Brady PAC — a progressive group whose stated aim is to reduce violence through gun control and regulation — is endorsing Democrat Wendy Davis in her primary against Jennie Lou Leeder.
Davis is the odds-on favorite in the primary, who is expected to then challenge incumbent Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX-21).
“Chip Roy is terrible on our issue,” Brady PAC executive director Brian Lemek told The Texan. Brady PAC’s top three priorities are an “assault weapons” ban; universal background checks; and extreme risk protection orders — or red flag laws.
Roy has stated his opposition to each of these proposals on concerns that they violate the Constitution and the Second Amendment rights of citizens, as well as his concerns over potential due process infringements against Texans.
The main reason for the endorsement, Lemek stated, is Davis’ convictions on these issues. For one, “The assault weapons ban is not an easy position to take in Texas, and she unapologetically got right on it, and that’s the key to saving lives.”
When asked why they’re jumping in now as opposed to waiting until after the primary, Lemek said, “It’s clear she’s going to [win the primary] and so we want to get her the money as soon as we can.”
Lemek added the goal is for Brady PAC to contribute $100,000 in hard cash to Davis’ campaign between a double max contribution and fundraisers. The decision on later expenditures will be made down the road.
This cycle, Brady PAC expects to contribute over $4 million to its endorsed candidates throughout the country.
Brady PAC supported Rep. Colin Allred (D-TX-32) in his successful upset bid against incumbent Republican Pete Sessions in 2018. It also supported Joseph Kopser in 2018 — Roy’s previous Democratic challenger.
Allred will be getting Brady PAC’s support again in 2020, but decisions on other congressional candidates in Texas to back has not been made yet.
Lemek did say, however, that Brady PAC would be pushing heavily to win the nine districts Democrats need to flip the Texas House. For that effort, Brady PAC will be partnering with One Vote to produce ads for select candidates.
After 2018, progressives have their eyes set on Texas — and Brady PAC’s support of Davis is yet another example of it.
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Brad Johnson
Brad Johnson is a senior reporter for The Texan and an Ohio native who graduated from the University of Cincinnati in 2017. He is an avid sports fan who most enjoys watching his favorite teams continue their title drought throughout his cognizant lifetime. In his free time, you may find Brad quoting Monty Python productions and trying to calculate the airspeed velocity of an unladen swallow.
