Falling behind Marc Veasey in the race to win the new Congressional District 33 seat, Dallas candidate Domingo Garcia is appealing to fellow Latinos for votes.
After all, he helped to draw the district in way that would give him more Latino support. The district resembles a Rorshach Test as it meanders from southeast Tarrant County to southwest Dallas County.
“This is about our dreams and our aspirations. They’re saying, ‘Will the sleeping brown giant wake up?’ ” Garcia is quoted by Gromer Jeffers Jr. in The Dallas Morning News today.
Not that this election is about race, mind you.
Garcia and others say this is about electing the best person for the job, and not voting based on someone’s race.
But you have a Dallas Latino politician in a runoff with Fort Worth African-American politician (Marc Veasey) for a district seat created to increase minority representation in Congress. Blacks and hispanics are traditionally under-represented in politics, and both racial groups want more influence in Washington D.C.
It’s not easy to take race out of that discussion.
CD-33 runoff candidate Domingo Garcia’s candidacy is exactly as a recent Dallas Morning editorial stated: “Flawed Candidate.” Two main obstacles work against Domingo’s CD-33 campaign. The first obstacle is the prominent role he had in the drawing & acceptance of the ill-advised CD-33 congressional district. The newly created CD-33rd district diluted minority voter strength in both Tarrant County & Dallas County. Domingo will forever carry at a minimum, partial blame for the creation of the CD-33 district that pits black & Hispanic voters against each other. The second obstacle is his biggest obstacle. It appears Domingo’s political blunders; past & present continue to identify with him like jam on jelly. Texas Magazine called him a “One Leper Colony” describing his tenure as a Texas State Representative. More recently, Domingo called his CD-33 runoff candidate Marc Veasey an errand boy on the campaign trail evoking unwarranted racially tinged attacks on Mr. Veasey. Indeed, it appears Domingo Garcia’s chickens have come home to roost. This race will be known as the race where a young, (Marc Veasey – 41 years old) popular, emerging Democratic elected official finally landed the big prize as the newly elected congressman of the CD-33 congressional district. Unfortunately for Domingo Garcia, the CD-33 runoff will be known as the election that finally put a worn out and outdated 56 year old politician on the steps of political retirement.
Edgar it will only be temporary until Latinos find an alternative to Marc Veasey who himself is a seasoned politician who has been at it for some time. While I do not support either candidate, and will remain nuetral, we must not allow a bashing of Domingo Garcia either.