Monday-Friday, May 14-May 18:
8am to 5pm

Saturday. May 19:
7am to 7 pm

Sunday, May 20:
11am-4pm

Monday-Friday, May 21-May 25:
7am to 7pm

You can vote early at any early polling location in Tarrant County. These are the locations most convenient to HD 101 residents:

James Starrett Elementary
2675 Fairmont Dr.
Grand Prairie, TX 75052

Sub-Courthouse
700 E. Abram St.
Arlington, TX 76010

South Service Center
1100 S.W. Green Oaks Blvd.
Arlington, TX 76006

Bob Duncan Center
2800 S. Center St.
Arlington, TX 76014

For a free ride to the polls, call (817) 561-4900.

For complete details on early voting locations and times, click here to visit the Tarrant County Elections Office website.

This list of supporters is a microcosm of our community – teachers, veterans, retirees, union members, business leaders and so many others.  I am honored by your support and know that by working together, we will win this race and give our new district a strong, effective voice in Austin.

Best,

P.S. Don’t see your name and want to add it?  Click here to sign up.

Organizations and Associations Supporting Chris As of April 30, 2012

Arlington Police Association

Arlington Professional Fire Fighters Association Local 1329

Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas (CLEAT)

HOSPAC

Metroplex Democrats of Arlington

Teamsters Local 745 DRIVE Committee

Tejano Democrats of North Texas

Texas State Teachers Association (TSTA)

TEXPAC

Grassroots Endorsement List As of March 13, 2012

The Texas Budget is NOT a game, Governor.

Quite simply, Perry’s pledge says: we can’t spend the Rainy Day Fund to help struggling schools, we must starve the health care system at the expense of millions of uninsured and underinsured Texans and we must keep cutting spending, even though Texas already ranks last or near last in virtually every category of per-capita funding in the nation.

And in a Texas Tribune story previewing today’s stunt, Perry says this: “I think we’re at a unique time that we can reset the budgeting game in Texas.”

The budget is a moral document that demonstrates the fiscal responsibility, compassion and strategic thinking of those in government – or the lack thereof.

 The budget is not a game.

It’s not a game to Carolyn, a woman I met last week in East Arlington, who is worried about her two grandchildren who have no health insurance. She told me they keep getting cut off of Medicaid, and she didn’t know why. The reason why, I explained, is that under the Perry Administration, kids are intentionally cut off of Medicaid every six months.

It’s not a game to the elementary school principal I met at church yesterday, who sees firsthand that increasing class sizes are having a very real and detrimental effect on the quality of children’s education.

And it’s not a game to the southeast Arlington woman who works for the state. She and other hard-working state employees are frustrated that as they go years without pay increases, Perry is double-dipping at our expense by collecting a pension and salary at the same time.

 The budget is not a game – it has very real and direct consequences for each and every person who lives in the state of Texas.

Texans deserve a budget that honors our priorities and prepares for our future by investing in education, healthier families and infrastructure. Texans don’t deserve more budget gimmicks and trickery from Rick Perry and Tea Party Republicans.

If you agree, I hope you’ll help me win this race by contributing $100, $50, $25 or $10 today.

Organized by TCC students, LaTarsha and Marqus Smith, the rally featured several speakers including student Florisa Esquivel, student Dennis Swanson, Pastor Dwight McKissic, Professor Eric Salas, Professor Bradley Borougerdi, NAACP Arlington Chapter President Silk Littlejoin-Gamble, and community activist Bridgette Davis.

Turner’s remarks, as prepared, are below:

“Good afternoon.  In 1963, while he was sitting in a jail in Birmingham, Alabama, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. wrote, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”  And that is why we are here today – our sense of right and wrong tells us that a great injustice has been committed, one for which we want justice done.  But it is also an injustice that demands a close examination of how we got here, and where we will go from here.

Like you, I am outraged at what happened in Sanford, Florida last month.  I’m angry that a young man, holding nothing but a bag of Skittles and a can of tea, would be gunned down on a city street in the United States of America.  I’m angry that a self-styled vigilante would ignore the authorities and pursue Trayvon Martin – a pursuit that ended with the death of that 17-year old boy.

Now, in large part due to rallies like this one all across the country, and the outrage we have seen about this case in the media, we see local, state and federal authorities investigating this case, as they should.  And we all hope that there is some measure of justice that will be realized when that process is complete.

Last week, President Obama said that the Trayvon Martin case is cause for our country -to do some soul-searching.  The president is right.

And I think we have to soul-search not just how this could have happened and how we keep it from happening again, but we need to look inward at ourselves as a nation and examine how we are reacting to this tragedy.

It is my hope that as America has a frank discussion about this tragedy and its aftermath, we use it as an opportunity to come closer together, not an excuse to be further divided.  And when I hear rhetoric from some in this country – talking about what Trayvon Martin’s school attendance record was, as if that somehow justifies or explains away what happened to him, I am saddened that, despite all our progress on the issue of race in America, we still have so much further to go.

When I was about your age and a student at the University of Texas, I had the opportunity to hear then-President Bill Clinton speak on our campus.  It wasn’t just any speech either, it was a major address on the state of race relations in our country.  That speech, in October of 1995, came just weeks after the verdict in the OJ Simpson case and in a similar time tinged with racial tension.

The president said, “Today we face a choice — one way leads to further separation and bitterness and more lost futures. The other way, the path of courage and wisdom, leads to unity, to reconciliation, to a rich opportunity for all Americans to make the most of the lives God gave them. This moment in which the racial divide is so clearly out in the open need not be a setback for us. It presents us with a great opportunity, and we dare not let it pass us by.”

I think today we are presented with another great opportunity.  We are all Americans, and there is so much more that unites us than divides us.  And our diversity is a great strength – a diversity we understand and experience more than most living here in Texas, here in Southeast Tarrant County and right here on this campus.  We have so much to learn from one another – understanding one another’s different backgrounds, life experiences, and culture helps us all become better people.  We can respect, appreciate and celebrate our differences – but we don’t have to fixate on them.

We don’t have to fear them.

And we don’t have to let them divide us.

But where we see the differences between us that we know are not right, we all have an obligation to make changes.  I’m talking about the injustices that we have all lived with for far too long, the injustices that don’t dominate the cable news shows or show up in our Facebook news feeds.

I’m talking about the injustice of income disparity – where we see African Americans and Hispanics earn less than white Americans.

I’m talking about the injustice of poverty, where here in Texas, 66 percent of Latino children and 59 percent of black children live in low-income families.

I am talking about the injustice of our educational system, especially in Texas, where underfunded public schools see the minority drop-out rate soar, closing the door of opportunity to thousands of young Texans.

And I am talking about the injustice that comes with the inaccessibility of health care – where 59% of the uninsured in our state are Hispanic.

So my hope is that as we remember Trayvon Martin and demand justice in his tragic case, let us not stop there.  Let us all join together to advocate for justice in all aspects of our society.  Long after the Trayvon Martin case has faded from the headlines, let us have the strength, the courage and the fortitude to continue our individual battles for justice and the end to inequality.  And until that day comes, it is my hope that we will not rest.

225 years after our founding fathers gathered to create our nation’s constitution, we are still working to “form a more perfect union.” Our Founders recognized that this democracy would never be perfect because, we the people who form it are not perfect.  But at the heart of the American ideal is the promise that we can always be better.  And as we honor the memory of Trayvon Martin and we pray for his family, let us all commit ourselves to the betterment of this country and all who live in it.”

The money raised from this event will fund educational scholarships for local students.   The evening featured performances from the youth at Mt. Gilead Missionary Baptist Church in Italy, TX as well as from students of Truman Middle School in Grand Prairie.

The event’s keynote speaker was Rev. Preston Dixon, pastor at Mt. Gilead, and 1^st Vice President of the NAACP Grand Prairie Branch.  He delivered an inspiring speech which touched on the banquet’s theme, “NAACP: Obsolete or Still Necessary?”  In his message, Pastor Dixon encouraged all in attendance to remember their past, take every available opportunity in their present, and keep an eye on their future.  He also reminded the audience about the importance of unity and community.

Several members of the Grand Prairie community were presented with 2012 President Awards for their work on behalf of civil rights and equal opportunity.

“The NAACP has been on the forefront of the battle for fairness and opportunity for all Americans for 103 years,” Chris said. “It continues its important mission today, and I am proud to support its efforts.”

The next evening, on February 24, Chris and his wife, Lisa, were honored to attend the birthday celebration of Pastor N.L. Robinson and First Lady Pearl Robinson which was given by their congregation at Mount Olive Baptist Church in Arlington.  The luau-themed party celebrated their 91^st and 89^th birthdays, respectively.

“Pastor Robinson and First Lady Pearl continue to inspire us every day, and Lisa and I wish them both the happiest of birthdays,” Chris said.

Pastor Robinson and First Lady Pearl have been major community leaders in the civil rights movement in Arlington and have been ministering to the Arlington community for over 40 years.  Pastor Robinson was called to pastor Mount Olive Baptist Church in 1966 and since that time has grown the congregation from 17 to over 10,000 members.

This new feature of TCC’s Southeast Campus pays tribute to veterans who are current students, alumni, faculty and staff of the Tarrant County College District.  Featured speakers at the event included State Senator Wendy Davis, Tarrant County College District Chancellor Erma Johnson Hadley, and TCC Southeast Campus President Dr. Bill Coppola.   Each delivered a message of gratitude for the service of our nation’s veterans and expressed a strong desire to continue the remarkable outreach and support that TCC offers to veterans.

Chris also had the pleasure of visiting with a retired member of the Marine Corps who served in Operation Desert Storm and was one of the veterans honored at the event.  By supporting programs such as tuition assistance, career counseling, financial planning guidance, housing support, and college admission workshops, Chris will work hard to ensure that today’s veteran has access to the educational opportunities they have earned and deserve.

Chris has a proven record of leadership on veterans’ issues: he was the author of the bill that created the veterans scratch-off lottery ticket, which has raised more than $16 million for veterans’ assistance programs in just two years.  Chris also authored and passed legislation requiring Texas colleges and universities to have a designated financial aid officer for veterans, so that returning service members are able to fully access the benefits they have earned under the new Post-9/11 G.I. Bill and the Texas Hazlewood Act. With more than 250,000 Texans who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan in the last ten years, it is more important than ever that Texas have strong support systems in place so veterans – and their families – can take advantage of education and workforce opportunities.  Honoring the service and sacrifice of today’s veterans both in word and in deed will continue to be one of Chris’s top priorities.

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

Lifelong Texan

Chris Turner is a lifelong Texan who has spent his adult life working for the basic principles of the Democratic Party: expanding opportunity for all Texans to have access to good jobs, quality schools and affordable health care and protecting the civil rights and workers rights of all Americans.

The son of a teacher and grocer, Chris grew up in a middle class family in Dallas.  Chris attained the rank of Eagle Scout at 16 and attended Skyline High School, where he served as senior class president.  Chris knew early on that he was drawn to public service, so he majored in government in college and graduated from the University of Texas at Austin.  It was at UT that Chris worked on his first of many Democratic campaigns.

Working for Democratic Principles

Not long after graduating, Turner returned to North Texas to become the executive director of the Tarrant County Democratic Party.   It was in Arlington that he met Lisa, whom he would marry in 1999.  Lisa and Chris lived the better part of a decade in South Arlington and their two kids graduated from Mansfield Summit High School.

Chris served as a campaign manager for Congressman Chet Edwards in four tough elections – successfully directing the campaigns that gave Edwards the distinction of representing the most Republican district in America to be held by a Democrat.  Chris also served as Edwards’ district director in his congressional office.

Serving Tarrant County in the State House

In 2008, Chris ran for the Texas House of Representatives in southern Tarrant County and unseated a three-term incumbent in a district that had been in GOP hands for two decades.  As a state representative, Chris’s priorities included reforming our insurance system to protect the interests of consumers, providing veterans the benefits they have earned, fighting for better funding for public schools, making college more affordable, strengthening DWI laws to protect families from repeat offenders, and lowering utility rates for Texas families.

Making a Difference for Texas Families

Chris had significant legislative successes in his first session: he passed the landmark law that established a dedicated lottery scratch off ticket to benefit the Permanent Fund for Veterans Assistance, generating up to $9 million per year to pay for much-needed benefits for Texas veterans and returning soldiers. Chris also wrote the law that requires electric utility companies to provide notice to consumers when their contract is about to expire.

His work on veterans’ issues led to Chris receiving numerous awards including: “Legislator of the Year” by the Texas Veterans of Foreign Wars, “Legislator of the Year” by the Vietnam Veterans of America, Texas State Council and the bi-partisan Legislative Veterans’ Caucus’ “Freshman of the Year.”  He was also given the “Leadership Award” by the Texas Veterans Commission.

In addition, Chris was named “Freshman of the Year,” by Texas Watch for his work on consumer protection issues and “Best of the House” by the Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas (CLEAT).

Chris’s primary focus as a representative was attending to the needs of his constituents and district.  He attended hundreds of community meetings in his term in office and he hosted numerous town halls and seminars to provide constituents with information on how to pay for college, lower utility bills and get help with veterans benefits.