LP of Texas could play ‘kingmaker’ in legislative elections

The Austin American-Statesman interviews Libertarian Party of Texas Chairman Pat Dixon in a generally favorable piece today. The story says the LPT “is not ready to be king, but it expects to be kingmaker — or spoiler, depending upon your point of view — in the state’s most competitive legislative races this fall.” Dixon said, “It used to be nobody looked at us; now they are looking at us. We can swing votes. We’re going to be a factor in more races.”

The paper says that by the LP’s count, “its candidates in 2008 have a ‘high’ probability of being a deciding factor in four state House races and a ‘medium’ possibility in four more. In some election cycles, a handful of House races might not matter much in the bigger picture.” But this year, House control is “in play. A few seats could make a difference.” Travis County GOP spokesman Joe Gimenez said, “Our preference is that Libertarians, by Election Day, will come back home and seek to find common ground with Republicans.”