Dallas County Democrats
Dallas County Democratic Victory Fund

This site is an ARCHIVE of the website used for the Dallas County Democratic Party from 2000 to May of 2002, and which was built by the then Chair Bill Howell. Though some information here will be relevant through the 2002 elections, other pages here are of interest for history or research. For the latest updated news about the Dallas County Democratic Party, see their own website at www.dallasdemocrats.org.

[The Dallas County Democratic Victory Fund was founded by the late Democratic activist and Precinct Chair Craig Murphy to help support Democratic candidates in county-wide races in Dallas County. The current Treasurer is former 5th District Court of Appeals Justice Charles McGarry. It was very active in 2000 in supporting efforts by Mary Huey for Judge and Chuck Munoz for Sheriff, both of whom won at the polls on election day and only narrowly lost overall because of early votes. It is already very active in 2002, with more Democratic county-wide candidates than have run in Dallas County in some twenty years. Most of these candidates are for judicial office. The following was a recent letter for the fund to attorneys asking for their support.]

April 2, 2002

Dear Fellow Attorneys:

The dominance of a single political party in Dallas County over the last twenty years has resulted in the loss of many fine judges, and has unfairly eliminated many of our best lawyers from consideration for the bench, solely because of their political affiliation. We are also concerned that the dominance of the Republican Party has pressured many judicial candidates to conform their attitudes and opinions to those of particular elements of that party.

The fair and efficient administration of Justice has always depended on the abilities and attitudes of the men and women who serve as our judges. A competitive political climate allows the best and the brightest of both parties to succeed, and encourages judicial moderation.

That competitive political climate has returned to Dallas County in 2002. In the recent Primary Election, Democratic voters outnumbered Republican voters by a whopping 45%. This is the first time that Democratic voters have outnumbered Republican voters AT ALL since 1992, which also happens to be the last time Democrats were elected in the fall. In the recent Primary, even uncontested Democratic candidates received more vote than all of their Republican counterparts in contested races COMBINED! Demographic changes portend a huge Democratic victory in the fall.

This year, we have the largest number of Democratic judicial candidates that Dallas County has seen in twenty years. Many of them have been endorsed by the Committee for a Qualified Judiciary. To help these candidates, and to ensure that Dallas County remains a competitive, two-party county, we are asking that you make a financial contribution to the DALLAS COUNTY DEMOCRATIC VICTORY FUND.

A contribution to the DALLAS COUNTY DEMOCRATIC VICTORY FUND has many advantages:

• You can contribute without appearing to target any particular incumbent
• A central campaign message is less expensive and more effective than twenty-five separate campaign messages
• You can choose to save money by making a single contribution, rather than contributing to each campaign separately (although they all appreciate and need separate contributions as well!)
• All of our candidates will know that you helped elect them

Contributions of $100 or more will make you a Sponsor at an upcoming fundraising event. If you contribute $1000 or more (up to a limit of $5000), you will be invited to join the committee and participate in the decision-making process as the election approaches.

Please join us in making a generous contribution today. A remittance envelope is enclosed for your convenience.

Sincerely,

(signed)
Al Ellis
Jerry Lastelick
Paul Coggins
Molly Steele
Cynthia Hollingsworth
Dale Tillery
Eric V. Moye
Vincent W. (Vee) Perini
W. Michael Bonesio
Chris Luna
J. Scott Chase
Jill A. Kotvis
Ken Molberg
Charles W. McGarry

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