Politicians are known for dodging questions, and one of the biggest questions I see dodged is: “What is your political affiliation?”
Depending on the political demographics, this is almost always followed by: “Local elections are nonpartisan and I’m running to represent…blah blah blah.”
Baloney. This is political-speak for: “I’m too scared to be honest with you about my political views.”
If a candidate is running and the local area they are running in has a political demographic opposite of their own, they will often use this excuse. Why? Because being honest will hurt them. They know they’ll be judged for their political views, as they should, and they’ve got a race to win.
What’s a local voter to do? Stop relying on politicians to be honest about themselves, and do a little searching.
A quick search (I use this term loosely, as their website is awful) on the Texas Ethics Commission’s website can tell you everything you need to know about a candidate’s views. Searching campaign finance reports will show which candidates a person has donated to and how much. Let’s take a look at a local “nonpartisan” city council election.
There’s an election going on in Plano right now for City Council Place 7. Lily Bao has been very open and honest about identifying as a conservative Republican—which makes sense, considering she is endorsed by Gov. Greg Abbott. Her opponent, Ann Bacchus, has been very quiet on the political affiliation question. Looking through Bacchus’ campaign Facebook page, you’ll often find people in the comments asking her if she’s a Republican or a Democrat. These comments are either completely ignored or given the textbook response of: “Local elections are nonpartisan.”
Pulling up Bacchus’ donations in the Texas Ethics Commissions website answers the question for us, though:
- $1,843 to Women Organizing Women Democrats
- $525 to the Democratic Party of Collin County
- $2,658 to Democrat nonprofit ActBlue Texas
That’s a total of $5,026 to Democrat causes. Sounds like a Democrat to me.
An internet search reveals more interesting information.
Bacchus recently spoke at a fundraiser in Richardson for fellow Democrat Ilhan Omar, 
who soon after was elected to Congress. Omar is notorious for her extreme leftism and anti-Semitic comments. A rise in anti-Semitism worldwide seems to be fueling the recent increase in attacks on synagogues.
Is Ann Bacchus a Democrat? Yes. An extreme-left leaning one. Will she admit it publicly? Absolutely not—especially while running for Plano City Council. Why would Republican Mayor Harry LaRosiliere endorse a candidate supporting a well-known anti-Semite?
Is a candidate’s political affiliation important to “nonpartisan” local election? Absolutely. And you can tell it’s important because some candidates—in this case, Bacchus—are so incredibly keen on not talking about it.
Politicians will always do their best to dodge questions from people on issues they’re not comfortable with. But a little homework can tell you everything you need to know about where they stand—and sometimes more.
