What is going on in Texas? Record setting voter registration, that's what.
At Tuesday’s deadline for voters to get registered to take part in the Nov. 6 election, elections officials across East Texas told us they had been swamped — with lines at times literally out the door in Gregg County — by voters doing paperwork to make sure they would be able to make their voices heard at the ballot box. In Harrison County, election officials said it was possible there would be more active voters this November than in 2008.
And it wasn’t just happening in East Texas, where recent elections have enjoyed a bit heavier turnout than has been seen across the rest of the state. The Texas Secretary of State told us voter registration applications were coming in at high volume statewide right up to the deadline.
newsjournal.com
I'm no expert on Texas politics, so I don't know how this plays out, but it is always safe to say that more Americans voting is a good thing. That is also exactly the opposite of what Texas Republicans wanted when the Texas Legislature
intentionally discriminated against minority voters in drawing up electoral district maps and tried to pass restrictive voter ID laws that were designed to keep primarily poor, younger, older and minority Texans from participating in our Democracy. Of course, in the words of Todd Akin
Federal Appeals Courts have
"ways to try to shut that whole thing down."
A little more below the orange croissant of justice
I couldn't agree more with this final statement . . .
The implications at the state and local office levels could be interesting and, in many cases, results will come down to how many registered voters turn out at the polls.
While Texas is a lock for Mitt Romney in the presidential race, that doesn’t mean Democrats will stay away from the polls, and that’s good. The greater the turnout, the better for all, regardless of the outcome.
newsjournal.com
Clearly, what Republicans in the Texas Legislature and Governor Rick "Oops" Perry wanted was less people engaged in the political process. It looks like they are going to get the opposite of that. One only hopes that a sleeping giant has awoken, and that all those people that Texas Republicans tried to disenfranchise at the ballot box got a clear wake up call and decided to do something about it. Either way, "The greater the turnout, the better for all, regardless of the outcome."
I don't get to write this too often, but way to go Texas!
Peace and love to all,
The floor is now yours.