Pete Gallego’s Bernie Sanders Problem
Move over Hillary, because Pete Gallego is the latest Democrat facing a primary challenge from a garrulous progressive. Gallego, the favorite of Washington Democrats who is running a lackluster campaign to reclaim the TX-23 seat he lost last year, will be facing local Democrat activist Felipe Vargas in the Democrat primary. Vargas has promised to pull Gallego to the left, undoubtedly alienating voters that Gallego would otherwise be courting for the general election.
Holding no punches, Vargas doubts Gallego’s chances in 2016, telling the San Antonio Express-News that, “Democratic activists across the sprawling district — which extends from El Paso down to the South Side of San Antonio — consistently tell him they doubt Gallego can knock off Hurd in a rematch of last year’s race.”
Instead of consolidating his base and preparing for the general, Pete Gallego will now have to lurch even further to the left and use precious resources to fight off a primary challenge from local Democrats who don’t even think he has what it takes to win the general election.