Quite a few locals considered Commissioner R.C. McFall’s failure to win re-election for a fifth term on the Johnson County Commissioners Court the biggest shocker of Tuesday’s elections.
Not McFall. Although he said he wishes the outcome would have been different, he was not totally surprised.
“People were telling me not to worry,” McFall said. “But I knew last spring when a bunch of the Republicans voted for Hillary [Clinton] in the Democratic primary that this election wasn’t going to be a cakewalk.”
Republican challenger Rick Bailey defeated McFall in the Precinct 1 commissioners race by a vote of 6,065 to 5,477. McFall was the only other Democrat representing the county along with U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards, D-Waco, who won re-election Tuesday but failed to carry Johnson County.
Voters may have wanted a change, or more may have voted straight Republican ticket instead of split ticket this election, McFall said. Many Republicans who had voted for him in the past may have voted straight ticket because of President-elect Barack Obama, McFall said.
“Chet Edwards endorsed Obama, and you see what happened to him here,” McFall said. “I was sweating it during the race really, because I figured a lot of people would vote that straight ticket.”
McFall previously operated a car dealership for 22 years in Cleburne and served as the county fire commissioner.
What comes next, and whether he will seek public office in the future, remains to be determined, McFall said.
“Heck, I’ve had three job offers this morning,” McFall said Wednesday. “But right now, I’m just going to get through the holidays and take life easy for a while. I’ll probably work on my ranch, spend time with my family and fish a little bit.”
Election 2008
November 7, 2008
McFall ponders future
- Election 2008
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Recount confirms Bailey’s win
A recount of the Nov. 4 Johnson County Precinct 1 race, which took two days to conduct, confirmed Republican candidate Rick Bailey’s victory over Democratic incumbent, Commissioner R.C. McFall.
- McFall files for recount Commissioner R.C. McFall filed for a recount of the Nov. 4 Johnson County Precinct 1 race Tuesday.
- McFall ponders future Quite a few locals considered Commissioner R.C. McFall’s failure to win re-election for a fifth term on the Johnson County Commissioners Court the biggest shocker of Tuesday’s elections.
- Short staff causes late night The high volume of ballots and phone calls to the Johnson County Elections Office on Tuesday prompted County Clerk Curtis Douglas to call for back up, said Patty Bourgeois, election chair assistant.
- Curnock grateful to JC voters Rob Curnock, who had sought to unseat U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards in District 17, on Wednesday expressed gratitude to his supporters in Johnson County.
- Edwards’ district director wins race U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards’ former district director Chris Turner won election to the District 96 seat of the Texas House of Representatives Tuesday. The district covers portions of southern Tarrant County.
- Hill College proposition expected to reappear Voters rejected a property tax measure to expand the Hill College campus in Burleson Tuesday, but proponents of the expansion said it will probably reappear on future ballots.
- Official: Delay in reporting vote totals ‘not unusual’ Johnson County election officials saw nothing amiss with lengthy vote tabulations Tuesday night in a Rio Vista election to decide whether to allow off-premises sales of packaged liquor.
- Final Johnson County election results Election results for contested local, state and U.S. house races in Johnson County.
- More Election 2008 Headlines
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