Why Rep. Kay Granger’s victory may be a good sign for moderate Republicans
U.S. Rep. Kay Granger escaped possibly the roughest challenge of her more than 30-year career in an election that politicos labeled a “weather vane” for the future of the Republican Party.
Tuesday’s victory solidified Granger as one of the most powerful women in Washington.
Coming off the most intense battle since she became Fort Worth’s first woman mayor in 1991, Granger said the race against the more conservative Chris Putnam did not shake her policy beliefs. Instead the race focused her on what she described as poor communication with her district, which includes part of Tarrant County, all of Parker County and the eastern part of Wise County. She brushed off Putnam’s campaign rhetoric that she had “gone Washington.”
‘”After the last vote, I’m on the first flight out,” Granger said.
Granger hadn’t faced a primary challenge since 2012, when she bested Bill Lawrence with more than 70% of the vote. During her campaign watch party Tuesday night, Granger said the challenge “came out of the blue.”
She will face political newcomer and Weatherford College professor Lisa Welch in November.
District 12 leans strongly conservative, but Welch said she believes voters in both parties are fed up with partisan rhetoric. She plans to appeal to both sides of the aisle and focus strongly on health care issues. While Welch said she would remain a strong advocate for the defense spending that has been a boon to Lockheed Martin in Fort Worth, her campaign plans to exploit Granger’s two decades in Washington as a weakness.
“There is a strong push among the population to have term limits, and to move on with new people from outside of politics,” she said.
Republican race
Putnam ran as the more Trump-like candidate, despite the president endorsing Granger earlier this year and again tweeting support for her on Monday.
The race was a local manifestation of growing tension in the GOP between traditional moderates and right-wing outsiders galvanized by President Donald Trump, said Darrell Castillo, a government professor at Weatherford College who worked in the Reagan White House.
Putnam appealed to “church conservatives,” gun owners and other social conservatives while Granger represents a more traditional Republican with an urban base in Fort Worth, Castillo said.
Putnam played the outsider with campaign ads blasting the longtime congresswoman, and this cycle’s race showed the divide between urban and rural politics, Castillo noted. Putnam’s campaign invested across the board, but focused on rural voters, who tend to be more conservative. Fort Worth makes up about 40% of the vote, and Putnam argued the district is more conservative than Granger.
“This is a weather vane for what’s happening nationally, absolutely,” Castillo said.
Putnam was a “perfect storm” as an opponent for Granger, said Rebecca Deen, chair of UT Arlington’s political science department. A seven-figure campaign by the anti-tax Club for Growth attacked Granger’s position on the powerful House Appropriations Committee. Meanwhile the pro-life Protect Freedom PAC ran TV ads focused on a 13-year-old interview with Granger in which see says abortion is a woman’s choice.
“She got hit from the right and from the other right,” Deen said, adding that local unrest over the delayed Panther Island project also played into race. “It’s a much more vulnerable situation than she’s ever faced.”
The Putnam campaign did not respond to a request for comment. Given his past as a Colleyville city councilman, it’s possible he may eye another office. Tarrant County Judge Glen Whitley on Tuesday brushed off a question about a potential race against Putnam for the county’s top seat, saying he doesn’t worry about opponents until filing day.
Whitley voiced Tuesday night excitement for Granger’s victory. He said the investment in Putnam’s campaign felt like an effort from outsiders to buy a the election.
“You just can’t beat what she’s done,” Whitley said of Granger. “She’s just always been a leader.”
This story was originally published March 4, 2020 at 10:06 AM.
