Now that the 2018 primaries are over, most will go on about their daily routines and forget about the elections, politics and policies until the next time they realize there's an election. Ninety percent of registered voters do not vote, as evidence by the dismal voter turnout. Based on my experience, I'm betting only three percent of those that bother to vote, have any idea of the issues or an idea of how the candidates stand on issues. People vote mostly because they have a friend who told them who they are voting for, or what they've seen on tv, heard on radio ads or what they've read on the many mailers that come during election time. Actual investigation and research are never done by most. This is how most incumbents keep winning. They rely on the uneducated electorate, the low information voter. When information does present itself, it's ignored or spun by the opposition as not true. However, Galileo reminds us that "the truth is easy to understand once it is discovered, the point is to discover it". This is why I write this blog, To help people discover the truth.
Thomas Jefferson linked an enlightened citizenry to an educated one. He spoke of governments degenerating when trusted to the rulers of its people. That the people themselves are the safe depositories to correct abuses in power, but they must be educated, to inform their discretion, so that freedom may be preserved. He said " though the people may acquiesce, they can not approve what they do not understand". I talked with hundreds of people over the course of these last primary elections, many of them on election day as they were exiting the voting locations. I found that many did not know who the candidates were or what positions they held on certain topics. It frustrated me so, that I thought, why are they voting at all? The overall returns of election night to me, were discouraging, not just because my favorite candidates lost, but because of how our citizenry doesn't pay enough attention to these matters. Jefferson also wrote "No nation is permitted to live in ignorance with impunity", and " The most effectual means of preventing power to tyranny is to illuminate, as far as practicable, the minds of the people at large."
Candidates are one thing, when it comes to being educated before you vote, but ideas are quite another. In the Republican primary of 2018, there were 11 propositions on the ballot. For each proposition, voters were asked whether they agreed or disagreed with the statement. These propositions came from the 2016 Texas GOP platform and voted on by the State Republican Executive Committee, to be placed before the Texas Republican primary voter. All eleven propositions passed. These propositions are not binding to any laws, but only to serve as guiding principles for Republican voters and ultimately, Republican legislators. These are opinion questions and as such, research and investigation are not necessary. Or are they?
Remember, these propositions came from the GOP 2016 platform. Many bills were presented in the last legislative session that reflected these platform positions. Bills like HB 948 by Representative Tony Tinderholt, which sought to abolish abortion in Texas. This was proposition #7 on your ballot. It is specifically plank #90 in the platform and linked to planks #88 & #89, right to life and reversing Roe v Wade. The fact that these ideas, platform planks did not pass in the 85th session, drove the SREC to place these positions on the ballot to get a better idea of what the electorate at large wanted, not just the delegates to the State Convention. Lets unpack all the propostions.
Prop 1: Replace the property tax system with a consumption based system. Passed 68%-32%
Prop 2: Toll roads approved by voters. Passed 90%-10%.
Prop 3: GOP members of house vote by secret ballot for speaker. Passed 85%-15%
Prop 4: Employers should use E-verify system. Passed 90%-10%
Prop 5: School Choice using tax credits. Passed 79%-21%
Prop 6: Bathroom Privacy. Passed 90%-10%
Prop 7: Abolish Abortion. Passed 68%-32%
Prop 8: End voter fraud. Passed 95%-5%
Prop 9: Repeal Obamacare. Passed 87%-13%
Prop 10: Cap revenue increases to 4%. Passed 94%-6%
Prop 11: No funding of sports teams. Passed 87%-13%
As you can see, all eleven propositions passed convincingly, including property tax reform and abolishing abortion, the two with the lowest spread but still a 36 point difference. These ideas are what the cumulative GOP voters in Texas want. Lets compare these numbers across the State to the counties in East Texas. The number below each proposition is the percentage of voters that voted FOR the position.
P1 P2 P3 P4 P5 P6 P7 P8 P9 P10 P11
Cass 64 90 88 93 73 96 80 97 93 95 88
Harrison 65 91 87 91 75 95 76 96 89 95 88
Marrion 64 90 87 92 82 94 68 96 89 95 89
Panola 66 92 89 91 69 95 80 97 93 94 88
Sabine 66 93 89 95 83 98 75 98 93 96 87
Shelby 67 92 86 91 79 97 80 97 92 94 86
Gregg 63 89 86 91 73 92 75 95 89 93 87
Upshur 71 92 87 92 73 95 80 97 92 95 89
Smith 64 90 88 91 81 94 76 95 90 94 88
Cherokee 72 92 89 91 80 96 79 97 93 95 90
Rusk 66 92 89 92 78 95 78 96 91 95 88
Titus 66 92 86 91 71 96 77 97 91 95 88
Wood 60 91 89 93 74 95 76 97 92 94 90
Every county listed above falls in line with the state average. Our representatives, Chris Paddie, Jay Dean, Matt Schaefer and Cole Hefner represent these counties. Only Paddie and Schaefer had primary challengers in this last election and both won convincingly. The numbers for representative Schaefer fall in line with his voting record as it relates to each proposition. The voters in Smith county, with the exception of Prop 1 voted at the same rate or better on every other proposition. In regards to property tax reform, they still voted favorably by 28%. Representative Schaefer it would seem is representing his district well. He falls in line with what the voters of Smith county want.
On the other hand, the voters in House District 9 which includes Cass, Harrison, Marion, Panola, Sabine and Shelby counties, seem to be giving mixed signals. The numbers suggest they are overwhelmingly in support of all the propositions but then they also re-elected Chris Paddie, who voted against or didn't support many of the same propositions in the 85th session. Do we interpret this conflict as, there are many low information voters in HD 9 or voters in HD 9 are voting only for a person and not what they believe. In either case, voters in HD 9 need more 'truth discovery' about their elected officials or even their own belief systems. For instance, they said they wanted property tax reform and cap any increases to 4%, (Prop 1&10). Paddie voted against the Senate version that would have capped property tax increases at 4%, in fact, he sided with house leadership to dismiss the session a day early and cut off any debates on the floor or with the Senate. He didn't fight to abolish abortion, (Prop 7) in the aforementioned HB 948. Every county in HD 9 approved this position at or better than the state average. Even when it comes to school choice, voters in every HD 9 county approved this measure overwhelmingly, but yet Mr Paddie continually says he is not in favor of it and will always vote against it. Proposition 11 is another conflict of voter interest. Voters said the state should not be funding private sports teams or venues but representative Paddie voted in favor of doing so.
This phenomenon isn't exclusive to voters in HD 9, but to many districts across Texas. If Republican voters truly believe in the propositions put forth to them on this years primary ballot, then why do they keep electing men and women who do not support these positions? If this election taught me anything, its that there are more voters than not, that need a better understanding of how their representative votes in Austin as compared to what they actually believe. Voters in HD 9 and other districts need to stop sending Mixed Signals. Along with many others, its my goal to illuminate the minds of the people of East Texas.
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