Austin / Travis County (Texas) Democratic voters gave a big margin of victory (65-35%) to the District Attorney candidate endorsed by retiring DA Ronnie Earle.
First Assistant DA Rosemary Lehmberg gave Earle credit for her win following her Tuesday trouncing of fellow assistant district attorney Mindy Montford.
Doubts about Montford's independence also were raised by bloggers who tied her to lobbyists, politicians and other special interests - including Karl Rove - in the days before Tuesday's runoff vote.
Republicans could not find anyone to run for the job, so Lehmberg will face no opponent in the general election, barring a write-in candidacy by someone as yet unknown. She would be the first female DA in Travis County history.
At her victory party Lehmberg gave the credit to Earle:
"Ronnie, you've been my friend and my mentor, my boss," she said, looking at Earle and then turning to the crowd. "He gave me the greatest gift of all: He gave me his good name," the Austin American-Statesman reported.
According to the Statesman, Earle's endorsement was persuasive for a number of voters they interviewed, as were doubts about Montford's independence.
The better-financed Montford, daughter of AT&T lobbyist John Montford (a former state senator), also was seen as too close to lobbyists, politicians and special interests who come under the scrutiny of the Travis County District Attorney's office.
The Capitol Annex blog reported in the days just before the runoff that Karl Rove was working to drum up support for Montford.
Earle, whose prosecution of former US House Majority Leader Tom DeLay is stalled by issues working their way through Texas appellate courts, has been Travis County District Attorney since 1977 and has rarely faced a serious opponent. Lehmberg, 58, has been Earle's top deputy for a decade.