Can a Write-In Candidate Win the Texas Governorship?

Many people are inclined to think that a write-in candidacy is guaranteed to fail.  If they are only thinking of the ordinary, run-of-the-mill, write-in vote, which is not backed by a WELL-ORGANIZED effort to mobilize the electorate en masse to write in the same candidate, then they are probably right.  In many states, and Texas is among them, a write-in vote, will only be counted, if it is cast for a candidate who has duly registered his/her write-in candidacy with the Secretary of State by the deadline specified. 

Essentially, a write-in candidacy is an independent candidacy.   The basic differences are that the write-in candidate’s name does not appear on the ballot and the candidate gets a later start than the earlier registered Independent.  In Texas, this year, a write-in candidacy may not be filed before July 25, and not later than 5:00 pm, August 24. 

One might argue that write-in candidates have no chance against the well-funded campaigns of the major parties, especially since their candidates have massive name recognition and are well-funded to wage a vigorous campaign.  However, consider what Debra Medina accomplished in the course of the last six months before the Republican Primary, and she did so having only raised about $750,000 compared to the $8 million or so spent each by Rick Perry and Kay Bailey Hutchison.  Yet, in this brief, under funded campaign, she collected nearly 20% of the vote, having moved from 3% in the polls in September 2009 to 24% in February 2010, before she came under vicious attack by national talk show host, Glenn Beck.  This eight-fold increase in her support over a six-month period shows what a grassroots campaign, which spreads like a Texas wildfire by word of mouth, can accomplish.

An organization has formed in the wake of the Republican Primary campaign, which calls itself WE TEXANS UNITED.  This group seeks to pass the baton, which Debra Medina carried so valiantly during the primary, to a new candidate--a bold, conservative, freedom-oriented candidate--since Medina is barred from running in the general election after having competed in the Republican primary.  

The WE TEXANS UNITED write-in candidate will have the surprise value of suddenly entering the race with the Medina momentum machine revving up again to spread its message using grassroots strategies. It will literally knock the Rick Perry campaign off balance, as the Perryites confront the prospective mutiny of many conservatives who see the hope of electing a governor who is not "tax and spend" or "take and fend…off” the many angry Texans, who are incensed by the current governor's shenanigans that promise only to continue to rob them of their income, property, and livelihood.  And, by offering an alternative to the Perry incumbency, which is intensely disliked by so very many Texans, the WE TEXANS UNITED campaign will draw a large proportion of the more than 40% of voting-age Independents (estimated to be about 5 million Texas voters) into its campaign. 

The Indy Texans organization endorsed Debra Medina over Kay Bailey Hutchison (KBH) in the primary by 2 to 1.  Medina received at least the 60% threshold for their endorsement, whereas KBH was supported by only about 30%.  Rick Perry did not receive a single vote from their membership.  Here is how it was put in the Indy Texans press release.

Independent Texans’ members are well aware of Governor Rick Perry’s record which is why he received not one vote of support from our members. Perry has become legendary for his abuses of power and the veto pen, his revolving door for lobbyists, and for poisoning the halls of the legislature with a redistricting gerrymander on steroids back in 2003. For Texas independents Perry is the embodiment of what is so wrong in government today.

Unless given a viable alternative, the Independents will have no choice, except to endorse Bill White, the big government Democrat. By presenting a candidate who stands on the platform, which Debra Medina championed, WE TEXANS UNITED will have a revolutionary, historic opportunity to burst into the race in an explosive way which will snatch the momentum from either of the two major candidates and will also draw many voters who would vote third party into a powerful coalition for success.  We fully intend to field such a coalition candidate and the preliminaries for the selection and vetting process have begun.  The process is taking place online.  Join WE TEXANS UNITED now and participate in the candidate selection.

Once our candidate has been selected and agrees to represent us, we will begin a vigorous grassroots campaign unlike that ever seen in American History.  We are now exploring the use of novel techniques to shift voter attention from a focus on party and personality back to where it should rightly be and that is on the problems and issues facing Texans each and every day.  Imagine the political impact of our success in an endeavor, commonly regarded as doomed to fail.  Think of the shaking of the American political landscape that will occur as this novel campaign vibrates the body politic like never before in history, rivaling the most dramatic tectonic shifts of our planet Earth.

If you are a Texan resident or have family or friends in Texas, we invite you to join with all of us, who have faith in the indomitable spirit that has made Texas great, and to take up the banner of freedom, limited and honest government, state sovereignty, and true property ownership.  It is time to mount up and put your money, your time, your energy, and your passion, where your mouth is.  It is time to come together and to cooperate in a campaign whose time has come.  It is time, as someone said of Debra’s attitude when she was considering jumping into the gubernatorial race, to mount up, set you butt firmly in the saddle and be heading down the road when we come out of the gate with this historic campaign. 

Prepare to ride, amigos!

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