TX-24: Democrats Prepare For Runoff In Their Pursuit To Flip Texas' 24th Congressional District
In the Democratic runoff, Olson faces Candace Valenzuela, who has served on the school board for the Carrollton-Farmers Branch district and earned a number of high-profile endorsements.
"I'm rooted in the community," Valenzuela said. "That's a key difference between me and my opponent right now. I'm working to lift up the families here. I'm working to support the teachers in my school district who have been responsible for some of the most important work in this suburban, majority person of color community."
After years of Republican leadership, Texas' 24th Congressional District has emerged as a key battleground in the 2020 election. The district runs from Fort Worth to Dallas, spanning smaller cities and northern suburbs. Last year, incumbent Republican Kenny Marchant announced he would not seek reelection. Marchant won reelection in 2018 by a shrinking margin. Now, North Texas Democrats see an opportunity to flip this historically red district. The winner of this runoff will face former Irving Mayor Beth Van Duyne in November, a Republican who has earned an endorsement from President Donald Trump.
Since the primary, the runoff campaign has taken a contentious turn. Matt Liebman is president of the Voter Protection Project, a national political action committee that has endorsed Valenzuela. The group has spent more than $130,000 on a direct mailer campaign attacking Kim Olson's record as then-head of human resources for the Dallas Independent School District, calling it “a complete disaster.”
"I think the records are really clear and I think voters should know the contrast between these two candidates and what they stand for," Liebman said.
Olson's campaign calls the mailers "patently false.”
The candidates have also clashed over their responses to ongoing protests against police brutality.
https://www.keranews.org/post/democrats-prepare-runoff-their-pursuit-flip-texas-24th-congressional-district