The Congressional Race in CD10 (Part I)

An interesting Democratic primary campaign is shaping up in Congressional District 10, with Larry Joe Doherty and Dan Grant fighting for the right to face 2nd-term Republican incumbent Michael McCaul in November.

CD10 is a product of the 2004 gerrymander, and runs from central Austin to the northwest Houston suburbs. It was designed to get rid of Lloyd Doggett, and in some sense it succeeded — Doggett moved a couple of miles to CD25, where he could win. It was so Republican that nobody filed for the 2004 Democratic primary. I didn't like the idea of not having anybody to vote for, so I ran as a write-in and got 14,000 votes. That's a lot of people spinning the wheel on their e-slates to spell my name, but only 6% of the vote. Even the Libertarian candidate beat me by more than 2:1.

Surprisingly, McCaul has done nothing to cement his position as an incumbent. He never shows up to civic events, and his constituent service is nonexistent. He doesn't even answer mail! He prefers to rely on friendly mapmakers (thank you, Tom DeLay!) and deep pockets than on earning his constituents' loyalty. His laziness is a golden opportunity for Democrats.

In 2006, Ted Ankrum won a 4-way primary and made a credible showing in the general election, losing 55-41 after spending only $65,000. McCaul's was the smallest winning margin of any GOP congressman in Texas. If we're going to gain a seat from Texas this year, it will almost certainly be in CD10.

This year, we needed a top-tier candidate and we needed an early start. We started a group, TrueBlue10.com, dedicated to organizing CD10 for Democrats from the ground up. And now we've got two great candidates. Larry Joe Doherty (www.larryjoe.com) and Dan Grant (www.dangrantforcongress.com) are both strong on the issues, they're both energetic, they're both good speakers, and they've both raised a ton of money. Dan Grant raised more in one quarter than Ted Ankrum raised in his whole campaign. Larry Joe Doherty raised more than that in one day — he wrote his campaign a check for $100,000. (Even without that self-contribution, Doherty has raised about as much as Grant.) No matter who wins the primary, McCaul will face a well-funded opponent in November.

In Part 2 of this blog, I'll tell you more about Doherty and Grant, their backgrounds and their campaign themes. Both claim to be electable in November, and I'll examine those claims in part 3, in which I will also handicap the primary race. What will it take for each of them to beat the other? Full disclosure: I've endorsed Grant, so you may doubt my objectivity, but I'll do my best to be fair.

In the mean time, go to TrueBlue10.com and to the candidates' web sites and learn about this race. (Also check out www.mikemccaul.com for dirt on McCaul.) If you're impressed, donate your time and your cash. McCaul can be beaten, but it will take a concerted effort on our part.