A few things we wanted to share with you today:
Early Voting Begins. Early voting begins in San Antonio and most other local jurisdictions with runoff elections.
San Antonio Mayor. The San Antonio Express-News endorsed former Sen. Leticia Van de Putte for mayor and challenger Mari Aguirre-Rodriguez for the Place 7 runoff.
Turner Says Goodbye. Surrounded by most of the members of the House, longtime Rep. Sylvester Turner (D-Houston) gave a tearful goodbye to the House in a personal privilege speech today. “My time is up,” he said. “My season is almost over. And, Mr. Speaker, in 24 hours, my desk will be clear. Turner will leave the Legislature to run for mayor of Houston, That election is in November. Kimberly Willis is the only candidate to file a CTA for the seat.
Cook Draws Challenge. Corsicana businessman Thomas McNutt announced he would challenge Rep. Byron Cook (R-Corsicana) in the Republican primary. McNutt’s family owns the famous Collin Street Bakery. Promising to be “a Christian first, conservative second and Republican third,” McNutt said the district needs “a representative who champions our conservative ideals both at home and in the Capitol.” Cook also faces a challenge online, as a fake Twitter account @RepByronCook came to light this week. The account, which now describes itself as “Byron Cook Fan,” includes tweets showing Democratic members posing with or praising Speaker Joe Straus, tweets about the dark money provisions in Cook’s ethics bill and retweets from individuals and groups often in the crosshairs of grassroots conservative groups.
Fake Taylor Handle Online Too. San Antonio Mayor Ivy Taylor also has a Twitter “fan” in @PoisonIvy4SA. The handle describes itself as “President of San Antonio, committed to running the city into the ground. Gotta go! Parody account.” Several tweets mock Taylor’s bail bonds business but most mock her opponents and the people of San Antonio.
New CTAs. No new campaign treasurer appointments (CTAs) of interest have been filed since our last report.
