I’m Running

Today I am announcing my candidacy for State Representative in the new District 101.

Because of redistricting, Tarrant County has gained a new seat in the House, taking in much of East and South Arlington, as well as part of Grand Prairie. District 101 includes a significant part of Arlington that I represented previously and I am humbled by the number of people who have encouraged me to seek election in this new district.

Texas is at a crossroads. This year, Rick Perry and the Republican supermajority in the Texas legislature turned back the clock on our state in virtually every way conceivable.

Public education? Slashed by $4 billion.

College financial aid? Thousands of middle class students won’t be getting the help they need.

Women’s health care? Unprecedented government intrusion into the most personal of decisions.

Our 8% unemployment rate? Just more empty Tea Party rhetoric.

Health care? Texas still has the highest rate of uninsured in the country.

And instead of working for real solutions to our state’s budget crisis and a deficit of $27 billion, Republicans in Austin wasted time on non-issues like an Arizona-style “sanctuary cities” bill and new voter photo ID restrictions.

I believe Texas deserves better. That’s why I am running.

It’s time we focus on creating jobs that pay more than the minimum wage and can provide good security and quality of life for Texas families. It’s time we start giving our schools the support they need to educate all Texas children. It’s time we get serious about cleaning up our dirty air. It’s time to stop partisan meddling in the affairs of Texas universities.

And it is way past time for Perry and other Republicans to take responsibility for their own failures and stop blaming every problem in our state on President Obama.

We have a lot of challenges before us. In my last email to you, a few days after the November, 2010 elections, I listed a few of the things accomplished in my first term and said, “I got into politics because I wanted to make a difference, and I hope you know that your involvement in our campaigns has made a difference, as well.”

I have as much drive and passion to make a difference in our state today as I ever have – and I hope you do, as well.

It was the privilege of a lifetime to serve as the state representative for southern Tarrant County from 2009-2011 and I am excited about the campaign ahead – I look forward to working again with old friends and making a lot of new ones in our new district.

Lisa and I are excited about again living in Arlington, the community in which we first met 14 years ago. We lived in Arlington for nearly a decade and we are looking forward to making our home there again.

I look forward to the conversation we’ll have over the next few months. In the meantime, I hope you’ll visit my website where you can contribute to help us get the campaign off the ground and sign up to volunteer.

Also, be sure to like my Facebook page and follow me on Twitter to keep up with the campaign. In fact, I hope you will leave a note on my Facebook page and let me know your thoughts about the issues facing our state.

As I seek the Democratic nomination for District 101, I look forward to meeting and hearing from voters all across our new district. It’s going to take a lot of hard work, but I know that with your help, we can win this race.

Best regards,

Chris Turner