Coming to Texas.

[damnraddem]

I just accepted a job in Texas, so I'll have to be a Texas DUer in future. I've already signed up with the TFN.

OK, is there a chance of Texas' going Dem in the presidential election? I'd love for my vote to have a chance to influence the election for once.

[jay-3d]

1. no

55% bush
38% kerry

[NoPasaran]

2. Where are you headed?

This is a big place afterall.

[damnraddem]

7. Denton area.

I think there's another place further down the road -- called Dull Ass or something.

[NoPasaran]

10. To judge from the pics in this thread

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=105x1270424
Those Dallas DUers know how to par-tay!

[fudge stripe cookays]

21. Denton is a fun little town.

I went to school there, and still have some friends there.

PM me for info if you want. Some stuff I can recommend:

Denton is DAMP, meaning you CAN buy beer and wine there at the grocery store, but no hard liquor. Head down I-35 aways to Lake Dallas, where there are a bunch of liquor stores right together.

The Recycled Books and Records on the square has AWESOME deals. You can find great stuff there.

If you're into eating organic, The Cupboard is great, and has a delish little cafe (try the Italian tuna sandwich!)
http://www.cupboardnaturalfoods.com/

Cool jewelry and doodads at Sleeping Lizzards. They've moved. I can't remember where the new address is.

The kids all hang out near UNT at Hickory and Fry. Those are the major drinking establishments.

My friend Bill runs the "Billy Shears" hair salon on Hickory right next to Riprocks. Send him some business when you need a haircut. He's a great guy.

The chicken soup at Mr. Chopsticks is great on cold days!

There are two coffee shops near campus, Kharma, which is like walking into a smoky club, right next tot he Language Building. The other one (smoke free) is back behind Cool Beans on Hickory, but it opened after I left. I can't remember the name.

Decent mall--Golden Triangle, for the little lady. It has a Dillard's, JCPenney, Mervyn's (around the corner), Victoria's Secret, Bath and Bodyworks, the basics.

That's all I can think of for now. Let me know if you need help.

FSC

[tandot]

3. The way things are going with Bush I wouldn't be so sure that

Bush is carrying Texas.

I've seen way more Kerry bumper sticker than Bush-Cheney...and I live in North Texas. And I hear more and more complaints about the Iraq war.

[cjbuchanan]

4. If Bush does not win Texas

Then it will not matter where you vote because it will be a landslide like few others.

That said, there are going to be a lot of close congressional races, so, depending on where you are moving, your vote will help a lot there.

By the way, welcome to Texas.
:toast:

[damnraddem]

8. Thanks for the welcome.

As to the 'if he carries, it will be a landslide anyway' -- that's what's said about Kansas, which is much LESS likely than Texas to vote Dem for prez (although we do have a Dem governor).

[bluestateguy]

5. No way

But I see from your profile that you are leaving an almost equally Republican state.

[damnraddem]

9. Much more Republican in registration.

And carried by a Dem for prez only something like four times EVER. By contrast, Texas seems much more Democratic -- yes, I know that Repubs hold all major state offices at present.

[library_max]

13. Lots of registered Democrats in Texas are really Republicans,

registered as Democrats because there are still parts of Texas (I live in one) where all local races are decided in the Democrtic primaries and there are no Republican candidates in local races. So if you want to cast a vote for Mayor, say, you have to do it as a Democrat. This is left over from Reconstruction (or the backlash after Reconstruction), and a lot of places in the old Confederacy are like that.

[TexasBushwhacker]

24. The opposite is true as well

When things really started getting ugly with the neocons, back in the Newt Gingrich era, there were many Republicans that registered as Democrats so that they could vote for the weakest Democrat during the primary. Since voter turn out is a lot lower for the primaries than for a regular election, it was pretty easy to defeat a Democrat incumbent during the primary. Any lameass that wanted to run as a Republican could get elected by people that were voting a straight GOP ticket.

Some Democrats have started playing the same game. They've registered as GOP so that they can vote for the weakest candidate during the primary and then vote for the Democrat in the regular election. Considering what's been done with redistricting to rob the Dems of even more seats in the House, kneecapping the GOP during the primaries doesn't sound like such a bad idea. As they say, all's fair in love and war, and this ain't love.

[jedicord]

6. Grow a Tough Skin if You Don't Already Have One

I live in Southeast Texas and feel as if I'm the only non-Republican in the area. Serious bad vibes/names/comments from others because I'm a librul.

As for your question as to whether or not Kerry could win Texas in November. I'd like to think so, doubt it, mostly because we are not a "battleground" state and have yet to see any Kerry commercials. No one here even knows what he's about since they can't get anything off the tube. See, we don't read a lot around here.

Without face/personality recognition, all they know here is Bush is from Texas, so he must be OTAY! Seriously, several people voted for him simply because of that and all the negative spew about Gore. They never saw Gore in a good light, 'cause his campaign felt that money was wasted here.

I feel that Dems could have a chance if they would only get the message out in Texas!

End of soapbox...

[damnraddem]

11. No, don't end the soapbox -- we need it and more.

Why can't the Dems go out and fight everywhere? The damn neocon Repubs sure are.

And it takes a tough skin in KS, too.

[TexasBushwhacker]

25. I'VE SEEN AN ANTI-KERRY COMMERCIAL!!!!

in Texas. I don't watch a lot of TV, but I've definitely seen one and I remember being surprised because I thought they were going to show commercials only in "swing" states. I think most people assume that Texas is a slam dunk, but in 2000, the vote was 59% Bush, 41% Gore. A better voter turn out of Hispanics and African Americans could easily swing the state to the Dems.

There are over 500K unregistered black voters and a MILLION unregisterd Hispanics. Considering that many felt that Bush, as the incumbent Governor, would be a slamdunk, we only had a 53% voter turn out. If the results of 2000 showed anything, they showed that yes, YOUR VOTE can make a difference. Florida was decided by less than 600 votes. If we can get more voters registered and get them to show up at the polls, anything could happen.

[Gothmog]

12. Welcome to Texas

Welcome to Texas.

Texas will be a red state for 2004 unless something significant happens. There is hope in that as Texas become more hispanic, there is a chance that Texas will become more blue. The Hispanic vote is not a guarantee for the Democrats but given the negative effects of so many of the GOP positions on the hispanic community, I can not imagine that the Democrats not picking up a significant portion of this voting block. This is not going to happen overnight but there is hope.

[sonias]

14. Welcome to Texas damnraddem!

We can always use some good Democrats. This state wasn't always a sickly red state and we are trying our damn best to get back in the blue. Every new voter to our side is a good thing. Remember California, they did it and we can too with some hard work.

One thing we need to get this state back in the blue is to take back our legislature and fix the damn re-redistricting fiasco. So don't think your vote doesn't count it does. We need to capture the Texas Lege again.

Glad to meet you.

Sonia

[damnraddem]

17. What's it like in the Denton area?

Are there any close races up there? Any Dems?

[sonias]

18. Here is a link to the Denton Democrats

http://www.dentondemocrats.org/ I didn't find any links to candidates other than the presidential race. Not sure what congressional race covers the Denton area.

I'm from Austin myself.

Sonia

[fudge stripe cookays]

22. YES!

My friend Jane was leading the Dean meetup for awhile, and her friend Elizabeth helped.

We recruited quite a few students, and they have a very healthy Dem scene there.

PM me, and I can send you Jane's e-mail address so you can introduce yourself and meet some other folks.

FSC =)

[tanyev]

26. Mostly Repubs

I worked for Denton County from 1992-Nov last year, and nearly all the local races are decided in the Republican primaries. This has been a fairly recent development as the urban sprawl from Dallas has moved further and further north. The county used to be very rural and much more Dem. During the time I worked there a few Dems who were still in office switched to Repub to try and stay in office.

[Name removed]

15. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[fudge stripe cookays]

23. Hmmmm....

no star for a donation, and urging us to vote for the 3rd party candidate.

[av8rdave]

16. Welcome to TX!!!

n/t

[Trailrider1951]

19. Welcome to Texas!

It's always nice to see another good Democrat here. This state may yet turn blue!

[KCDem]

20. What part of KS were you in?

Before I moved to TX (Houston), I lived in Blue Springs, MO. Even though we were on the MO side of the border, I still found that area more infuriatingly conservative than I find it here. So, you might be pleasantly surprised at your move.

By the way, welcome to TX!