The Texas Governor Debate

Local issues took center stage in the statewide debate from the beginning. The evening’s first question, in the first debate for governor held in the Rio Grande Valley, came from Monitor editor Carlos Sanchez and asked the candidates about the reputation of the Valley after a surge of statewide law enforcement descended on the region. a in saying she would listen more closely to local leaders.
Wendy Davis  reintroduced Abbott’s comments earlier this year — unpopular in the Valley — comparing South Texas corruption to a third-world country.a in saying she would listen more closely to local leaders. Then she reintroduced Abbott’s comments earlier this year — unpopular in the Valley — comparing South Texas corruption to a third-world country.
“Mr. Abbott, these cuts and the cuts that you’re defending that have left our classrooms overcrowded, that have left our teachers laid off, that’s not liberal, that’s not conservative, it’s just dumb,”  Wendy Davis

Abbott brought up a local issue once more before the end of the debate. Arguing for his position in favor of strong voter ID laws, the attorney general referenced the federal indictment against two women in Hidalgo County who, according to an FBI complaint, traded cocaine for votes in the 2012 Democratic primary.
Carlos  Sanchez  of the Monitor said the clear winners were voters in the Valley. Other organizers agreed, with a nod toward even further electoral power in the region in future elections.  The Monitor