TX-22: This Democrat Can Win the Seat Once Held By Tom DeLay and Ron Paul

[RandySF]

One of the districts targeted by Democrats is Texas’s 22nd, which covers the south and southwestern suburbs of Houston. From the late 70s to the mid-80s, the district chose Libertarian Ron Paul to represent them. When he decided to run for the Senate in 1985, Tom DeLay was elected and eventually became the Majority Leader. In 2008, when DeLay resigned due to his involvement in the Jack Abramoff campaign finance scandal, Republican Pete Olson was elected to represent the district and has held the seat since then. That explains why the Cook Political Report rates this district as R+10.

Olson announced his retirement in July 2019 with the usual bromide about wanting to spend more time with his family. But that came after reelection in 2018, where he won by only five points, after cruising to victory by 20-30 points in previous elections. What is happening in Texas’s 22nd congressional district encapsulates what is going wrong for Republicans in the Lonestar State.

Fort Bend County is at the heart of the 22nd district and ranks 10th on the list of fastest-growing counties in the country, doubling its population since 2000. With that growth has come diversity. Non-Hispanic whites make up 32 percent of residents of Fort Bend County, while Hispanics make up about 25 percent, and African Americans 22 percent. Asian Americans are actually the fastest-growing demographic group in Texas and make up about 20 percent of Fort Bend County residents.

According to an analysis from Wall St. 24/7, a financial news and commentary site, Fort Bend is the wealthiest county in Texas, with a median household income of $93,645. Approximately 46 percent of its residents have at least a bachelor’s degree.

What we have then, in the 22nd district, is a suburban community in a major metropolitan area with a soaring population that is increasingly diverse, wealthy, and college-educated. As Robert Draper wrote in Texas Monthly, that is why “the GOP is facing a historical reckoning.”




https://washingtonmonthly.com/2020/10/20/this-democrat-can-win-the-seat-once-held-by-tom-delay-and-ron-paul/

[pecosbob]

1. This is a district I have long wanted to see Dems capture

It contains affluent enclaves as well as urban sprawl hence the diverse ethnic makeup. Pretty sure the original gerrymandering of this district was done to dilute the Hispanic and African-American vote from parts of Harris and Galveston Counties with the then predominately white rural Fort Bend County. In 1993 it was again redistricted lopping off part of the district in Galveston as the overall makeup was becoming too diverse for Republican map-makers.

[Gothmog]

2. I live in this district

Sri is a great candidate