Listen to “Texas-Sized Optimism for GOP?” on Spreaker.
The conventional wisdom suggests Democrats are poised to win big in the November elections, but Republicans believe a stunning GOP victory in a Texas legislative race this week means they can do just fine if they fire up their base and articulate a clear message in the rest of Texas and beyond.
On Tuesday, Republican Pete Flores stunned Democrat Pete Gallego in the Lone Star State’s Senate District 19. It’s the first time Republicans have held the seat since 1879. And one of the top GOP consultants working on the race suggests it could provide a solid road map for other Republicans in tight races.
“I think this narrative that Republicans have no hope, the [House] is gone and they may lose the Senate, and they’re gonna lose seats all over the place. This shows that in a district that was 60-40 Democrat, if you have a good candidate and you have a good message, if you work hard and invest in your field effort (you can win),” said Potomac Strategy Group President Matt Mackowiak.
He says the first step for Republicans is to stop moping about the tough political winds and get to work.
“There’s no reason to despair. No race has been lost already. If you put a strategy together, you execute, you stay focused, you go after the votes, you make the arguments, Republicans can succeed in this election cycle,” said Mackowiak, who says the math actually bodes well for Republicans, even in the U.S. House of Representatives.
“Just look at the map. [Democrats] need 23 seats. There are probably 35 House seats that are truly competitive. That means Democrats have to pick up two-thirds of the competitive seats. You cannot tell me that Republicans cannot prevent them from doing that,” added Mackowiak.
One of the big problems for Republicans in special elections for the House and Senate has been turnout. Democrats are getting close to 2016 presidential election turnout while the GOP sometimes fails to get even the half the number of votes it did two years ago.
Mackowiak says that’s not what happened in the special election in Texas. He says 24,000 people voted in the initial round of voting in July, but 45,000 turned out on Tuesday. Even in a Democratic-leaning district, Flores was able to win.
And Mackowiak says the same thing can happen to Republicans across America if they work hard, knock on doors, and give people a reason to show up on Election Day. He says getting every last Republican to vote was a major factor in Flores winning.
“We had a candidate who was supported by the Republican Party and conservative organizations and unified the Republican Party. He had a conservative message. He ran on issues that people cared about: property taxes, pro-life, second amendment, and we fired up Republicans,” said Mackowiak.
One of the top priorities for Texas Republicans is to keep Sen. Ted Cruz in office and fend off a tough challenge from Democratic Rep. Beto O’Rourke. Polls are not conclusive. One released this week shows a nine-point lead for Cruz and another shows a two-point edge for O’Rourke.
Mackowiak thinks Cruz will probably win by five to seven points in the end but stresses that complacency is the biggest enemy for Republicans in this race. He says Cruz has a good opportunity in three debates to show that O’Rourke is far left on issues ranging from gun control to health care to immigration.
Listen here for the full interview with Matt Mackowiak to learn how he expects the high profile House races to turn out in Texas as well.
