Early voting ended today (Tuesday) for the May 1 general and special elections.

Bexar Co. set a record for early turnout for a May election. As of midday today, more than 85K people had voted, breaking the previous high of 78K set in 2017.

AGRIC: Acting as a private citizen, Agriculture Comm. Sid Miller (R) filed a federal class action lawsuit arguing that a program designed to provide debt relief to farmers and ranchers of color discriminates against white farmers and ranchers, including him. The suit was filed “on behalf of farmers and ranchers in the United States who are excluded from the benefits of programs for ‘socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers’ because of their race or ethnicity.”

Short of declaring such programs unconstitutional, the suit argues that white ethnic groups who have suffered past prejudice and discrimination should be included within the definition of “socially disadvantaged” farmers and ranchers. The suit contends that doing so would include farmers and ranchers of Irish, Italian, German, Jewish and eastern European heritage. Short of that, the phrase should include any individual who has “any discernible trace of minority ancestry.” Miller describes himself as “primarily Scotch-Irish … [with] approximately 2% African-American ancestry.”

Miller’s legal team includes Gene Hamilton, a board member of the America First Legal Foundation, which was founded by Stephen Miller, a former senior advisor to President Trump.

HD127: Conservative activist Anthony Dolcefino announced he would challenge Rep. Dan Huberty (R-Humble) in the Republican primary. Dolcefino ran unsuccessfully for an at-large position on the Houston city council in 2019, losing to Leticia Plummer, 52%-48%, in a runoff after finishing first in an 11-way general election with 21% of the vote.

Huberty, who is serving his sixth term, recently acknowledged a DWI arrest.

Fort Worth: Reversing an earlier decision, the city secretary determined that council candidate Erik Richerson is eligible to be elected despite a 20-year-old felony conviction in Washington state. A judge in that state signed an order of discharge that restores his full civil rights. State law requires a candidate with a past felony conviction to be either pardoned or “otherwise released from the resulting disabilities.”

Nominations: President Biden nominated Harris Co. Sheriff Ed Gonzalez (D) as Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and former CD23 candidate Gina Ortiz Jones to be Undersecretary of the Air Force.

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