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TX HD 76: Runoff Gets More Nasty As Chavez Accuses Opponent Of Being A Lesbian
Check out this post: http://capitolannex.com/2010/04/05/tx-hd-76-runoff-gets-more-nasty-as-chavez-accuses-opponent-of-being-a-lesbian/) The runoff between State Rep. Norma Chavez (D-El Paso) and challenger Naomi Gonzales, an assistant county attorney, has become even more nasty, this time with the incumbent on the defensive for alleging the challenger is as lesbian. Via the El Paso Times:
At a recent candidates’ forum, a man asked Gonzalez to describe the significance of Senate Bill 1967, drafted by state Sen. John Carona, R-Dallas, and sponsored by Chávez. Gonzalez said she did not know the specifics but insinuated that it probably had to do with motorcycles because the person asking the question was in biker attire. The bill, in fact, dealt with motorcycle operation and awareness, but Gonzalez’s remark upset some people who considered it a jab at the biker community. Chávez, who was the first state legislator to receive a “State Official” license plate for her motorcycle, chastised her opponent for the remark. “I have not attacked her for being a lesbian gay woman,” Chávez said, drawing groans and some applause from the audience. One man shouted that Chávez had crossed the line of decency. A couple of weeks ago, Chávez also told a small audience at another forum that her opponent was a member of the gay community and probably supported gay marriage.This isn’t the first nasty bit of business in this race. From an earlier Times article:
The race between state Rep. Norma Chávez and Naomi Gonzalez is getting nastier, as both sides recently mailed slick brochures accusing the other of being a Republican. Gonzalez sent voters a mailer showing Chávez kissing former Texas Gov. George W. Bush, a Republican. The ad also shows Republican Gov. Rick Perry hugging Chávez. A headline above the pictures states, “Republican darling since 1999.” A political action committee working with Chávez countered with a mailer criticizing Gonzalez for taking hundreds of thousands of dollars from Texans for Lawsuit Reform, a business group that wants to limit lawsuit awards. This mailer accused Gonzalez of selling out to Republicans. For most of the campaign, Chávez, D-El Paso, has accused Gonzalez of being a Republican because she has received financial backing from Republicans. Gonzalez said Chávez was trying to get voters to forget that Chávez helped a Republican overthrow a Democrat as speaker of the Texas House of Representatives.Interestingly, this is one of those situations of the shoe being on the other foot—or something like that. Chavez had previously received money from TLR and their endorsement. So, in that department, neither exactly has a clean record. It is just a matter of Chavez no longer being favored by TLR. For El Paso voters, it is most likely a case of “damned if you do, damned if you don’t.” In either case, it is fairly likely this will be a close race and that Chavez will not end up as the victor. El Paso voters have a bad habit of upending incumbents in nasty primary fights like this, so we’ll see what happens.
