Bad blood between Strayhorn and Perry since her role as state comptroller had her butting heads against Perry and the legislature.
Chris Bell, the Dem candidate, was a moderate Dem congressman from Houston until DeLay's infamous gerrymandering of the Texas districts cut Bell out - bad blood between those before redistricting and ever since. Bell was the one to initiate ethics charges against DeLay in Congress, and while little came of it, it fanned flames and gave momentum to the investigations and eventual indictments from the Travis county DA against DeLay. Bell's a little too much "GOP lite" for my tastes in some ways, but I'll probably vote for him simply because he did go up against DeLay kicking and screaming, albeit like a whiny weiner.
I agree with B. regarding the Plano suburban types going with Perry as the known "ick" versus the Dem or the indies. Ironically, Bell would suit their issues, values, whatnot the best, but as a Dem, the 'burbinites won't give him the time of day.
As to why we bother to vote or not, I'll interject my semi-annual diatribe about how our votes are most necessary at the local levels, watching and voicing our choices for board of education members, city council and mayoral candidates. A few votes really do make a difference more often than not, and, the bastards of tomorrow start off as the local bastards of today. Ah, well, ya'll know the spiel, so I won't go any further with it.
Texas, our Texas. To know it is to know how to spit.
- Deborah