With early voting underway in Texas, who can a liberal or progressive support in 2014? 

And given how low our expectations are here in Texas, who can we vote for who isn't a far right wing extremist?    

I'll also be focusing on a small number of races in Harris County, Texas. I live in Houston.

Early voting in Texas ends on Friday, October 31. General Election Day is Tuesday, November 4.  

Here is my ballot----

Governor of Texas: Wendy Davis 

I wish Ms. Davis had run a campaign more focused on economic issues and the refusal of the State of Texas to accept the expansion of health care from the Affordable Care Act.  We need to expand turnout in Texas. But Ms.Davis is who we have for the top spot on the ballot. She could be worse. 

Lt. Governor of Texas: Leticia Van De Putte 

Ms. Van De Putte has run a hopeful and energetic campaign against far right-wing extremist Dan Patrick.
Given the power of the Lt. Governor over the Texas State Senate, I'd ask that people consider looking at Dan Patrick's record and discussing this race with fellow Texans.  

United States Senator from Texas: Emily Sanchez

With Democratic U.S. Senate nominee David Almaeel headed nowhere, Texas Green Party nominee Emily Sanchez is the best pick. Ms. Sanchez is the U.S. Senate candidate talking about climate change and fair wages for all.  

Texas Attorney General: Sam Houston

Mr. Houston is a strong competent candidate running against a Republican nominee--Ken Paxton--who may soon face criminal charges.    

Texas Agriculture Commissioner: Kenneth Kendrick

This is another race where the Democrat is not running a credible campaign. Green Party nominee Kendrick is well-informed about Texas agriculture and has a history of taking on big corporate interests.  

Harris County District Attorney: Kim Ogg

This is likely the most important race on the Harris County ballot. Ms. Ogg offers a hopeful and more humane course of justice in Harris County after years of Republican control in this position.

Harris County Judge Executive: David Collins

There is no Democrat in this race. Why not cast a ballot for thoughtful and progressive Green for the highest office in Harris County? 

Harris County Board of Education: Melissa Noriega  

I know Melissa and she is all right. 

Make sure you vote all the way down the ballot on Election Day. The judgeships are important. 

Here is my post from a few days ago of things I intend to do to be of at least some impact in this election.

Taking part in traditional politics does not mean that we should ignore things like the ongoing pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong or the recent climate change march in New York City.  

The work of freedom is up to each of us. We've got to make use of every opportunity and avenue we can to make progress in our nation and the world.  

Here is a list of ideas for everyday resistance to our often greedy and violent society.    

Please read all of NeilAquino.com 

Early voting begins in Texas on Monday, October 20, 2014 and runs through Friday October 31, 2014. General Election Day is Tuesday, November 4, 2014.

Because of our wrongful Texas voter ID which is intended to keep poor people and people of color from voting, here are the various forms of ID that will be accepted at the polls so you'll be allowed to vote. 

Here are things I'm doing to help candidates and ideas I support in this upcoming election and beyond---

1. I'm voting.

2. I'm asking people I know if they are voting. 

3. In the next day or two, I'm going to make a series of small donations to candidates I support and also to the Texas Green Party. The Green Party offers Texas voters a needed option for fair wages, a sustainable way of living and more democracy.

4. I'm using resources I have such as this blog and my Facebook page to advocate for my beliefs. 

5. I'm making this list and asking others to do something similar if they think it might be of value.  It helps to have a plan as time growing short in this election season. 

6. I'm making the point that Texas Republican Lt. Governor Dan Patrick nominee is a far right extremist who should give both independents and Republicans second thought at the ballot box.

7. I'm going to keep on saying that the Democratic Party needs to focus on economic stagnation and frozen wages in Texas and the United States, with the same energy it has applied to some social issues. 

8. I'm asking you to offer your own ideas with a comment here on the blog.

The work of freedom is up to each of us.  

Please read all of NeilAquino.com

A good thing in Texas politics is the Texas Progressive Alliance. I am a member of this organization. 

(Drawing is of the jalapeno. The jalapeno is the state pepper of Texas.)   

The TPA is a group of citizen-bloggers who each day observe, write about and take an active part in Texas politics at the local and statewide level.

The work of freedom is up to each of us. 

Each week the TPA offers a round-up of the best in Texas blogging for the week just past.

Here is the most recent round-up--- 


Off the Kuff published his interview with Mike Collier, Democratic candidate for Comptroller.

Libby Shaw, writing for Texas Kaos and Daily Kos, wants to make sure Texas women voters remember in November. Greg Abbott’s War on Poor Women is real and it is mean.

So there was this ad about a guy in a wheelchair on teevee last week. PDiddie at Brains and Eggsthinks that people observing Texas politics that don't live in Texas just don't get it.

As crunch time arrives, Texas Leftist wants voters to know just how far out in the political fringe we have to put Republican Dan Patrick. So far out, he started running against Rick Perry. Plus, don't miss the interview with the only sensible candidate in the lietenant governor's race, DemocratLeticia Van de Putte.

WCNews at Eye on Williamson says that of all the bad GOP statewide candidates -- and there are many to choose from -- Ken Paxton may be the worst, in Paxton's legal predicament: will he be indicted?

Vote this November with CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme if you want Latinas treated with dignity, people of African descent given life-saving efforts when ill, and Texas women to have proper health services.

Neil at Blog About Our Failing Money Owned Political System wrote about the two Ebola cases in the United States. BAOFMOPS is one of many worthy pages to review at NeilAquino.com.

jobsanger wonders if the polls even matter in this election. 

Texpatriate plays it down the middle in the furor over the wheelchair ad.

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And here are some posts of interest from other Texas blogs.

Unfair Park tallies the cost of assuaging irrational fears about Ebola.

Mark Phariss, one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit seeking to overturn Texas' ban on same sex marriage, urges the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals to schedule oral arguments in that case already.

Socratic Gadfly has a take on Bud Kennedy's column regarding Democrats, minorities, and thinking past abortion and gay marriage.

Fascist Dyke Motors wants you to understand that there are rules everybody has to follow. 

Hair Balls explains why moving the Houston Pride parade out of the Montrose is a big deal.

Nonsequiteuse reminds us that sneakers are made for blockwalking as well as filibustering. Pink is optional.

Christopher Hooks provides another example of Breitbart Texas being stark raving loony.

The TSTA Blog highlights another education cutter seeking to get back into office.

Greg Wythe teases his return with a promised look at how the early vote is going.

Mustafa Tameez condemns Dan Patrick's "irresponsible" border ad.

Juanita Jean speaks as a person with disabilities about that Wendy Davis ad.

A hopeful thing in our Texas politics is the Texas Progressive Alliance. I am a member of this organization. 

The TPA is a group of citizen-bloggers who each day observe, write about and take an active part in Texas politics at the local and statewide level.

(Photo is of sweet onions. The sweet onion is the official vegetable of Texas.) 

The work of freedom is up to each of us. 

Each week the TPA offers a round-up of the best in Texas blogging for the week just past.

Here is the most recent round-up--- 

Off the Kuff began his series of interviews with statewide candidates by talking to Sam Houston, the Democratic candidate for Attorney General.

Libby Shaw, writing for Texas Kaos and at Daily Kos, is very pleased that  Wendy Davis hammered Greg Abbott on Austin's pervasive culture of corruption. 

From WCNews at Eye on Williamson: The question remains, is something like the Texas Enterprise Fund scandal enough to get voters to change their mind about Greg Abbott and the GOP? If not thenwhat would it take?

William Rivers Pitt wrote "an open letter to his Democratic spammer". PDiddie at Brains and Eggscommiserates.

BlueDaze outs the not-from-Denton Master Debator representing the frackers. 

Texpatriate updated the lieutenant governor's race, Texas Leftist reviewed the debate, andEgberto Willies passed along the HouChron's endorsement of Leticia Van de Putte.

Bay Area Houston wonders why Greg Abbott sat in traffic for ten years before deciding he wanted to help.

Neil at All People Have Value wrote an art review of the fish cleaning station at the Texas City Dike. APHV is one of many pages worthy of review at NeilAquino.com.

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And here are some posts from other Texas blogs.

jobsanger ruefully observes that Wendy Davis is trailing in the governor's race because Texans don't feel that women should be equal to men.  But Socratic Gadfly believes there is no "self-hating woman" meme at work here.

TFN gives us the news that RNC head Reince Priebus believes it's 'compassionate' for Texas Republicans to close women's clinics in Texas.

Trail Blazers has the story of the lesbian couple that that asked the Fifth Circuit to schedule arguments next month in their gay marriage suit ... because they're expecting in March.

Scott Braddock shows the evidence of who's behind some recent wingnut-on-wingnut violence. Be sure your popcorn popper is in good order, this one looks like a gift that will keep on giving.

Lone Star Q is happy to report that Dallas City Council has voted week to ban discrimination against transgender city employees.

The Lunch Tray took a stand for citizen journalism.

Hair Balls explains what pot has to do with the Harris County DA race this year.

Char Miller eulogizes his colleague John Donahue, a "gracious force for good" in San Antonio.

Nancy Sims posits her grand unification theory of Houston Mayoral elections.

The Texas Election Law Blog assesses the GAO report on how long it took to vote in 2012.

Texas Watch wants you to understand the impact of the Texas law that shields the medical industry from accountability.

BOR points to HD94 as a below-the-radar race to watch.

Nonsequiteuse connects the dots from racing for the cure to racing for Governor.

Below is a list of Green Party nominees on the ballot in Texas for 2014. 

The Green Party has a message we need in Texas and in the nation.

Take a few minutes to review this list and see if there is a Green nominee running in your community.  There are also statewide Texas nominees. 

Here is the link for the Green Party of Texas.

Here are the ten core values of the Green party.

Here is the Facebook page for Emily (Spiceybrown) Sanchez for U.S. Senate from Texas.

Here is the link for Kenneth Kendrick for Texas Agriculture Commissioner. 

Ms. Sanchez and Mr. Kendrick are the best nominees for these offices. Democrats have no chance in either race.

Here is the list---

US Senate - Emily "Spicybrown" Sanchez
Governor - Brandon Parmer
Lieutenant Governor - Chandrakantha Courtney
Attorney General - Jamar Osborne
Comptroller of Public Accounts - Deb Shafto
Commissioner of Agriculture - Kenneth Kendrick
Railroad Commissioner - Martina Salinas
Supreme Court Justice Place 7 - Charles E. Waterbury
Supreme Court Justice Place 8 - Jim Chisolm
Court of Criminal Appeals Place 4 - Judtih Sanders-Castro
Court of Criminal Appeals Place 9 - George Joseph Altgelt
US Representative District 2 - Mark Roberts
US Representative District 3 - Paul Blair
US Representative District 13 - Don Cook
US Representative District 18 - Remington Alessi
US Representative District 21 - Antonio Diaz
US Representative District 28 - Michael D. Cary
US Representative District 35 - kat swift
US Representative District 36 - Hal J. Ridley, Jr
State Senate District 10 - John Tunmire
State Senate District 17 - David Courtney
State Representative District 42 - Niclolas Serna III
State Representative District 64 - Braeden Wright
State Representative District 80 - Marco Buentello
State Representative District 130 - Art Browning
State Representative District 146 - Morgan Bradford
County Judge - (Bexar) Paul Pipkin
County Judge - (Harris) David B. Collins
County Judge - (Webb) Frank Cortez
County Clerk - (Bexar) Earl Lyons
County Clerk - (Comal) Matthew Hanson
County Clerk - (Travis) Bill Stout
County Clerk - (Denton) Schyler Butler
County Criminal Court At Law No 13 - (Harris) Clint Davidson
County Commissioner Precinct 2 - (Bexar) Chuck Robinson
County Commissioner Precinct 4 - (Webb) Luis F. Decker
County Treasurer - (Webb) Jesus Quiroz
Justice of the Peace Precinct 2, Pl 3 - (Bexar) Diana D. Kendall
Justice of the Peace Pct 2, Pl 1 - (Webb) William "Willie" Koehn
Justice of the Peace Precinct 4 - (Webb) Lakshmana "Vish" Viswanath
Justice of the Peace Precinct 1 - (Denton) Aaron Renaud
Commissioner of General Land Office - Valerie Alessi
State Representative District 123 - Paul Ingmundson
County Commissioner Precinct 4 - (Bexar) Matthew Lerma     

Please read all of NeilAquino.com

A hopeful thing in our Texas politics is the Texas Progressive Alliance. I am a member of this organization. 

The TPA is a group of citizen-bloggers who each day observe, write about and take an active part in Texas politics at the local and statewide level.

The work of freedom is up to each of us. 

Each week the TPA offers a round-up of the best in Texas blogging for the week just past.

(Above--The Texas Horned Lizard is an inhabitant  of our great Lone Star State. Photo by Ben Goodwyn) 

Here is the most recent round--up---- 

Off the Kuff highlights the wit and hateful wisdom of Dr. Steven Hotze, one of the leading blights of the anti-gay movement in Texas.

Libby Shaw, writing at Daily Kos, believes there is a simple way to stop the controversial Tea Party candidate Dan Patrick from becoming the next Lt. Governor: Vote for Leticia Van de Putte. How are we going to stop Dan Patrick? Easily. Vote for Leticia.

From WCNews at Eye on Williamson: while Texas has been prosperous in recent years, the prosperity is not being enjoyed by everyone. Abbott's message is good news for corporations, scraps for the rest of us.

The only constitutional amendment on the November ballot commits over a billion dollars a year to state highway maintenance from the Rainy Day Fund. Some think that's a good idea, and some don't. PDiddie at Brains and Eggs thinks -- with the help of Sen. Kirk Watson -- that you should decide for yourself.

Neil at All People Have Value wrote that the recent terrible ambush shooting of Pennsylvania state troopers is believed to be the deed of an extreme anti-government individual. Neil says that police would be better served focusing on real threats than pepper-spraying Occupy Wall Street types or sending tanks to Ferguson, Missouri. APHV is one of many pages worthy of viewing atNeilAquino.com.

Dos Centavos has a couple of posts commemorating Hispanic Heritage Month.  And jobsanger hastwo photos from the Climate March in NYC yesterday.

With the first general election gubernatorial debate in eight years, everyone can agree that it was an exciting week in Texas politics. Texas Leftist has a full review of the contest. Who knew Greg Abbott was such a compelling liar?

Texpatriate had endorsements of one Republican and one Democrat, two Q&As from Harris County judicial candidates, and also responded to the Houston Chronicle's four judicial endorsements. 

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And here are some posts of interest from other Texas blogs.

Tar Sands Blockade has pictures and accounts from their protest last week at the Houston headquarters of Enbridge, which has opened a pipeline to do what Keystone XL has been stopped from doing.

Better Texas Blog presents a report showing the large impact that medical bills resulting from a visit to the emergency room can have.

The Texas Election Law Blog catches Greg Abbott playing the race card in the followup to the Houston Votes story, while Nonsequiteuse pushes back on sexist tropes in the latest reporting of the Wendy Davis divorce settlement.

Newsdesk reminds us that the allegations Davis is making about Abbott in regard to the Texas Youth Commission sexual assault scandal go way back, and the questions she's raising have been raised before without being answered.  And Socratic Gadfly has the answer Davis should have given to Abbott's "Do you regret voting for Obama" question at last Friday's debate. 

Grits for Breakfast puts the privately-run Bartlett State Jail on the list of facilities the Legislature might consider shuttering if they decide to close more prisons.

The TSTA Blog takes Texas Monthly's Erica Greider to task for buying into Republican flimflammery about funding cuts to public schools.

Stephanie Stradley tackles the complex question of what a sensible discipline policy for NFL players might look like.

Unfair Park highlights a video expose of crisis pregnancy centers, including one in Dallas.

TFN Insider noticed the reframing of the equal rights ordinance by the Houston Area Pastors Council, which now asserts that if you support the HERO, you are God's enemy. 

Project Q Houston interviews Mel Gonzales, a transgender student who was named homecoming king at his high school in Sugar Land.

It is not a great picture, but here is Harris Party Green Party Judge Executive nominee David Collins.  

I took this picture last night at a Green Party meet the candidates night. 

There is no Democrat in the race for Harris County Judge Executive. If you want a progressive option in this important race, your best bet is Mr. Collins.


Mr. Collins is focusing on the need for the extension of public transportation in Harris County, on the issue of poverty across the county, the cutting of fossil fuel use in the county and a variety of other important  concerns. 

Here is Mr. Collins' full platform. 

I saw a number of Harris County and statewide Texas Green candidates last night both in person and on Skype. 

The Green Ticket is solid and merits your consideration. 

Green Agriculture Commissioner nominee Kenneth Kendrick is getting attention as a knowledgeable figure running against two lackluster major party nominees.      

Here is the link to the Harris County Green Party. 

Here is the Texas Green Party. This link has a list of all Green candidates in Texas in 2014.

Here is the Green Party of the United States. 

It can be a leap for people who most often vote Democratic to vote Green instead. My view is that we must embrace a mix of conventional and unconventional politics to meet the many challenges of the times. I'd also ask folks who feel left out my the two-party process to consider the Greens as a way to find a hopeful way to engage in politics and public affairs.

Here are the ten core values of the Green Party.   

Please read all of NeilAquino.com

About the Wendy Davis/Greg Abbott debate this evening in the 2014 Texas Governor's race--- 

I don't think many undecided people watch political debates on TV. 

A good thing you could do to elect Wendy Davis is to make a list of 5 people you know who might vote for Davis if they vote at all, and make a point to contact those people.

I've also made small donation to Davis if you want to help in that way as well. 

Please read all of NeilAquino.com