Tom Green County Democratic Party Wins Dubious Statewide Award

SAN ANGELO, TX — Texas Monthly magazine is out with its annual Bum Steer awards and the Tom Green County Democratic Party made the list for 2018.  

According to the Texas Monthly website, the local Democratic party scheduled a gubernatorial political forum on the same date and time as the College Football National Championship Game.  “The Tom Green County Democratic Party scheduled a gubernatorial forum for Democratic candidates to be held in San Angelo on January 8, 2018 at 7 p.m. CST, the precise date and kickoff time for the College Football Playoff National Championship Game," Texas Monthly chided.

The statewide publication bills the Bum Steer awards as, “...our annual roundup of Texas’s most ridiculous and idiotic endeavors, featuring political personalities, flashy figures and plenty of nameless ne’er-do-wells.”   

Not to be outdone, the Texas Democratic Party’s nominee for Governor in 2018, Lupe Valdez, was listed as second runner up for Bum Steer of the Year. Texas Monthly says Valdez “ran the worst gubernatorial campaign in Texas since the last time a Democrat went up against Greg Abbott.”    

In the 2018 election cycle, the Tom Green County Democratic Party, led by County Chairman David Currie, managed to field only one Democratic candidate out of 17 races.  Democratic candidate Sally Ayana ran for Justice of the Peace in Pct. 1. She lost by 19 percent to Republican Susan Werner.

There are 28 elected offices in Tom Green County and all of them are held by Republicans.  

The January 2019 issue of Texas Monthly can be found online here.

Previous winners from San Angelo include four Lake View High School Students in 1985 who used the school printing press to produce counterfeit $20 bills. 

In 1999 the grand champion pig at the San Angelo Stock Show and Rodeo was found to be kidnapped from the Houston livestock show instead of going to the slaughter house.

In 1993, San Angelo judge Royal Hart ordered J. B. Fiveash to have his mouth covered when testifying and to talk to his lawyer from behind a glass partition after Fiveash, who was facing misdemeanor charges of assault and resisting arrest, spat on his court-appointed lawyer for refusing to pursue an insanity defense. 

And in 1982, Kenneth L. Smith of San Angelo was arrested for shouting “Jump!” to a distraught man threatening to leap from a bridge.

We reached out to Tom Green County Chair David Currie.

"We always meet on the first Monday of every month. Until Alabama is out of contention for the national championship, I don't care to watch it anyway," Currie said. "When Baylor is playing, we'll cancel the meeting."

The next meeting of the Tom Green County Democrats is Monday, Jan. 7 at 7 p.m. At that same time, #1 Alabama will face #2 Clemson for the college football national championship. The game will be broadcasted on ESPN.