Could Perry have been defeated in 2006 in a two way race

[OSR stands with Israel]

Given how bad he did and it doesn’t seem like other candidates were conservatives. Maybe Chet Edwards could have beaten him

[OSR stands with Israel]

I previously asked this myself as well. But I just don't see it a Democrat being elected statwide in 2006. Maybe the race would have been within single digits, but Perry would have pulled it off by at least seven points or so.

The country was less polarized then though , and Democrats won the gubernatorial race in Oklahoma in not only 2006 but 2002 as well and Oklahoma even then was more Republican than Texas. Though they would need someone like Chet Edwards to pull it off and if it was a tossup George W Bush would probably go all in making sure TX stays Republican as while W Bush was unpopular nationally he was still very popular in TX.

Though the pathway to victory would have to resemble Ann Richards 1990 win more than the modern dem party pathway to winning in Texas

[OSR stands with Israel]

He could have been defeated in a two way race...against Carole Five Names Strayhorn running as an Indy, with no Dem.

Against Bell? No way.

EDIT: And then Strayhorn would've rejoined the GOP the day after the election.

Strayhorn was running as an indie as a way to skip a primary against Perry that she would have been guaranteed to lose, and there was real bad blood between them. Strayhorn was basically the head of the TXGOP's moderate wing and doing an end-run around the primary process and getting elected governor on her personal popularity wasn't an entirely crazy idea.

Bell has no chance I agree, but what about Chet Edwards.