Two candidates who lost in primaries make endorsements for runoffs

By Michael W. Shapiro Tribune-Herald staff writer

Friday March 5, 2010
 
 

Two candidates who got knocked out of their primary races Tuesday have moved quickly to endorse former opponents in their runoffs.

Timothy Delasandro, one of the three candidates who didn’t make the runoff in the Republican U.S. House primary race, pledged Thursday to support Waco’s Rob Curnock, who came in second with 28.7 percent of the vote.

Bill Flores, a former oil and gas company executive from Bryan, placed first with 33.1 percent — not enough to avoid a runoff.

Delasandro, a registered nurse from College Station, garnered just shy of 5 percent of the vote.

“I am enthusiastically endorsing Rob Curnock for Congress,” Delasandro said, noting Curnock’s years of involvement in local politics.

So far, Waco’s Chuck Wilson hasn’t said which candidate he’ll be supporting, and College Station’s Dave McIntyre said he won’t endorse during the runoff.

An anti-abortion group with statewide prominence, Texas Right to Life, did endorse Flores on Thursday.

“We are confident that Bill will be a steadfast advocate for the right to life in Congress,” the Austin-based group’s president, Joseph Graham, said in a release.

Both Flores and Curnock emphasize on their Web sites that they believe life begins at conception.

In the race for Democratic Party county chair, insurance company owner Kelvin Williams released a letter of support from third-place finisher Roy Walthall.

Williams is running against Karen Petree in the April 13 primary runoff.

In Tuesday’s primary, Petree had 48.1 percent of the vote, Williams had 30.5 percent, and Walthall garnered 21.4 percent.

Williams and Walthall framed the race as a battle over whether the local Democratic Party should be more inclusive but also over whether party leadership should be more outspoken in staking out public policy positions.

A fight for relevance

“If we don’t start fighting for Democratic values and candidates soon, then our voice could become irrelevant,” Williams said.

“They don’t want us to stand for anything,” Walthall said of his party’s leaders.

Democrats have walked a thin line in McLennan County in recent years.

The county has dark blue pockets, particularly in the more urban parts of Waco. But as a whole, 61.6 percent of the county went for John McCain instead Barack Obama in the 2008 presidential election.

The top Democratic elected officeholder, U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards, of Waco, voted against health care reform and cap-and-trade legislation in the House, frustrating some activists from his party.

Petree indicated that as chairwoman, she would leave candidates to debate matters of policy.

“The job of county chair is to ensure that Democrats are working together to assist our candidates and elected leaders as they fight for working families,” Petree said. “We have a tradition of electing candidates who represent the people of our county first and foremost.”

mshapiro@wacotrib.com

757-5707

 

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Mar. 08, 2010, 2:38AM

(Report Comment)

People just have to decide...Flores stands a better chance of beating Chet. Curnock is the ideal congressman...being he is a local average Joe going to represent the people of the district. That was the original idea by our founding fathers. That was a long time ago. Just some thoughts. Flores seems okay...just don't know much about him...he must work a lot to have all that money.

 

Mar. 07, 2010, 5:12PM

(Report Comment)

Whoever the trib wants ,I will vote for the other perosn.

 

Mar. 07, 2010, 9:42AM

(Report Comment)

Please help reelect Chet by renominating the four time loser Rob Curnock in April. Thanks.

 

Mar. 07, 2010, 1:50AM

(Report Comment)

Guess which one will represent us and which one will be beholden to the big $$ folks in D.C. "Chet knows Rob's weakness," and couldn't come up w/anything to throw at him but distorted figures about the Fair Tax, which most conservatives support. Any "new" dirt on Rob is probably contrived. We have seen his character for over 25 years in his community involvement. I'll trust Rob Curnock with my vote!

 

Mar. 05, 2010, 6:09PM

(Report Comment)

As stated before, I'm not going to vote in the run-off, because I'll not waste my time. May the best person win!

 

Mar. 05, 2010, 12:04PM

(Report Comment)

Meadows has served so long he has forgotten that his job is to respresent the interests of the McLennan County voters. Let's give someone new a chance.

 

Mar. 05, 2010, 12:01PM

(Report Comment)

I agree Curnock is hometown favorite and if he defeats Flores will the RNC REALLY back him like they are with Flores, that is the Question. I honestly like both don't know much on Flores but will zero in on what he says in the weeks ahead. I would like to know where they both stand on Coal Plants!

 

Mar. 05, 2010, 11:22AM

(Report Comment)

Waco Man, first of all Curnock + Delasandro > Flores, get a calculator if you need it. Second, I actually went to the candidates web sites and read their statements. Delasandro makes a powerful case for why Rob Curnock should win the runoff. I tend to agree with John, we ned someone who really lives here and is one of us. Where was Flores when Curnock held health care town halls in August? Where was he when the others were holding debates and talking with the people back in the fall? He wants to swoop in with his money and buy this thing, and I don't trust him.

 

Mar. 05, 2010, 10:50AM

(Report Comment)

I am not sure Mr. Delasandro's endorsement of Rob Curnock means very much, considering that less than 5% of the electorate voted for him Tuesday. Flores got more votes than Curnock and Delasandro combined. And Delasandro doesn't give us a good reason why we should vote for Curnock. 'I am enthusiastically endorsing Rob Curnock for Congress, Delasandro said, noting Curnock's years of involvement in local politics'. If Mr. Delasandro believes a candidate's years of experience in politics is the chief reason to support him, he should be endorsing Chet Edwards for Congress. Mr. Edwards has much more experience in politics than Rob Curnock. I'm not advocating that we re-elect Edwards, but that we think about why we support a given candidate. If experience in politics isn't a good reason, then why is a candidate's personal net worth an issue? Bill Flores is getting blasted for having money. What's wrong with having money? At least Mr. Flores is apparently paying his campaign expenses, while it looks like Mr. Curnock may have let some of his 2008 campaign expenses go unpaid. Funny, isn't it, that some people will vote for a candidate just because he's poor, looks pretty on TV, and lives in the same city they do!

 

Mar. 05, 2010, 10:46AM

(Report Comment)

It's simple for me. Either Flores or Curnock is preferable to Chet. Flores has money. Curnock does not. Curnock has run so many times that we (and more importantly Chet's campaign) know where he is weak.

 

Mar. 05, 2010, 9:09AM

(Report Comment)

I agree with Michael here, I like Bill Flores but I can't get past the fact that he isn't from here, is being peddled around by the RNC in Washington and has never really had any involvement in the community outside pulling strings at A&M. Rob Curnock is a hometown boy with life I can relate to. He has lived, worked here and been in this situation before. I know the man well, I've seen him speak, I can almost recite his stand on every issue. Flores flew in his million dollar jet, threw money at us and peddled around the idea that "I'm from Bryan/College Station" when, in reality, he's only been here a few years. Hell, if that were the case, every junior and senior at A&M and Baylor should be running in this race. No thanks Bill, Rob I'm pulling for you!

 

Mar. 05, 2010, 7:26AM

(Report Comment)

Nice to see Timothy support Rob Curnock. I liked a lot of what Timothy had to say, but I thought his temperament was such that he couldn't win. He and Rob were the only ones who said that if Washington would follow the Constitution it would solve most of our problems; Flores and the other guys said "no." I continue to believe we don't need someone to try to "buy" this election, either now or in November. Republicans have tried that before and they lost by 20 points. I will take someone I know who has been here with us for 30 years over some rich guy with backroom Washington connections who hasn't cared about us until he wanted our vote. No thanks, No Flores.

 

Mar. 05, 2010, 12:54AM

(Report Comment)

The Delasandro endorsement for Curnock amounts to one loser endorsing another LOSER! The reality is and will be Rob Curnock has not ever won an election that he faced an opponent. He might have won the primary 2 years ago because he did not have any opposition. He is not going to be able to keep up with the money that Edwards will bring to the race. Flores can and will. I am voting for Bill Flores and Rob will to in November. It is to bad he is going to make Flores waste money beating him that could be going to beat Edwards.

 

Mar. 05, 2010, 12:20AM

(Report Comment)

A vote for BEN PERRY is a vote against Ray Meadows! Vote for BEN PERRY as McLennan County Commissioner Pct 4. Vote for BEN PERRY

 





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