Thread by @Taniel

So... here is my countdown of the top 10 primaries I'm watching tonight in Texas.

(There's a lot more happening, so take this as my own idiosyncratic sense of what I'm finding important!)

1️⃣0️⃣ ATTORNEY GENERAL primaries: Ken Paxton is indicted, but he's managed to channel his far-right politics into a Trump endorsement and a strong position. Meanwhile, Dems decide who'll face him.

The GOP primary is *also* a big test for the Bush family: nymag.com/intelligencer/…

9️⃣ The Dem primary for TRAVIS COUNTY (Austin) CLERK: Voters today are effectively choosing who'll be running the 2024 presidential election in the state's bluest county, and the person will have to navigate a lot of GOP shenanigans. boltsmag.org/voting-rights-…

8️⃣ The GOP primary in #HD19: A police officer just indicted for excessive force in the 2020 protests wants the GOP nomination. texastribune.org/2022/02/17/aus…

Honorable mention: A staunchly anti-choice Republican faces a primary challenge... from the right. dallasnews.com/news/politics/….

7️⃣ The DEM primaries for the state House in #HD142 and #HD79, where in both case a progressive candidate is facing off against an incumbent ho's drawn fire from progressive groups, in one case for having helped advance a bill that targeted trans athletes. texastribune.org/2022/02/07/tex…

6️⃣ The TARRANT COUNTY DA primaries: Oh boy, here's a county of more than 2 million known for very punitive DA's office, and it's an open race, and some of the GOP candidates would somehow take things furtherto the right... Dems choose their candidate too. boltsmag.org/texas-district…

INTERMISSION: All races and links on this thread, and dozens more, are on this cheat sheet of the Texas primaries.

We'll be updating it tonight as results come in, so check it out & follow @boltsmag:

boltsmag.org/whats-on-the-b…

5️⃣ The COUNTY CLERK race in Hood County: So, the "Stop the Steal" crowd targeted the election administrator in this red county, for no particular reason. The county clerk was among those targeting her. So the administrator resigned... and is now running against the county clerk.

4️⃣ Here's another one about the Big Lie: In the state's highest criminal court, a GOP judge won't even say that Biden won the last election. But that's not enough for "Stop the Steal" activists: They want to oust him for not being aggressive enough. boltsmag.org/stop-the-steal…

3️⃣ #TX35 is one of the night's major congressional showdowns on the Dem side: Progressives have rallied around Greg Casar, running in this open primary against Eddie Rodriguez. texasmonthly.com/news-politics/…

2️⃣ #TX28: Henry Cuellar has been among the more conservative House Dems for a long, long time, and today he faces a rematch against his 2020 progressive challenger Jessica Cisneros -- (you probably know about this one of all races already!) about.bgov.com/news/south-tex…

1️⃣ JUDGES IN HARRIS COUNTY (=Houston): And this tops the list because there's so much backstory, & high-stakes for the future of jail and bail in nation's 3rd biggest county. But also because it's 9 in one: 9 primaries pitting Dem judges vs prosecutors. boltsmag.org/judicial-elect…