Blue: Doggett wins by big margin
Despite attempts by national and Texas Republican leaders to gerrymander Congressman Lloyd Doggett into the political trash heap, the effort fell on its face last week as the veteran legislator won an easy 65.3 percent majority in Dist. 35.

He amassed 65.3 percent of the vote, sweeping to impressive wins in both Bexar and Travis counties along with solid majorities in Hays and Caldwell counties.

Former San Marcos Mayor Susan Narvaiz managed to secure majorities in Guadalupe and Comal counties, which have Republican traditions that go very deep. However, Doggett gained  majorities of more than 60 percent in his native Austin area, as well as San Antonio, and bested the challenger in Hays and Caldwell counties by comfortable margins.

Doggett will continue to be a leader in the Democratic caucus in Washington, D.C. and is sure to be reappointed as a member of the powerful Ways and Means Committee.

In Hays County, Doggett won 20 of the 22 precincts in his district, with big wins in San Marcos and Kyle. His  largest wins were in Precincts 113  and 120 along the interstate in San Marcos, the Uhland box east of Kyle and fast growing Precinct 228 along both sides of the interstate at Buda. His totals there surpassed 1,000 in each precinct.

Narvaiz’s lone wins in Hays County were her home Precinct 110 in San Marcos and Precinct 221 around Plum Creek, where she edged Doggett by a slim 914-856 margin.

Red: Romney over Obama
Four years ago in Hays County, John McCain garnered a 1,205 vote margin over Barack Obama, but still lost the presidential race. Last Tuesday, Republican challenger Milt Romney marshalled a 6,129 vote lead locally, but fared even worse on the national scale.

Obama again carried  all but one of the voting boxes located east of Interstate 35, and won substantial majorities in 11 San Marcos boxes, as well as six in Kyle and two in the Buda area.

Romney ran up big margins in the western part of the county, winning the seven Dripping Springs boxes as well as the five in Wimberley. However, he captured only five boxes in the San Marcos area to 11 for Obama, and lost Kyle by a 6-5 margin. Buda’s fast growing eastern provinces went for Obama, while those west of Main Street were Republican.

Obama profited by a much larger turnout of Hispanics throughout the county and ran active campaigns in all parts of  Hays. Observers also believe young women, particularly those at Texas State University, gave the President stronger support than they did four years ago.

Republican totals were buoyed by a full slate of judicial and state candidates and 15,859 straight-party votes in Hays County. Democrats had fewer well-financed campaigns, but still got 12,372 straight-party picks.

Blue: Ingalsbe trounces Gonzales
Senior County Commissioner Debbie Ingalsbe, the only Democrat on the Hays County Court,  easily withstood  a spirited challenge from longtime nemesis Republican Mary E. Gonzales  of San Marcos, in last week’s General Election.

Winning 61.4 percent of the vote, Ingalsbe, the daughter of former Commissioner Ralph Gonzales, captured all eight boxes by sizable margins and ran very well in and around eastern Kyle, which now makes up nearly one-half of the precinct’s population.

Ingalsbe will preside over the commissioners court while County Judge Bert Cobb recuperates from a recent surgery that will keep him from directing court sessions for several months.

The Republican challenger ran a spirited campaign, but Ingalsbe was very strong in the old barrio area of San Marcos, which now has a sizable population of Texas State University students, most of whom were strong supporters of the entire Democratic slate.

Ingalsbe also benefited from a well organized campaign by Democratic activists on the eastside of Kyle, who were also working hard for the Democratic ticket, particularly for President Barack Obama, U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett, state Sen. Judith Zaffirini and state Representative candidate John Adams.

Red: Other Congressional races

The jumbled up redistricting of congressional seats put 16 precincts from the central part of Hays County into longtime Republican Congressman Lamar Smith’s San Antonio-dominated district. He easily won re-election, getting 9,096 votes in Hays County to 6,491 for Democratic challenger Candace Duval, who ran a low-budget campaign.

Hays now has a third congressman, Roger Williams from the Fort Worth suburbs. Dist. 25, carefully drawn by the Republicans in the last legislative session, loops Hays County and others along the way into Fort Worth. It is really a North Texas district. However, 12 Hays County precincts are stuffed into its southern corner.

Williams is a North Texas auto dealer and longtime Republican state leader. He beat a big batch of party members to win the nomination. His Democratic opponent, Elaine Henderson, did not run an aggressive campaign.

Williams received 12,583 votes in Hays County while Henderson amassed 6,750.

In the U.S. Senate race, lawyer Ted Cruz, of Cuban descent who defeated Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst for the Republican nomination earlier this year, carried the state and the county against Paul Sadler, an East Texas Democrat with a strong background in school finance.

Handicapped by low name recognition and little campaign funds, Sadler did well in Hays County, carrying 20 of its precincts, especially boxes along Interstate 35.

Cruz ran up big wins in the Hill Country and west of Buda and prevailed by a 30,129 to 24,718 margin. He will be sworn in early next year to take the slot now held by Kay Bailey Hutchison, who did not run for another term.