Texas lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2014

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Texas Lieutenant Gubernatorial Election

Primary Date:
March 4, 2014

General Election Date:
November 4, 2014

November 4 Election Winner:
Dan Patrick Republican Party
Incumbent prior to election:
David Dewhurst Republican Party
David Dewhurst.jpg

Texas State Executive Elections
Top Ballot
GovernorLt. GovernorAttorney General
Down Ballot
Comptroller, Land Commissioner, Commissioner of Agriculture, Railroad Commissioner

Flag of Texas.png

The Texas lieutenant gubernatorial election took place on November 4, 2014. Incumbent David Dewhurst (R) was first elected in 2002 and sought re-election in 2014, but lost in a Republican primary runoff with state Sen. Dan Patrick.[1] Patrick faced Democratic candidate Leticia Van de Putte, Libertarian Party candidate Robert Butler and Green Party candidate Chandrakantha Courtney in the general election. Patrick won election to a four-year term.

A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. Texas utilizes an open primary system. Voters do not have to register with a party in advance in order to participate in that party's primary. The voter must sign a pledge stating the following (the language below is taken directly from state statutes)[2]

The following pledge shall be placed on the primary election ballot above the listing of candidates' names: 'I am a (insert appropriate political party) and understand that I am ineligible to vote or participate in another political party's primary election or convention during this voting year.'[3]

For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.

Candidates

General election

Republican Party Dan Patrick - State Senator, District 7[4]Green check mark transparent.png
Democratic Party Leticia Van de Putte - State Senator[5][6]
Libertarian Party Robert Butler[7]
Green Party Chandrakantha Courtney[8]

Lost in primary

Republican Party David Dewhurst - Incumbent[1]
Republican Party Jerry Patterson - Texas Land Commissioner[9]
Republican Party Todd Staples - Texas Agriculture Commissioner[1]

Withdrawn

Libertarian Party Brandon de Hoyos - Journalist[10][7]
Libertarian Party Ed Kless - Businessman[10][11]

Declined

Republican Party Susan Combs - Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts[12]
Democratic Party Maria Luisa Alvarado - Retired Air Force Master Sergeant, 2006 candidate for Lt. Gov.[13]

Results

General election

Lieutenant Governor of Texas, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngDan Patrick 58.1% 2,724,493
     Democrat Leticia Van de Putte 38.7% 1,813,974
     Libertarian Robert Butler 2.6% 119,833
     Green Chandrakantha Courtney 0.6% 27,719
Total Votes 4,686,019
Election results via Texas Secretary of State

Runoff

Texas Lieutenant Gubernatorial Republican Runoff, 2014
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngDan Patrick 65% 489,586
David Dewhurst Incumbent 35% 263,194
Total Votes 752,780
Election results via Texas Secretary of State.

Primary election

Republican primary

Texas Lieutenant Gubernatorial Republican Primary, 2014
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngDan Patrick 41.4% 552,692
Green check mark transparent.pngDavid Dewhurst Incumbent 28.3% 377,856
Todd Staples 17.8% 236,949
Jerry Patterson 12.5% 166,399
Total Votes 1,333,896
Election results via Texas Secretary of State.

Democratic primary

  • Uncontested

Race background

Primary defeat for Dewhurst

Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst was the only incumbent running for re-election in 2014 while a number of other Republicans vied for his office, including two incumbents in other statewide executive offices.

Dewhurst was previously considered to be a rising star in the Republican Party since the Texas governorship had been a platform for Republican presidential candidates. In his 2012 Senate run, however, he lost the Republican primary to Tea Party-affiliated candidate Ted Cruz.

In the primary, Dewhurst came second to State Senator Dan Patrick. After the primary on March 4, Republican lobbyists pressured the three second-place candidates involved in runoffs to drop out of their respective races and decide the Republican nominations early. Incumbent Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst and Texas Representative Dan Branch, second-place finishers for lieutenant governor and attorney general respectively, refused to do so and said that they would continue campaigning. The second-place Republican running for comptroller, however, dropped out, reducing the number of Republican runoffs to two.[14]

In the runoff on May 27, Patrick defeated Dewhurst again, securing the Republican nomination. This result meant that there were no incumbent state executives who won re-election in the 2014 elections.

Money in the race
2013

For the reporting period ending June 30, 2013, Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples had $3 million in his campaign fund—the most of the four Republican primary candidates. Sen. Dan Patrick had $2.1 million, and Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst had $1.73 million.[15] Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson had $1.3 million cash-on-hand, raising $417,000 in the last two weeks of June.[16]

Polls

General election
All candidates

Lieutenant Governor of Texas
Poll Dan Patrick (R) Leticia Van de Putte (D)Chandrakantha Courtney (G)Robert Butler (L)Margin of errorSample size
University of Texas/Texas Tribune
October 10-19, 2014
52%35%4%9%+/-3.33866
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to [email protected].

Major party candidates

Texas Lieutenant Governor - Patrick and Van de Putte
Poll Dan Patrick (R) Leticia Van de Putte (D)Not sureMargin of errorSample size
Public Policy Polling
April 10-13, 2014
51%35%14%+/-4.1559
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to [email protected].

Primary election
Republican primary

Lt. Governor of Texas - Republican Primary
Poll David Dewhurst Dan PatrickJerry PattersonTodd StaplesDon't KnowMargin of errorSample size
University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll
October 18-27, 2013
26%13%10%5%46%+/-5.021,200
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to [email protected].
Lt. Governor of Texas - Republican Primary
Poll David Dewhurst Dan PatrickJerry PattersonTodd StaplesMargin of errorSample size
University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll
February 7-17, 2014
38%31%14%16%+/-5.37543
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to [email protected].

Hypothetical match-ups

Lieutenant Governor of Texas
Poll David Dewhurst (R) Leticia Van de Putte (D)Don't Know/NAMargin of errorSample size
Public Policy Polling
April 10-13, 2014
50%32%17%+/-4.1559
University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll
February 7-17, 2014
44%32%24%+/-3.281,200
Public Policy Polling
November 1-4, 2013
46%37%17%+/-4.4500
AVERAGES 46.67% 33.67% 19.33% +/-3.93 753
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to [email protected].

Campaign advertisements

Primary

Dan Patrick

David Dewhurst

Past elections

2010

Lieutenant Governor of Texas, 2010
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngDavid Dewhurst Incumbent 61.8% 3,049,109
     Democratic Linda Chavez-Thompson 34.8% 1,719,202
     Libertarian Scott Jameson 2.5% 122,142
     Green Herb Gonzales, Jr. 0.9% 44,903
Total Votes 4,935,356
Election results via Texas Secretary of State

2006

Lieutenant Governor of Texas, 2006
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngDavid Dewhurst Incumbent 58.2% 2,513,530
     Democratic Maria Luisa Alvarado 37.4% 1,617,490
     Libertarian Judy Baker 4.4% 188,206
Total Votes 4,319,226
Election results via Texas Secretary of State

2002

Lieutenant Governor of Texas, 2002
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngDavid Dewhurst 51.8% 2,341,875
     Democratic John Sharp 46% 2,082,281
     Libertarian Mark David Gessner 1.2% 54,885
     Green Nathalie Paravicini 1% 44,386
Total Votes 4,523,427
Election results via Texas Secretary of State

Campaign finance

Comprehensive donor information for this election has been collected by Follow the Money. Based on available campaign finance records, the candidates raised a total of $42,931,645 during the election. This information was last updated on April 8, 2015.[17]

Campaign Contribution Totals
Candidate Office Result Contributions
Dan PatrickRepublican Party Texas Lieutenant Governor Won $18,276,608
David DewhurstRepublican Party Texas Lieutenant Governor Defeated $10,737,099
Leticia Van de PutteDemocratic Party Texas Lieutenant Governor Defeated $7,995,650
Todd StaplesRepublican Party Texas Lieutenant Governor Defeated $3,041,725
Jerry PattersonRepublican Party Texas Lieutenant Governor Defeated $2,877,115
Robert ButlerLibertarian Party Texas Lieutenant Governor Defeated $3,448
Chandrakantha CourtneyGreen Party Texas Lieutenant Governor Defeated $0
Grand Total Raised $42,931,645

Key deadlines

Deadline Event
December 9, 2013 Filing deadline for candidates
March 4, 2014 Primary election
May 27, 2014 Primary run-off election
November 4, 2014 General election
January 20, 2015 Inauguration

Recent news

This section links to a Google news search for the term "Texas + Lieutenant + Governor + elections"

See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 The Texas Tribune, "Dewhurst plans to run for re-election," August 28, 2012
  2. Texas Statutes, "Section 172.086," accessed October 7, 2024
  3. Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
  4. Associated Press, "Dad: George P. Bush eyeing Texas land commissioner," November 14, 2012 (dead link)
  5. Burnt Orange Report, "Sen. Leticia Van de Putte (D) Considering Run for Lieutenant Governor," September 10, 2013
  6. My San Antonio, "Van de Putte joins 2014 race for lieutenant governor," November 23, 2013
  7. 7.0 7.1 Independent Political Report, "Texas, Wisconsin Libertarian Conventions This Weekend," 4/11/2014
  8. Green Party of Texas, "Press Release: 50 Candidates File to Run as Greens in Texas," December 10, 2013
  9. California Secretary of State, "Campaign Finance:Statement of Intention," accessed November 27, 2012
  10. 10.0 10.1 Texas Tribune, "Libertarian Kathie Glass Announces Bid for Governor," October 2, 2013
  11. Elect Ed Kless, "Upon Further Review...," January 10, 2014
  12. Reporternews.com, "Comptroller Combs will not run for any statewide office in 2014," May 29, 2013 (dead link)
  13. PR.com, "Maria Luisa Alvarado Expected to Announce Her Candidacy for Lt. Governor Monday," October 27, 2013
  14. Texas Tribune, "Lobbyist: Efforts Afoot to Get Candidates to Drop Out," March 10, 2014
  15. The Statesman, "Staples tops money race for lieutenant governor," July 15, 2013
  16. WFAA, "Campaign finance reports show cash on hand for Davis, Patterson," July 15, 2013
  17. Follow the Money, "Overview of Texas 2014 elections," accessed April 9, 2015