Our recommendation for suburban Fort Worth voters in hottest Texas congressional race
In one of the most contested, contentious and expensive U.S. House races in the country, it’s fitting that voters in the suburban 24th Congressional District have two choices who represent their parties so well.
Republican Beth Van Duyne, the former Irving mayor, and Democrat Candace Valenzuela, a former Carrollton-Farmers Branch school trustee, are strong candidates, and both would make good representatives. It’s a close call, but we recommend voters elect Van Duyne, based on her vision of economic expansion and experience in the district.
She’s not without faults, and many will find her thoughtless past comments on Islam disqualifying. To remain worthy of the office, she cannot repeat those mistakes. But she hasn’t so far, either.
Van Duyne, 49, understands that the fastest way to economic recovery and growth is to ensure businesses can rebound quickly as the pandemic comes under control. In our interview with the candidates, she cited the need for targeted relief for airlines and other companies vital to the 24th District’s economic health.
BEHIND THE STORY
MOREHey, who is behind these endorsements?
Members of the Editorial Board, which serves as the Fort Worth Star-Telegram’s institutional voice, decide candidates and positions to recommend to voters. The members of the board are: Cynthia M. Allen, columnist; Steve Coffman, editor and president; Bud Kennedy, columnist; Ryan J. Rusak, opinion editor; and Nicole Russell, opinion writer.
Members of our Community Advisory Board may also participate in candidate interviews and offer their views, but they do not vote on which candidate to recommend.
Read more by clicking the arrow in the upper right.
How does the process work?
The Editorial Board interviews candidates, asking about positions on issues, experience and qualifications, and how they would approach holding the office for which they are running. Board members do additional research on candidates’ backgrounds and the issues at hand. After that, members discuss the candidates and generally aim to arrive at a consensus, though not necessarily unanimity. All members contribute observations and ideas, so the resulting editorials represent the board’s view, not a particular writer.
How do partisanship and ideology factor in?
We’re not tied to one party or the other, and our positions on issues range across the ideological spectrum. We tend to prefer candidates who align with our previously stated positions, but qualifications, temperament and experience are important, too.
It’s not easy for a staunch conservative to align with massive government relief, but it’s a recognition of extraordinary need in unprecedented times. And she called for measures to make sure the relief gets down to workers, not just executives.
She pledged to work on behalf of the Fort Worth area’s defense industry, which employs plenty of workers in the district and beyond.
Van Duyne also laid out an agenda for health care, which has dominated this race and others at all levels. She would advocate for association policies that let small businesses band together for cheaper insurance.
Democrats have hammered Republicans on the need to maintain protections for those with pre-existing conditions in their effort to keep the Affordable Care Act alive. But it’s not as if new legislation couldn’t include such provisions, and Van Duyne, for her part, said she would push for them.
The former mayor’s experience and connection with local leaders are a plus, too. The district stretches from Hurst to Addison, incorporating parts of more than two dozen cities. Relationships will be crucial. And though just a tiny part of Fort Worth is in the 24th, Van Duyne noted her work with Mayor Betsy Price as part of a mayors group.
She’s also amassed experience in the Trump administration as a regional administrator in the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
In 2015, Van Duyne and the Irving City Council raised concerns about an Islamic dispute resolution tribunal operating in Dallas, invoking the specter of Shariah law. The following year, she helped drive concern about an Irving student who brought to school a homemade alarm clock that many thought resembled a bomb.
Van Duyne said her concern with the tribunal was whether women’s rights were being respected in civil disputes. On the clock case, she noted that she was supporting the Irving school district’s policy on items that resemble weapons.
Her involvement in spreading inflammatory rhetoric remains regrettable. We trust that she’s learned to be more careful about her words and appearing with those who fuel such fires. To represent a district as diverse as the 24th, it’s mandatory.
And not just on Islam. The great temptation for lawmakers these days is to focus more on fame-building cable news appearances rather than on the committee and constituent work that define an effective lawmaker.
Van Duyne is a strong communicator and has touted herself as part of a potential Republican “squad” in Congress, a counterweight to the progressive group of House members featuring Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. We urge Van Duyne to focus on the team that needs her to serve North Texas, not the one seeking cable news attention.
Valenzuela, a 36-year-old educator who lives in Dallas, has an uplifting story of how she overcame extreme poverty in her childhood and worked to become a college graduate and school trustee. She touts herself as a strong advocate for the poor and middle class, especially those hit hardest by the coronavirus pandemic. Her smarts and passionate advocacy on education and immigration leave us little doubt she’ll be an effective officeholder, whether in this seat or another position.
But her policies would lead to an even more expansive federal government on issues such as education, policing and energy. And we prefer Van Duyne’s experience in spurring economic development.
This race has drawn millions of dollars’ worth of outside influence, as you know if you’ve tried to watch local TV in the last month. Ever since Republican Rep. Kenny Marchant announced his retirement, the 24th District has been a high priority for both parties. National groups of every stripe are closely watching, if not actively involved, to see whether suburban women are shifting political allegiances in the Trump era.
But voters should make the decision based on what’s effective locally. That gives an edge to Van Duyne.
Also on the ballot are Libertarian Darren Hamilton and independents Mark Bauer and Steve Kuzmich.
This story was originally published October 16, 2020 at 1:20 PM.