One of the interesting races to be decided by area voters is U.S. representative for District 31. For the first time in 14 years, U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards, D-Waco, will not be on the ballot for many local counties.
Democrat candidate Jon Porter of Cedar Park claims to be the replacement for Edwards. He thinks Edwards was fiscally conservative and strong on defense and has said he is “a lot like” Edwards.
Unlike the three Republican candidates — John Carter, Wes Riddle and Dirk Armbrust — Porter thinks the government is a positive force and has no goals to “pare down” the government. All three Republicans support varying gradations of limited government, Riddle of Belton probably being the most conservative.
Dennis Krcha has run against incumbent Bell County Sheriff Dan Smith twice. The first time he ran against him, in 1996, Krcha was a Republican and Smith was a Democrat. The second time, 2000, they were both Republicans and Krcha was defeated in the primary. This time, he’s hoping to beat the still-Republican Smith as an independent. Krcha will start collecting signatures after the primary to run against Smith in the general election.
For the first time in five campaigns, State Rep. Suzanna Gratia Hupp, R-Lampasas will have a challenger in the general election. Like Rep. Hupp, Democrat candidate Edward Lindsey will be running unopposed on the primary ballot.
