Page 17 - TFRW PNL Oct 2018

Inspire. Unite. Achieve.
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committed campaign staff and volunteers, we all from state service as a Colonel overseeing statewide
worked nonstop for six months to prove we could make law enforcement for the Texas Parks and Wildlife
history and win this State Senate seat. Department, with significant management and budget
responsibility.
The September 18 runoff began, and we had a path to
victory, which was laid out on Aug. 6 (six days after the Contrast that with Gallego, who epitomized a career
first round ended) in a strategy memo. politician who had been on every ballot for the last 11
elections.
What was our strategy?
Flores did not shy away from difficult subjects or
First, grow our vote from 9,000 to at least 15,000, aim awkward conversations. He went to Democratic areas.
for a tie in pivotal Bexar County, and run up our margins He listened to voters’ concerns. He broke bread with
and raw votes in four of the next five largest counties them.
(Medina, Atascosa, Uvalde and Frio).
This is something Congressional Republicans must
Over the next eight weeks, with the valuable assistance embrace. They cannot duck town halls or constituent
of the Abbott and Patrick campaigns, as well as our meetings for fear of making a gaffe. They need
partners and volunteers, we would make more than to be well versed on the issues and know how to
100,000 phone calls, knock on more than 30,000 doors, communicate them to the voters.
raise more than $350,000 and the candidate visited all
17 counties by driving more than 7,000 miles in his Ford Pete would often say a phrase in Spanish that I will
F-150 truck. translate here in English: “Face time makes miracles.”
Many of the places Flores traveled to had never seen
How did we win? We carried out our plan. We ultimately their Senator, Carlos Uresti.
earned more than 23,000 votes and won by a margin of
53-47 percent. Gallego grew his vote from 7,500 to more Flipping a district that Hillary Clinton won by 12 percent
than 20,000, but it was not enough. was not easy, but it was also not impossible. We created
a game plan and we did not stray from it.
There are several lessons that we learned in this David
vs. Goliath scenario that should be applied to the The lesson from this Senate District 19 victory is this:
current midterm election. Republicans can win this fall if they develop a unique
strategy, raise enough resources, work extremely hard,
We used the pro-life position to attract Hispanic earn meaningful help from allies, and execute their
support. Senate District 19 is a majority Hispanic strategy.
district. Gallego’s pro-choice position was out of step
with thousands of voters. We have not yet analyzed If Pete Flores can flip a 60–40 district in the middle of a
everyone who voted, but we believe Flores won an “blue wave,” then no Republican has an excuse. Go win
unprecedented amount of Hispanic support, including your race.
from Hispanic Democrats.
Matt Mackowiak is president of Austin, Texas, and
Flores was an outsider running against the ultimate Washington, D.C.-based Potomac Strategy Group. He’s
insider. Pete Flores served the State of Texas for 27 a Republican consultant, a Bush administration and
years as a game warden, and for much of that time he Bush-Cheney re-election campaign veteran and former
represented the communities in this district. He retired press secretary to two U.S. Senators.

https://dailycaller.com/2018/09/25/gop-victory-in-a-blue-wave/

PRESIDENT’S NEWSLETTER | OCTOBER 2018 17 TEXAS FEDERATION OF REPUBLICAN WOMEN