back-handed attempt to get the Republican's anointed write-in candidate, Shelley Sekula-Gibbs, SOMEWHERE on the ballot. Since the law prevents them from doing so, Perry has to use his power and discretion to call a special election, wasting valuable taxpayer funds to fill a Congressional Seat for ONE MONTH. I think Texas Democrats need to work hard to point out the sheer absurdity of calling a special election; just another gross display of arrogance and power by Rick Perry and the Republican Party. IMHO, this will only cause voter confusion and frustration, which I hope they will rightfully take out on the Republicans.
A political tactician I am not, but I think it would be best for Lampson to ignore the special election and not put his name on the ballot in that race. Regardless of the other race, the Repub will not appear as a candidate for the race that REALLY MATTERS and will still require a difficult write-in vote on the voting machine. Many Repubs will vote for Sekula-Gibbs under the special election choice and think they have correctly voted for her in the general election as well. Let them fill the damn seat with a do-nothing Repub for a month. I hope she can get a one-month lease in the tight DC housing market. Maybe DeLay will let her crash on his Virginia couch?
BTW... have we found another write-in candidate named Gibbs to enter the race yet?