ShareHave more to add? News tip? Tell us
FORT WORTH — The death of longtime Tarrant County District Attorney Tim Curry and the retirement of County Clerk Suzanne Henderson are expected to create plenty of down-ballot interest in countywide political races next year, already drawing several potential candidates.
And a Republican challenger to first-term Tarrant County Judge Glen Whitley may add to a competitive primary season that kicks off in the coming weeks when filing for office begins.Political experts speculate that some countywide races could draw a large field of candidates, including some on the Democratic side. Republicans have held a majority in countywide votes since the mid-1980s. "There is a pent-up demand from people who’ve had the ambition to move into those positions for a long time," said Jim Riddlesperger, a political science professor at Texas Christian University. "But as long as someone like a Tim Curry was there, no one was going to run against him on the Republican side because it was just suicidal."He said open seats held by Republicans for so many years may also embolden Democratic candidates to run."Democrats might see Tarrant County as more competitive this year than in previous years," Riddlesperger said.But he said it will be difficult for Democrats in Tarrant County to fill the ballot with challengers because "they’ve been out of power for some time."Tarrant County Republican Party Chairwoman Stephanie Klick said next year’s primaries could have higher turnout than normal, largely because of a competitive governor’s race. "We do have a couple of seats that were filled for a very long time," she said. "There are a lot of folks who might have interest in running for one of those seats but were not wanting to challenge somebody who was doing a good job for the taxpayers."So far, the only Democrat to begin campaigning for a countywide seat is Lee Henderson, who said he will run for Tarrant County clerk. Two Republicans, Mary Louise Garcia and Jim Truitt, have also announced their candidacy for that seat.Tarrant County Democratic Party Chairman Steve Maxwell said his party will be competitive next year."Overall, I think our chances of winning a countywide race are far better than they were for many, many years," he said. "We had two longtime Republican incumbents leave office, with one stepping down, and we have a growing number of Democratic voters in the county."Maxwell said he is still searching for and talking to possible challengers to several of the countywide seats. Tarrant County judgeAt the end of his first term as Tarrant County judge, Whitley is being challenged from within the local GOP ranks. Whitley defeated two Republican challengers in 2006 but was unopposed in the November general election. He succeeded longtime County Judge Tom Vandergriff, who retired.Christian conservative Richard Clough has already publicly campaigned for the post, which presides over the five-member Tarrant County Commissioners Court. No Democrats have declared candidacy.
@Nyx.CommentBody@