Dallas County Democrats scramble to beat back GOP in early voting
Dallas County Democrats have been forced to consider a fate that until recent weeks few thought was possible: They could actually lose a countywide race.
The prospect has left local Democrats hustling voters to the polls and beating back attempts by Republicans, most notably district attorney candidate Susan Hawk, to fracture their coalition and put weaker Democratic candidates in jeopardy.
Republicans jumped out to a big lead during early voting. But as early voting ends Friday, Democrats have staged a ferocious comeback to close the gap, a workman effort that has involved the local party, a community activist group and various candidates committed to turning out the partys base voters.
The resulting uncertainty is unusual for the Dallas County vote in the final few days of a campaign season. Most Democrats say they expect to come out on top. But the scramble has exposed divisions over how to maintain Democratic dominance as attention is diverted to efforts to compete better statewide and as local Republicans fight back with more resources than in years past.
Our numbers are up a little bit over 2010, and we have a lot more people voting by mail, said Dallas County Democratic Party Chairwoman Darlene Ewing. I do not think 2014 is as scary as 2010. We know what were doing. All we need to do is keep the faith and keep voting.
Dallas County GOP Chairman Wade Emmert was noncommittal.
Its going to be close, he said. Numbers are a bit better than 2010, but Republicans need to continue to vote. Winning and losing could come down to these last few days of voting.
Another factor has been the efforts by Wendy Davis, the Democratic nominee for governor, and Battleground Texas, the group led by grassroots experts who worked for President Barack Obamas campaigns. The group focused much of the summer attracting persuadable and infrequent voters who are not part of the reliable Democratic Party base
A spokesman for the group said volunteers are also working to turn out base voters and Democrats all across North Texas. Black and Hispanic participation is up, she said, lauding the partnership with the local and state parties as well as candidates up and down the ballot.
The arrangement has not caused any public friction, but some local operatives are grumbling that turnout hasnt risen enough, given the hype that came with the Obama veterans arrival in the state.
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Dallas County Democrats scramble to beat back GOP in early voting