Donna Howard (D-Travis) has won her race

[sonias]

Some good news on the Texas Legislative front. The last race that was still to be decided due to the tight martin on election night (15 votes) has been called for Donna Howard.

:woohoo::woohoo::woohoo:

AAS 11/8/10
Donna Howard has defeated Republican challenger Dan Neil

UPDATED 8:49 p.m.: State Rep. Donna Howard, D-Austin, has defeated Republican challenger Dan Neil for state representative in District 48 by 16 votes.

The count came after Travis County officials tallied all provisional and overseas ballots, which were due to the county clerk’s office this evening.

On Nov. 2, Howard outpaced Neil by 15 votes. The Travis County Clerk’s Office said tonight that 58 additional votes were counted since election day.

Howard won with 25,026 votes, or 48.54 percent, to Neil’s 25,010, or 48.51 percent. Libertarian Ben Easton received 1,518 votes, 2.94 percent. A total of 51,554 ballots were counted.

I'm sure there will be a recount, but since these are paperless e-voting machines - the count is going to be the same. Only difference is that Dan Neil will be out the $15-25K it costs to hit the button on the machine that retabulates the totals. :shrug:

[art3]

1. great

great!!!!!!!!!! we will need her in the great battles ahead over chip, medicaid, voter id etc.. this session will the wildest ever.

[Vogon_Glory]

2. I'm Glad She Apparently Won

I'm glad she apparently won. We need all the good Democrats we can get! I opened the paper this morning and the articles concerning the Lege read like a right-wing Jack-in-the-Box from Hell, with every stupid, vicious, short-sighted proposal the furthest-right elements of the Texas GOP could roll out.

I am still feeling discouraged; I think that it's because I could barely face the national results and I didn't even want to consider the state results. I thought that Texas in general, and "Anglo" Texas in particular, had moved beyond that bigoted mindset. Some of of the proposals I've read about read like Arizona East.

:cry:

:dem:

[sonias]

3. I hear you

It will very tough for the next couple of years. We are vastly under-numbered at the Lege. To say we are a minority party is actually being generous.

We just need to stay together no matter what. Because there is still more they can do to us. They are on the highest peak and they love keeping us down.

I don't want to wish for this, but if you remember what finally turned California was Prop 187 which barred undocumented immigrants from using California social services, and the hatred of brown people that followed with it.

If Texas gets at similar law or one like SB1070 in Arizona maybe finally the Latino/Hispanic community in this state will wake up. We have the power to throw the bums out if we just vote.

California and Nevada kept or increased their Democratic wins because of the increase in Latino vote.

:grouphug:

[Melissa G]

4. Woot! She was the tiny string that kept Dems from complete irrelevancy

So glad we got her! :bounce:

[sonias]

5. Me too but so sorry we lost Valinda Bolton

Who knows two years from now during the Presidential election year, we try again. And hopefully we get different results and start winning our seats back.

But yes, a big sigh of relief that she held on to her seat!

:toast:

[Melissa G]

6. Valinda loss was very sad.

:cry: Being represented by a pub in Travis County is such an affront! Esp in South Austin!

We shall overcome in the next election! :toast: :patriot: