Vote Chris Turner

Thank you for visiting. I am running for State Representative in District 96 because I believe we need more partnership and less partisanship in Austin.

The politicians in Austin spend more time representing the special interests than they do representing us. They have failed Texas families and it’s up to us to change the way business is done in Austin.

With your help, I know we can shake up the status quo and make a difference on the issues we all care about — education, health care, utility rates and transportation, among many others. We can find new and innovative solutions to the problems facing our communities. And I know that by working together, we can make a positive change for families in Southern Tarrant County and across our great state.

Please look around the website to learn more about our campaign. If you have questions, please call or email us. I would be honored to have your support in this campaign.

The historic primary elections held yesterday yielded good news for the campaign of Chris Turner, the Democratic nominee in House District 96 in Tarrant County.  Turner is challenging incumbent Bill Zedler:

• Democrats outvoted Republicans in HD96 yesterday by greater than a two-to-one margin.  While Democratic turnout was higher across the state, the percentage difference was greater in HD 96 than it was statewide or countywide:

• Perhaps more significantly, there were more Democratic primary voters in HD 96 than in any other House District in Tarrant County. 

2008 Tarrant County Democratic Primary turnout by House District:

• Turner received 16,912 votes in the primary, more than twice the 7129 votes Zedler received. 
• More than a quarter of the GOP primary voters in HD 96 voted against Zedler. 

Conclusion:  Having won the 2006 General Election with an unimpressive 52.5% of the vote, Bill Zedler entered the 2008 campaign cycle as one of the most endangered incumbents in the Texas House.  Now, with a greater than 2:1 disadvantage in primary turnout and facing a strong challenger in Chris Turner in November, Zedler’s situation has only worsened. 

Arlington – Chris Turner, candidate for State Representative in District 96, today criticized comments made by State Rep. Bill Zedler at a Republican Forum luncheon held Thursday in Fort Worth. According to the Fort Worth Star Telegram’s “PoliTex” blog, Zedler “suggested the speaker (of the Texas House) be chosen by having each party hold a caucus to pick their nominee” - the same system as used in the U.S. House of Representatives. http://startelegram.typepad.com/politex/blood-in-the-w

“When I filed for State Representative, I said we needed to change the way we do business in Austin and that we needed more partnership and less partisanship,” said Turner. “Unfortunately, Rep. Zedler seems to think that we need even more partisan politics in the Legislature, because that’s the only possible outcome of having a speaker selected solely by his or her party’s caucus.”

Zedler’s comments came during a presentation by Republican Rep. Jim Keffer, who rebutted Speaker Tom Craddick’s arguments that the speaker holds “absolute power” in House proceedings. Keffer rejected Zedler’s comments out of hand: “I think that’s the worst idea. That’s how Washington, DC does it,” he said.

“Tarrant County voters are tired of the partisan bickering in both Washington and Austin, and the last thing they want is for the Texas House to become more like Congress,” Turner said. “I think we need to put partisanship aside and start working together to address the serious challenges our state faces on education, health care, transportation and air quality.”

Zedler, a staunch Craddick supporter, is considered one of the most vulnerable incumbents in the Texas House: in 2006, he was re-elected with just 52.5% of the vote.

As the former District Director for U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards, Turner has worked closely with Republicans and Democrats on a variety of issues and projects.