Things look like they're starting to turn around in the Texas Lieutenant Governor race between stellar Democratic former Comptroller John Sharp and morally bankrupt Republican Land Commissioner David Dewhurst (can you tell who I am rooting for yet?). Dewhurst had led or was tied in all the polls I'd seen until the most recent set. The newest poll gives Sharp a slight edge. In addition to the recent uptick in the polls, he has now picked up the endorsement of a Republican State Senator:

"I am a dedicated Republican who whole-heartedly supports the Republican ticket. However in the Lt. Governor's race I believe John Sharp is the better choice. I have seen him in action and trust him to be a conservative problem solver." -State Senator John Carona (R-Dallas)

Sharp was the Democratic nominee in 1998 and lost a squeaker to now-Governor Rick Perry. Despite having nearly every worthwhile endorsement (including that of the conservative Texas Farm Bureau, which practically built Perry's career) fell just short of being the only Democrat elected that year due to poor Democratic turnout. I was worried that he would have a hard time getting the momentum that he had and lost in 1998, but that appears not to be the case.

I was having lunch with a couple Republican activists during the '98 elections and they more or less agreed that Sharp was by far the better candidate, but Republicans couldn't risk a Democratic Lt. Governor hurting Bush's chances at the presidency. Helping them in their decision was the fact that Rick Perry himself was a solid candidate. Dewhurst was running for Land Commissioner that year and the agreement there was that he was not. Two of the three of us crossed party lines to vote for the other guy.

This is not a Democrat vs. Republican choice, folks. This is the choice between one of the most qualified candidates ever for the post and a man that would be the least qualified in nearly two decades. The worst Republican officials can find on Sharp is that he didn't actually save the state $8.5 billion during his eight years as Comptroller as his ads say, it was more like $5 billion. His budget fell during his tenure despite the fact that in the middle of it the state treasurer post was abolished and his department took responsibility for all its functions.

Dewhurst, on the other hand, has got to be the only Land Commissioner in the history of the office to be a runner-up in Texas Monthly's annual Bum Steer contest, which holds a write-in vote on the worst Texas has to offer. The Land Commissioner is not exactly a high-profile position. Garry Mauro used the post to garner less than 30% of the statewide vote against George W. Bush in 1998 (considerably worse than Gore did in the state in 2000). Yet Dewhurst came in second place only to the infamous Kenneth Lay for the honor. He managed to get the Republican nomination for Lt. Gov. by chasing everyone else out of the race. Acting Lt. Governor Ratliff (the only person as qualified as Sharp for the post) was run right back into the Senate, Greg Abbott had to jump ship to the Attorney General race at the first opportunity. It would be one thing if he chased them out with his competency or qualifications, but it was simply his war chest.

It's tempting for Republicans to like the idea of a candidate funding his own campaign so that he doesn't owe anything to anybody, but money doesn't help when the more people know about you, the less they like you. He may squeak by in the 2002 Lt. Governor's race due to the competitive gubernatorial and senate races, but the sooner Dewhurst is laid to rest the better off Republicans, and all Texans, will be. Dewhurst has made no bones about his ambitions and had to be convinced by Rick Perry not to enter a divisive primary battle with John Cornyn for Phil Gramm's senate seat. It's a good thing that he did or Texas would surely fall into the Democratic column, which would be a monumental embarassment for President Bush and hurt Republican hopes for taking back the senate. Dewhurst's ego will not let him languish in the lt. governors spot for long. If Hutchison retires in 2006 (and I believe she might), expect him to have just enough money to hurt his Republican rivals for the nomination and lose or come out with the nomination broke, bruised, battered, and as obnoxious as ever.

It will be a sad day for Texas and the Texas GOP if he wins in November.

I think I'm going to print my Republicans for Sharp bumper sticker now.