3 Democrats vie for Michael McCaul's seat

Austin American-Statesman (TX)

Three Democrats are facing off in the March 3 primary for a shot to unseat U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul, an Austin Republican seeking his ninth term in Congress.

Austin physician Pritesh Gandhi, Austin lawyer Shannon Hutcheson and former Austin city attorney Mike Siegel are running for the Democratic nomination in the 10th Congressional District, which stretches from Northwest Austin to the Houston suburbs.

Early voting starts Tuesday and runs through Feb. 28.

The race is likely to go to a runoff, and the winner will face an uphill climb against McCaul, who doesn't have a primary opponent and has continued to outraise all three Democrats.

In the final quarter of 2019, McCaul raised $378,000 and reported $984,000 in his campaign coffers, according to the Federal Election Commission.

Gandhi raised the most money among the Democratic candidates with $258,000 during that same period, while Hutcheson raised $217,000. Siegel, who lost to McCaul by 4.3 percentage points in 2018, raised $96,000.

National Democratic operatives have set up an office in Austin to target the 10th Congressional District, among seven GOP-held Texas congressional districts that Democratic leaders have identified as winnable in 2020.

McCaul, first elected in 2004, had never had a close call until 2018.

Siegel, 42, is optimistic of his chances this time around. He says he established relationships and trust in the district during his 2018 run and he has lived in the district for eight years.

"Our overall message is that our campaign has laid the foundation for political change" in the district, he told the American-Statesman. "This campaign has the broad coalition needed to beat McCaul."

Siegel is running in the progressive lane, with a platform focused on Medicare for All and environmental policies like the Green New Deal.

He's been endorsed by labor groups such as the Texas AFL-CIO and Working Families Party, a national progressive third-party.

Siegel, who left his assistant city attorney job to run full-time, added that he has focused on meeting voters and organizing rather than calling wealthy donors.

"I think we convinced folks that this is a winnable seat for Democrats," he said.

Since the 10th District was drawn after the 2010 census, it has seen an influx of new residents in freshly built, large apartment complexes on North Lamar Boulevard, Burnet Road, near the ACC Highland campus and at the Domain.

Former U.S. Rep. Beto O'Rourke, D-El Paso, edged U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, by two-tenths of a percentage point in the district. President Donald Trump won the district by 9 points in 2016.

Rural appeal

Gandhi said he jumped into the race after he saw that O'Rourke won the district, adding that Democrats missed an opportunity when Siegel lost in 2018.

"The stakes are too high this year," Gandhi said.

Gandhi, a 37-year-old associate chief medical officer at People's Community Clinic in East Austin, is campaigning on a platform that includes Medicare for all who want it, universal background checks for all gun purchases and supporting rural communities.

Siegel won 70.4% of the 115,000 votes cast in the race in Travis County, but it wasn't enough to make up for McCaul's advantages in the rural parts of the district and in Harris County, where McCaul won 62.6% of the 115,000 votes cast.

Gandhi said he's optimistic that he can win votes in the rural parts of the district, where he talks about lack of access to health care, public schools and creating more job opportunities.

"I feel really great about our rural areas," Gandhi said. "We consider that a strength of this campaign."

Gandhi, a former Fulbright scholar and Schweitzer fellow, has lived in the district for five years and was born and raised in the Houston area.

New: @priteshgandhimd releases his first TV ad, which will run in #TX10. He's one of three Democratic candidates aiming to unseat @RepMcCaul. Watch: https://t.co/ulrWmaoTPQ

-- Nicole Cobler (@nicolecobler) February 10, 2020 He released his first TV ad on Jan. 10, and earlier this month, the progressive 314 Action Fund launched a $250,000 digital and mail program to highlight Gandhi's "lengthy record of service" and his positions on health care, immigration, gun violence and climate change. The digital program primarily will run on Google and Facebook, according to a news release from the group.

Working poor

Hutcheson said she grew up in a "working poor Texas family," where she helped raise her young siblings. She moved to Austin in 1993.

"I got into this race because Congressman McCaul is simply not fighting for families like the one I grew up in, and he sure is not providing for women and our families," she said.

Hutcheson previously worked at Baker Botts and in 2011 helped start a women-owned law firm, Hutcheson Bowers. She frequently touts her work for Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas and the SAFE Alliance on the campaign trail and in television ads.

Excited to share our new tv commercial!

Planned Parenthood was there for me when I needed access to quality health care and that's why I've proudly represented @PPGreaterTX for almost 10 years.#TX10 pic.twitter.com/ju0TUYZNlk

-- Shannon Hutcheson for Congress (@Shannon4Texas) February 3, 2020 Siegel and Gandhi have criticized her for her firm's representation of Donald Dunn, a former U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer who pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting migrant women. Hutcheson said in an interview with The Texas Tribune that her role in Dunn's case was limited.

The criticism hasn't seemed to slow down her campaign. She has been endorsed by EMILY's List and NARAL Pro-Choice, two national groups focused on electing candidates who will support pro-abortion rights policies.

Hutcheson said she would focus on health care, the environment and education.

She supports reducing the cost of prescription drugs by allowing Medicare to negotiate with pharmaceutical companies. Hutcheson, whose mother lives in Harris County and was directly affected by Hurricane Harvey, cites the Houston flooding as an example of why lawmakers should pass measures to address climate change.

"I am rooted in this community and have been for a very long time," she said.

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