Dan

Patrick Shocked the Media, Democrats and a Few Republicans

A Message To Washington Republicans - Don't Be Afraid To Be Bold
By Allen Blakemore

NBCs Texas election exit polling has baffled the pundits.

According to their exit polling results, Dan Patrick earned 46% of all Hispanic votes,
surpassing the gold standard of 40% achieved by George W. Bush. NBCs poll also
showed Dan Patrick thumping Leticia Van de Putte among Hispanic men 53%-46%.
(See the poll results here: http://www.nbcnews.com/politics/elections/2014/TX/L/exitpoll)

We saw these trends developing in our own campaign tracking.

Predictably, the Democrat political operatives have tried feebly to discredit the
impact of these numbers, referencing Patricks performance in the Rio Grande
Valley. While the data shows that Dan Patricks and Greg Abbotts vote share in the
Valley were nearly identical, the simple fact is that there are more Hispanic voters in
Houston or Dallas than the Valley. Democrat excuses and political spin aside, the
numbers should have them reassessing their position on the issues.

This was really no surprise to anyone who does not buy the common myth,
perpetuated by Democrats; that Hispanics only care about immigration. Hispanics
care about public safety, jobs, the economy and school choice. If you reject the
Democrat myth, a clear picture will come into focus.

Heres how all this happened.

Dan Patrick was fearless. He entered a
race in June 2013 against the incumbent
Lieutenant Governor with two other
popular statewide elected officials
already announced.

Dan Patrick was bold in his stand on the
issues: secure the border, lower property
taxes, offer real choice in education, and
support for life.

Dan Patrick was an articulate spokesman for an authentic conservative agenda. He
never shied away from an opportunity to publicly proclaim his faith. He debated his
opponents time and again. He even debated former San Antonio Mayor, Democrat
Julian Castro, on Univision to try to expand the conversation on immigration issues
beyond Republican primary voters.

Dan Patricks Primary opponents ran millions of dollars of negative advertising

against him, making one outrageous accusation after another.

Still, Dan Patricks election results were amazing a first place finish in the crowded
four-way Primary race and a resounding victory in the Runoff.

The Democrats snickered under their breath at the chance to take on this
unapologetic conservative. Patrick, they said, was the candidate they wanted to run
against. They called him extreme and worse. The media proclaimed that Patrick had
gone too far to the right to ever be palatable to an enlightened general election
audience, even for a red state like Texas. They predicted a wave of Republican
funding and crossover votes for his Democrat opponent.

Senator Leticia Van De Putte, Dan Patricks opponent, was well funded, well liked,
articulate, and an experienced campaigner. She has been elected and re-elected to
public office for nearly 25 years.

Van de Putte went on the attack immediately, launching negative television
advertising in September, nearly a month before Patrick could afford to go on the
air.

Battleground Texas, Texas Organizing Project, and Planned Parenthood raised
millions of dollars from east and west coast liberals to defeat Dan Patrick. President
Obama dispatched his first-string talent to Texas to turn the state blue. They
registered voters and whipped the Texas media into a frenzy about their battle plan.

But Dan Patrick responded with the same clear and concise message he had
delivered in the primary secure the border, lower property taxes, offer real choice
in education, and support for life.

Dan Patrick took his campaign directly
to the voters. Not content to let the
liberal media filter and distort his
every word, he eschewed traditional
media in favor of social media. He
skipped meeting with the newspaper
editorial boards and instead attended
rallies across the state talking to
thousands of people. He avoided press
conferences in favor of telephone
town hall meetings. He documented
every movement with selfies posted
on social media.

Dan Patrick campaigned like the unapologetic conservative he is, never wavering,
and never backing down. In the end he won a decisive victory, garnering the votes of
Texans of every gender, age, and ethnicity.

The results amazed the moderates and disgusted the liberals. Dan Patrick earned
over 58% of the vote. Leticia Van de Putte didnt break 40%.

So if you are surprised by the exit polls, consider this: Dan Patrick broke with
conventional wisdom and campaigned in the General Election just like he did in the
Primary. He never changed his message. He didnt run to the middle. He finished the
race just as he began it an authentic conservative candidate for all Texans.

Any questions!


Allen Blakemore is a Principal at Blakemore & Associates, a political strategy,
communications and fundraising firm, based in Texas. Blakemore served as Chief
Strategist for Patrick Campaign.