The
Texas Tribune is
reporting that state Senator Wendy Davis is expected to announce by Labor Day whether she will run for re-election to her senate seat or as our Democratic candidate for governor in 2014:
“On a scale of one to ten, the enthusiasm level is about a 42,” said Texas Democratic Party Chairman Gilberto Hinojosa. “People are just really excited about her candidacy to a point I’ve never seen before. I’ve been involved in this business for 30 years, and I’ve never seen Democrats so passionate about a candidate that has not announced for governor or any other position.”
In remarks at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., on Monday, Davis said she’d either run for governor or try to hold on to her hard-fought state Senate seat, but ruled out running for the U.S. Senate, lieutenant governor or any other statewide office. Some allies want her to run for re-election in the hopes that Democrats will continue to have a voice, albeit muted, in the upper chamber. Others, like Hinojosa, say a Davis gubernatorial bid would help revitalize the bedgraggled party and help candidates in competitive legislative and congressional races by boosting turnout.
While taking questions, Sen. Davis pointed out one thing that needs to change in order for Democrats to win statewide office in Texas:
After saying voters wanted “a change from the very fractured and very partisan leadership” in state government, Davis was asked what it would take to make Texas hospitable to Democratic candidates after so many successive losses.
“First of all, people have to run,” she said.
Indeed. Someone has to be the first to step up and run a serious, high-profile race. We simply cannot afford to just allow the Republicans to retain control of all of our statewide offices:
I certainly hope that Sen. Davis decides to run for governor based on what I'm hearing from the grassroots in the Houston area: Women of all ages are furious because of the anti-woman legislation passed during the 2nd Special Session of the Texas Legislature, but the middle-aged cohort in particular seems determined to do something about it. After a recent deputy voter registrar training in Harris County, one woman told me, "I've never done anything like this before, but I am so pissed off!" I've heard variations of this week after week as women who have not previously been politically active have stepped up to volunteer with Battleground Texas, Planned Parenthood, and other activist groups in our state. Having Wendy Davis at the top of the ticket in 2014 would inspire so many Texas women and the men who respect us to get out the vote.
So here's my favorite video commemorating Wendy's filibuster again:
http://www.youtube.com/...
Kitchen Table Kibitzing is a community series for those who wish to share part of their evening around a virtual kitchen table with kossacks who are caring and supportive of one another. So bring your stories, jokes, photos, funny pics, music, interesting videos, and so forth. Or just say "Hi" if you've had a long day and are too exhausted to participate more actively. We would also appreciate links—including quotations—to diaries, news stories, and books that you think this community would appreciate.
Please note that pie fights will be unwelcome in this community, just as in most other series at DKos. There's lots of space at the rest of the site for fighting with other Democrats, progressives, and liberals, and we don't want those battles dragged into this community.
Finally, readers may notice that most who are posting diaries and comments in this series already know one another to some degree, but that definitely does not mean that newcomers will be excluded or unwelcome. We're happy to welcome guests to our kitchen table, and hope to make some new friends as well.
KTK posts nightly at 5:00 Pacific, 6:00 Mountain, 7:00 Central, 8:00 Eastern.
Kitchen Table Kibitzing banner courtesy of Dr Erich Bloodaxe RN.