Turmoil On the Republican Side of District 34 Race

Some documents received from Art Martinez de Vara, an attorney from Von Ormy, Texas with close ties to Adela Garza, have been posted on this blog without commentary.  One document is a letter from Martinez de Vara to Steve Munisteri, the Republican State Chairman, detailing perceived problems with the majority of the 567 signatures garnered by Jessica Puente Bradshaw to qualify to run in the District 34 race.

The other document is an email to me from Mr. Martinez de Vara with a link to Bradshaw's FEC Form 2 Statement of Candidacy.  http://query.nictusa.com/pdf/869/12951591869/12951591869.pdf#navpanes=0  This link shows Bradshaw's Principal Campaign Committee as Friends of Liberty for Jessica, 1219 Castlemen Drive, Cedar Hill, TX 75104.  It is an amended form dated 5/07/12, electronically filed with the signature Jessica Puente-Bradshaw.  Interestingly, Ms. Bradshaw lists her address as "12500 Uvalde Creek Drive, Austin, TX"  Of course, her address is not a factor in running for office as she merely has to prove herself a Texas resident, however some view this as a veracity issue since she describes herself as a resident of Brownsville.   But the principle point of Mr. Martinez de Vara's email is that the candidate has filed incorrectly for District 27, not District 34.

We all remember the confusion surrounding the redistricting and final boundaries for these Texas Congressional districts, but 5/07/12 does seem a bit late to still be listing District 27 as the candidate's final decision.  Ms. Bradshaw, however was not disqualified by Steve Munisteri, the Republican chairman.  As a letter from Munisteri to Martinez de Vara points out, the challenge by the Adela Garza camp was simply filed too late, with the merit of the challenge not ruled upon.

So, is the Adela Garza camp simply crying over spilled milk?  Not exactly, according to spokesperson Martinez de Vara.  He states that what Adela Garza failed to accomplish by sheer tardiness will again become an issue should Jessica Puente Bradshaw be the Republican nominee.  Martinez de Vara strongly hints that whoever becomes the Democratic nominee for District 34 will be able to challenge the candidacy of Jessica Puente-Bradshaw successfully, thus running unopposed, leaving the Republican Party without a dog in the fight.  By implication, the message is that a vote for Jessica Puente Bradshaw is a wasted vote.

Meanwhile, last night(5/21/12) the NCCRC(North Cameron County Republican Club) sponsored a candidate forum at the Harlingen Public Library.  Adela Garza was a no-show.  Someone commented that she had a previous engagement, although her advertising is prominent at the NCCRC site.  Garza also missed the UTB/TSC Candidate Forum earlier due to cancellation of an airline flight.  Honestly, though, debating is not Adela Garza's strong suit.  On the other hand, Bradshaw would eagerly debate at 3:00 am.  I tuned in briefly to the livestreaming of the forum, but without Adela, the match sort of lost its intrigue.

Paul Haring is the third, almost invisible candidate in this race.  He will have trouble garnering votes outside his home town of Goliad.  He renders himself a nonfactor by presenting himself as a single issue candidate.  "If you're against abortion, I'm your man."  This says something, not just about his strong personal beliefs, but his lack of political savvy.  Even if this is a strong core belief, why in the world would you limit yourself in that way?  Haring comes off as from another era.  One could see him cast as a shop keeper in Dodge City, the presumed Old West town in the TV series Gunsmoke.