Impolite Company: The Most Important Election of our Life, once again.

It is October, the Summer Olympics have gone, kids are back in school, disgusting pumpkin spice everything permeates the shelves of your favorite grocery store, and the Presidential Election once again looms. Like every election that I have really paid attention to, going all the way back to Bush V Gore, “This is the most important election of our lifetime” The line has become almost a joke among politicos at this point, yet there is always a seriousness to it, and the reason is that America continues to divide itself politically. In fact, I would argue that we haven’t been as divided as we are right now since the 1850’s. I am not alone in that opinion, just as I am not alone in the serious implications of that shared opinion. Yet, time marches forward, and there are other issues of equal importance that require our attention. Below you will find a voter’s guide of useful information. I shall endeavor to be non-partisan where I can and will be absolutely partisan where I believe I should. Ultimately, I can really do nothing to move you one way or another. I shall attempt however, to make an appeal to you as to why the opinions expressed in this article are for the best. Thank you for indulging me.

The Facts:

Texas has no party affiliation when it comes to registering to vote. Other States force you to identify as Republican, or Democrat, or Green Party, or whatever, Texas does not do this. In order to register to vote, all you have to do is fill out a voter registration card and send it into the County Elections. There are over 425,000 registered voters in Montgomery County, yet the population is 678,490. Now some of that population cannot register to vote, but a good portion of the population can, and has not registered. This is unacceptable, if you find yourself in this group, fix it! It’s not only easy, but also your duty. Here is the list of who is eligible to register to vote.

A U.S. citizen.

A resident of the county where you submit the application.

18 years old or older on Election Day.

Not a convicted felon (you may be eligible to vote if you completed your sentence, probation, or parole).

You have not been declared by a court exercising probate jurisdiction to be either totally mentally incapacitated or partially mentally incapacitated without the right to vote.

I cannot stress this point enough; it is your duty to vote! If you don’t vote, then don’t complain about the government. In the United States We the People are Sovereign, but only wield that power once every two years. If you do not vote you abdicate that position. Your vote matters! In 2018 as an example, Ted Cruz defeated Robert Francis (Beto) O’Rourke by 2.6% or 215,000 votes. I would note that 40% of the overall 2.6% came from Montgomery County. We sent Beto packing in the most expensive Senate race in US History! This only happened because people went out and voted! You need to vote this fall; the country is on the line.

Important Dates:

October 7th – Deadline to register

October 21- Early Voting begins

October 25 – Last day to order a mail in ballot

November 1- Last day of Early Voting

November 5 – Election Day

Local Races:

Local races tend to not get the attention that they deserve. Everyone mistakenly believes that National Politics are where it’s at, but that is a symptom of how broken our Federalist system is. The National government should have the least amount of control over your daily life, and the local and State governments should have a much higher share. I am not in the habit of endorsing candidates in this column, or I should say it is a rare thing for me to do. At this point however, I cannot in good conscience recommend any candidate that is not a Republican. You can disagree with me, that’s fine, but there is just too much at stake this election, and a clear message must be sent across the board. The Left has gone so completely insane that it would be malpractice on my part to suggest any other course. There are a ton of things that you should be looking into before voting begins in the local races, there are the big seats and positions like County Commissioner, County Court at Law, Justice of the Peace, Sheriff, Constable, and other local offices.

What is really overlooked are things like MUD districts. There are far too many MUD districts to list in this article, but think of it this way: do you want a constitutional conservative in charge of your MUD tax rates, or a socialist leftist? With all the economic issues we are facing right now, we need our tax liability as low as possible, so even your local MUD race really matters! ISD School Bonds are another big issue, do your research and vote! Many of these local ballot initiatives pass or fail by a relatively small margin, and your vote could be the deciding vote, but only if you get out and vote!

State Races:

Let’s start with our State Reps. We have 4 State Reps that represent Montgomery County, and 3 out of the 4 won their primary races. Cecil Bell (HD3) Steve Toth (HD15) and Will Metcalf (HD16) will all be on the ballot in November. Every election cycle the entire State House of Representatives is up for re-election. While no politician is perfect, if you live in one of these districts, I urge you to vote for these gentlemen. We need fighters in the House. I personally know Steve Toth the best, and Steve has 100% of my confidence to do the right thing. Cecil is a very nice man, always takes my calls, and is just about as friendly as good ol Texan can be. Cecil is reliable in his voting record and can continue to be relied on. I’ve only met Will Metcalf on one occasion. He was perfectly pleasant, however some of his votes in the past have been problematic. He voted in favor of impeaching Ken Paxton with no evidence and tends to be a reliable vote for Drunk Dade Phelan and his cronies. That being said, the time to do anything about it has passed. A vote for Will Metcalf is still a vote for a Republican in the House. Finally, Ernest Bailes the State Representative from House District 18 lost his primary to Janis Holt. Holt will be on the ballot in November and will be facing Libertarian candidate Shanna Steele. If you live on the East side of Montgomery County, Holt checks all of the commonsense boxes here. Low taxes, pro school choice, pro secure border. She is endorsed by both Governor Abbott, and President Trump.

The Texas State Senate is in pretty good shape compared to the shenanigans that can be found in the House over the last couple regular and special sessions. The majority of Montgomery County used to be all one Senatorial District under Brandon Creighton in SD4. SD4 still represents a bulk of Montgomery County, however Senator Paul Bettencourt SD7, and Louis Kolkhorst SD18 represent the western portion of the County. Terms of office for the State Senate are for four years, and only Paul Bettencourt (affectionately known as “Uncle Paul” by those that know him) is the only State Senator in our County up for re-election. Uncle Paul is a reliable conservative and common-sense vote in the Texas Senate. Taxes are his cup of tea, and he hosts a conservative talk radio show on KSEV.

Federal Elections:

Just like the Texas State House, the entire US House of Representatives is up for re-election every two years. Montgomery County currently has two Congressional Districts, TX8 and TX2. TX8 is currently held by Morgan Luttrell, who won his primary uncontested, and TX2 is led by Dan Crenshaw, who won his primary against Jameson Ellis 60%-40%. Morgan Luttrell will face off against Laura Jones, a Democrat. Comparing primary election results, Luttrell has an almost 56,000 vote advantage. Regardless, a vote for Morgan Luttrell makes the most sense, and is needed to keep Democrats from pumping money into Montgomery County races. Crenshaw faces a three-way race for his seat this November against Democrat Peter Filler, and Libertarian Chuck Benton. Crenshaw, while not beloved by all conservatives in his district is the commonsense choice. The time for interparty squabbles is during the primary, that time is past, and it is time to get behind the most conservative candidate in the race, and like him or not, that is Crenshaw.

Senator Ted Cruz is in another tough race due to Democrats obsession with “Turning Texas Blue”. Cruz is facing a plethora of opponents this cycle in what is teeing up to be the most expensive Senate Race in US History, an honor that is currently held by Ted Cruz from his last successful campaign in 2018 against Beto O’Rourke. This time, Cruz faces two Democrats, and a Libertarian for his seat. Colin Allred won the Democratic Primary, and Carl Oscar Sherman Sr. also a Democrat is mounting a write in campaign. Finally, Ted Brown will be the Libertarian candidate on the ballot.

Ted Cruz is one of the rock stars in the US Senate. I’ve had the pleasure of meeting him on a few occasions, and he just seems to me to be a very genuine and nice guy. If you ever have the opportunity to meet his father, Rev. Raphiel Cruz, he is a gem. The apple doesn’t seem to have fallen far from the tree. The commonsense vote here is for Ted Cruz. Cruz is a solid conservative vote in the Senate, and I would not flinch to honor him with the title of Statesman, something that few people in politics earn anymore.