There’s a unique kind of election fraud in Texas, but what exactly is it? Candidates who jump into a race with no intention of finishing. They are often looking for a deal of some kind.
Texas has seen this time and time again. Texas lawmakers need to quickly pass laws to stop this fraud in its tracks.
The most egregious modern day example of this was the Republican Bech Bruun vs Republican Michael Cloud runoff race for Texas’s 27th congressional district in 2018. There were plenty of candidates in the race originally, but the top two vote getters were Bech Bruun and Michael Cloud, who was in second place. Using personal information against Bruun, Cloud “convinced” him to drop out of the race in order to hand the victory over to Cloud, without the voters agreeing to it. The other candidates were understandably angry.
When we allow candidates to drop out after they have filed or won a primary, it leaves them open to this kind of manipulation.
This past week we saw Republican Texas Congressman Tony Gonzales drop out of his runoff, which was an easier route than resigning his position, after it was revelead he had an affair with at least one staffer, which apparently led to her suicide. Congress should have stepped up to the plate and removed him from office, instead, they let him take the easy way out. And continue to get paid by taxpayers.
We now have Ken Paxton saying he is willing to drop out of the runoff race against John Cornyn IF certain criteria is met. Is this even legal? You are exchanging your chance at winning a runoff election if another candidate meets your demands? How many voters would have voted for Paxton if they knew he was only in it to make a deal, leaving Cornyn as the winner? Right now, Wesley Hunt is saying I Told You So!
Now there is a new dishonorable drop out, Republican Jim Baxa of Lubbock, Texas who jumped into the Lubbock County Clerk’s race at the very last minute, took money from donors, used up countless volunteer laborers, soaked up several endorsements and used his candidacy in an attempt to prop up his wife’s campaign for Justice of the Peace.
Just a couple of days after winning the primary, Baxa announced that he is dropping out of the runoff race claiming he is dropping out “for the good of the party”, without any explanation. It just doesn’t ring true. In reality, the voters got robbed and so did the other candidate Rebeca Gonzales, who should have had the opportunity to further her candidacy, but didn’t, due to Baxa’s questionable and suspicious tactics. Had Baxa not entered the race, Gonzales may have won outright. For that matter Sandy Garcia may have won outright.
Did someone pay Baxa to hand over the win to the top vote getter Garcia?
What’s unusual here is that Baxa’s wife, Traci Baxa, also came in second place in her race, but, she isn’t dropping out “for the good of the party” – as of yet. The Lubbock County District Attorney should take a closer look at this husband and wife duo, as it now seems likely she too will be dropping out of her race – perhaps after she gets something in return for exiting. She has already taken money from local developer Scott Mann, who by all accounts is not someone candidates should be taking money from. In fact, he is her second largest donor.
Social media is abuzz with angry voters and supporters who are only now realizing they were bamboozled by the Baxas. Bamboozled by Paxton. Bamboozled by the system.
There are numerous examples of this happening all over Texas – and it must stop. Taking money from donors, using volunteers without paying them, depriving other candidates of endorsements because they believe you are serious about running, and denying voters the right to vote for a real candidate is fraudulent.
The new laws must contain provisions such as a requirement that all donor money be immediately returned to the donors, and of course, that the third candidate replaces the drop out in the runoff. The drop out candidates should also be prohibited from running for public office for a minimum of five years.
Without these simple provisions, this will never end.
Voters deserve better.