President of the United States Candidate

	BARACK OBAMA JOE BIDEN For President and Vice President of the United States www.barackobama.com
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There Is Not A Liberal America And A Conservative America

Rather than directly casting votes for President on election day, U.S. citizens actually cast votes for Electoral College Electors. Each State is allocated a number of Electoral College Electors equal to the number of its U.S. Senators (always 2) plus the number of its U.S. House of Representatives Congressional Delegation. Since Texas has 32 Congressional Districts, Texas is allocated 34 Electors. Each political party in Texas selects its own slate of thirty-four Electoral College Electors during the respective party's state convention. Independent and write-in presidential candidates can also designate their slate of 34 electors.

In Texas, the presidential candidate who receives the most popular votes determines which slate of 34 electors will cast the electoral votes for president some time in early December. In other words, if Barack Obama, the Democratic candidate, receives the most popular votes in Texas, then the Democratic Party's slate of 34 electors is certified to cast the Electoral College votes for president in Texas. A total of 270 out of 538 possible electoral votes is required to elect the President of the United States.

Barack Obama Convention Speech Video

Obama's 2008 Convention Speech As Prepared For Delivery

U.S. Senate Democratic Candidate

LT. COL. RICK NORIEGA For United States Senate www.ricknoriega.com

Article One of the Constitution of the United States specifies that each state shall have two Senators, which are now elected by state-wide general election. Senators serve six-year terms that are staggered so that one third of the Senators stand for election every second year.

The Constitution assigned to Congress responsibility for organizing the executive and judicial branches, raising revenue, declaring war, and making all laws necessary for executing these powers. The president is permitted to veto specific legislative acts, but Congress has the authority to override presidential vetoes by two-thirds majorities of both houses.

The Constitution also assigns special responsibilities to the Senate to advise and exercise its consent on proposals made by the President of the United States for key executive and judicial appointments, including Justices to the Supreme Court, and on the ratification of treaties with foreign countries. The two U.S. Senators from Texas cast two of the fifty votes the Senate needs to advise and exercise its consent on appoints and treaties proposed by the President.

LT. COL. RICK NORIEGA For United States Senate www.ricknoriega.com

U.S. House of Representatives Democratic Candidates

	TOM DALEY For U.S. House of Representatives, Texas 3rd Congressional District www.tomdaleyforcongress.com
	GLENN MELANÇON For U.S. House of Representatives, Texas 4th Congressional District www.melanconforuscongress.net

The boundaries of the 3^rd Texas Congressional District and the 4^th Texas Congressional District meet in Collin County. Your Congressional District Number can be found on your 2008 Orange Voter's Registration Card within the box titled "Congress."

The 3^rd Texas Congressional District includes a large portion of the southwestern corner of Collin County that includes Plano and most of Frisco and McKinney. The 3^rd District also encompasses the northeastern corner of Dallas County that includes parts of Richardson, Garland and Dallas.

Collin and Dallas County residents must check their Registration Card to verify their respective congressional district number. Click on the map to enlarge. The 3^rd District on the map is shaded in yellow and the 4^th District is shaded in pink.

In Collin Co. the 4^th Texas Congressional District county. The 4^th Texas Congressional District also includes all or parts of Bowie, Camp, Cass, Collin, Delta, Fannin, Farnklin, Grayson, Hopkins, Hunt, Lamar, Morris, Rains, Red River and Rockwall counties.

A Congressional District is an area within a state entitled to elect one "congressional member" to the United States House of Representatives. The United States has a total of 435 Congressional districts and each district has about 570,000 people. The 435 congressional seats are reapportioned within and among the 50 states after each decennial census as prescribed in Section 2, Article I of the Constitution of the United States according to a formula established by the congress.

Texas has 32 U.S. Congressional Districts. The Texas legislature has primary responsibility for "redistricting" the U.S. Congressional Districts within Texas as well as the districts for the Texas State Senate, State House and State Board of Education after each decennial census. The Texas legislature also has the primary role in making changes to state judicial districts. Section 28, Article III of the Texas Constitution requires the legislature to "redistrict" the various governmental jurisdictions during its first regular session following publication of each United States decennial census.

For an Interactive Map of Texas U.S. Congressional (110th Congress) districts, plus State House, State Senate and State Board of Education Districts click here.

TOM DALEY is running for the U.S. House of Representatives 3rd Congressional District seat currently held by Republican Sam Johnson.

Mr. Johnson, who will be 78 years old in October 2008, was first elected to the 3rd District House Seat in a special election on May 8, 1991. Johnson has been reelected to the U.S. House Seat in eight regular elections beginning in 1992. The Texas 3rd District House Seat has arguably been one of the deepest red Republican districts in Texas and the United States since 1968 when the Republican Party first took control of the 3rd district House Seat. Johnson ran for reection unopposed by a Democratic Candidate in the 1992, 1994, 1998 and 2004 elections. Johnson has voted against tax incentives for energy conservation and clean/alternative energy development. Johnson also voted to eliminate "critical habitat" for endangered species and to reduce liability for hazardous waste dumping and clean up. Johnson opposes universal health care coverage, supports the privatization of social security and has voted against re-regulating the home mortgage industry. To review Johnson's positions on the issues and his U.S. House of Representatives voting record, click here.

GLENN MELANÇON is running for the U.S. House of Representatives 4th Congressional District seat currently held by Republican Ralph Moody Hall.

Mr. Hall, who at 85 years old is the oldest serving member of the House of Representatives, first ran for and won the 4th District House Seat as a self-described "old-time southern conservative Democrat" in the 1980 general election. Hall was reelected to that U.S. House Seat as an "old-time conservative Democrat" in every regular election until 2004 when he switched parties to run as a Republican. Hall switched parties after House Majority Leader Tom DeLay engineered the controversial mid-decade redistricting of Texas in 2003. That mid-decade redistricting of Texas added the northern and eastern portions of Republican strong-hold Collin County to the 4th district. After the switch, the Republican Party allowed Hall to keep his seniority and Hall became chairman of the House Subcommittee on Energy and Air Quality. Hall has voted against tax incentives for energy conservation and clean/alternative energy development. Hall also voted to eliminate "critical habitat" for endangered species and to reduce liability for hazardous waste dumping and clean up. Hall opposes universal health care coverage, supports the privatization of social security and has voted against re-regulating the home mortgage industry. To review Hall's positions on the issues and his U.S. House of Representatives voting record, click here.

Supreme Court of Texas Democratic Candidates

	JUDGE JIM JORDAN For Texas Supreme Court, Chief Justice www.judgejimjordan.com
	SAM HOUSTON For Texas Supreme Court, Place 7 www.samhoustonforjustice.com
	JUSTICE LINA YANEZ For Texas Supreme Court, Place 8 www.lindayanez.com

The Supreme Court of Texas is composed of a Chief Justice plus eight Justices and it is the court of last resort for civil matters in the State of Texas. A different court, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, is the court of last resort for criminal matters. The Justices of the Supreme Court are elected to staggered six-year terms in state-wide elections. When a vacancy arises the Governor of Texas may appoint Justices, subject to Senate confirmation, to serve out the remainder of an unexpired term until the next general election. Five of the current Justices, a majority, have been appointed by Governor Rick Perry (R) and all the current Justices, like all the Judges of the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, are members of the Republican party. All justices are elected to a "court place position" in state-wide general elections. Other than Place 1, which is reserved as the Chief Justice place position, the Supreme Court place numbers have no special significance.

To stand for election a person must be at least 35 years of age, a United States and Texas citizen, licensed to practice law in Texas, and must have practiced law at least 10 years. By statute, the Texas Supreme Court has administrative control over the State Bar of Texas, an agency of the judiciary. The Texas Supreme Court also has the sole authority to license attorneys in Texas, and appoint members of the Board of Law Examiners, which under instructions of the Supreme Court, administers the Texas State Bar Examination. Graphical Guide to the Court System of Texas.

Additional information on the Supreme Court of Texas can be found on the campaign website of Judge Jim Jordan.

All nine sitting justices on the Texas Supreme Court, who are members of the Republican Party, received an “F” on a new scorecard released by Court Watch, a non-profit consumer project that monitors the state’s highest court. “The Texas Supreme Court has failed Texas families,” said Alex Winslow, Executive Director of the Texas Watch Foundation, which operates the Court Watch project. “Sadly, this is not surprising. The Texas Supreme Court has become a safe haven for corporate defendants seeking refuge from accountability.”

Court Watch reviewed each of the 110 opinions issued by the Court during the 2005-2006 term, 69 of which are classified as consumer cases. Court Watch determined how often each justice sided with consumers. With just a 39% record of voting in favor of consumers, Justice Harriet O’Neill had the Court’s highest consumer score. Meanwhile, Justice Don Willett had the lowest rate with a minuscule 11%. The average pro-consumer score was a paltry 22%.

Winslow points out that it is not surprising that the Court would find in favor of insurance, medical, governmental, and other corporate interests over individual consumers. In the 10 years that Court Watch has been monitoring and reporting on the Court’s decisions, the Texas Supreme Court has consistently and overwhelmingly ruled against Texas families.

“Year in and year out, the Texas Supreme Court distinguishes itself as an activist, pro-defendant Court,” said Winslow.

The report also found the following results:

The Court ruled against consumers a whopping 84% of the time. This is the highest consumer loss rate in Court Watch’s 10-year history. The Court tied its highest defendant win rate at 82%. The Court voted in lockstep. With an average rate of agreement with the majority of 90%, the Court lacks any real dissenting voices. The Court overturned citizen juries in consumer cases a staggering 81% of the time.

Every voter in Texas will have the opportunity to replace three of the Republican Texas Supreme Court Justices with three highly qualified Democratic Justices.