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Chapter 2 THE DEMOCRATIC REVOLUTION “I SAY IF THEY DON’T LIKE political jokes, they shouldn’t elect them,” quipped former Texas Gov. Preston Smith as he wandered the dusty political trails of West Texas.1 Texas politics had always managed to produce eccentric characters and campaigns replete with sometimes bizarre entertainment, either bitterly tragic or morbidly hilarious. The 1978 Democratic primary would carry on that tradition as the incumbent governor, Dolph Briscoe, would attempt to defend himself from the embarrassing missteps of his administration. Smith would try to recapture the governor’s mansion that spring, becoming an interesting sideshow as Gov. Dolph Briscoe would campaign for a third term against Atty. Gen. John Hill, who would try to wrest away the prize he had long sought from both. The results of the primary would reshape the leadership and direction of the Texas Democratic Party. The three main candidates for the Democratic nomination had actually run against each other for governor before. In 1968, Briscoe, Smith, and Hill had become part of a crowded field of ten candidates hoping to succeed Gov. John Connally after he announced he would not seek a fourth term. Smith placed second in the first primary, with Briscoe placing fourth, and Hill finishing a distant sixth. Smith went on to defeat liberal Don Yarborough for the nomination in the runoff and serve two terms as governor. In 1972, Briscoe ousted Smith, while Hill won election to the post of attorney general. In 1974, the traditional two-year terms of state officeholders switched to four-year terms.2 Briscoe easily won reelection, while Hill faced no opposition in the general election and both looked to new opportunities in the upcoming 1978 contest. Throughout 1977, the candidates began moving into position for the primary . Since the primary’s inception at the beginning of the century, it had essentially become the real election, given that the winner of the Democratic Primary had always won the governor’s mansion in the fall contest against a 24 Chapter 2 weak Republican candidate. In fact, almost every southern Democratic primary produced greater turnout than the general election.3 In many areas of Texas, the Republican Party did not exist on the local level and never bothered to offer candidates for office, making many these areas strict one-party communities . The election began and ended with the Democratic Primary. Although the Republicans had made strong attempts to challenge the Democrats before, they had always met with defeat. To most Texas observers, little seemed different about the state political scene in 1978. Dolph Briscoe would seek a third term that year. He had attracted a loyal group of admirers, but many Texans inside and outside the Democratic Party remained unimpressed with his leadership over the past six years. Briscoe had not won his first term by a wide margin. In the wake of a nationwide Republican sweep in 1972, Briscoe barely won election over a well-organized opponent, State Rep. Hank Grover. Some results on election night alarmed the party faithful with reports showing Briscoe trailing Grover, results that caused many to question Briscoe’s effectiveness. Despite Briscoe’s clear victory, critics continued to deride him as a “minority” governor.4 Briscoe came to the office with a very traditional idea of a limited government . In a speech to the legislature, he repeated his mantra, “Government should do only two things: Safeguard the lives and property of our people; Ensure that each of us has a chance to work out his destiny according to his talents.”5 This attitude played well with most Texans. In 1974, he was elected to the state’s first four-year term for governor, winning by a two-to-one margin (see appendix B). As governor, Briscoe worked to build a system of modern highways for the state and to hold down taxes. He often boasted how his administration consistently opposed new taxes and defeated any efforts to raise them.6 Upon entering office in 1973, Briscoe called for a restoration of integrity to government as Texans recoiled against the Sharpstown stock scandal that led to the downfall of Gov. Preston Smith and Lt. Gov. Ben Barnes in the 1972 election. Briscoe declared, “We must restore politics to a high level of respect instead of being thought of as a dirty business.”7 He also touched on an issue that he would repeat often, calling for “no new taxes in 1973.”8 The call to stop tax increases...

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