Mission: Visiting Judge Bonner Dorsey voided the results of the June runoff in which Armando O’Caña ousted longtime Mayor Beto Salinas, 51%-49%. For two weeks, a series of witnesses testified, in varying degrees of clarity and consistency, about ways in which votes may have been cast illegally or voters were assisted illegally. Dorsey said he found clear and convincing evidence that at least 158 illegal votes were cast. O’Caña’s margin of victory was 157 votes. O’Caña remains mayor pending appeal.
Voter Registration: Tuesday is the deadline to register to vote for the general election.
Meanwhile, the Secretary of State’s office rejected more than 2K applications that were filed online through Vote.org. Those applications were filed with digital photos of applicants’ signatures. The Secretary of State interprets state law to require original signatures on applications. Texas is one of 12 states that does not permit online voter registration.
GOV: The Dallas Morning News’s Robert Garrett reported that the Texas Ethics Commission fined the campaign of former Dallas Co. Sheriff Lupe Valdez (D) for late campaign finance filings. The commission unanimously approved the $1K fine, which was one of dozens of fines assessed on candidates and PACs, during Thursday’s open meeting.
LTGOV: The Texas Parent PAC endorsed Democratic challenger Mike Collier over Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick (R). The group previously endorsed Patrick’s primary challenger, Scott Milder.
AG: The Texas Parent PAC endorsed Democratic challenger Justin Nelson over Atty. Gen. Ken Paxton (R).
SEN: The campaign of U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R) said he raised $12M during the third quarter. This figure likely includes funds raised by his re-election campaign and two additional PACs. Our Crib Sheets will show only contributions to his re-election campaign. In July, the Cruz campaign announced he raised $4.6M during the second quarter, about $1M of which went to the two PACs. U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-El Paso) has not yet indicated how much he raised during the quarter.
Meanwhile, the O’Rourke campaign released a new ad he recorded as a Facebook Live event on Sunday night.
On Sunday night, we recorded a live T.V. ad. Tonight, it's on the air across Texas. Take a look and RT to share. pic.twitter.com/0F52oCcIwp
— Beto O'Rourke (@BetoORourke) October 3, 2018
CD7: The Lizzie Pannill Fletcher (D) campaign released a new ad, “One Way,” focused on pharmaceutical prices.
Meanwhile, the Congressional Leadership Fund released a new ad, “Wrong for Texas,” starring former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), who should perhaps get a SAG card based on Texas political campaigns alone.
CD23: The campaign of U.S. Rep. Will Hurd (R-San Antonio) released a new radio ad featuring a song written and performed by Robert Earl Keen and Bill Whitbeck.
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