Republican Davis bests Sawyer in House 134 race
Schofield, Elkins in tight contests; Bohac prevails
State Rep. Sarah Davis, a moderate Republican who won a tough primary battle despite the opposition of Gov. Greg Abbott, held off a general election challenge from a Houston businesswoman to win a fifth term on Tuesday.
Two other Republican Texas House members representing districts wholly or partly in Harris County — Mike Schofield and Gary Elkins — were locked in tight races as their challengers benefited from a surge of straight-ticket Democratic votes. Complete but unofficial returns showed that another GOP incumbent, Dwayne Bohac, defeated Democrat Adam Milasincic by 100 votes out of more than 47,000 cast. Incumbents held comfortable leads in 19 other local House campaigns.
In the closely watched District 134 race, Davis, seeking a fifth term, defeated Allison Lami Sawyer, 33, the co-founder of a company that develops gas leak-detecting cameras used on oil installations.
Davis, 42, speaking to supporters before the outcome of her race was clear, said unexpected Republican losses showed that Republican leaders were reaping what they sowed.
“On a state level, if we continue to govern from the fringe or from the far right, the election results that we’re seeing tonight should be perfectly predictable, because that’s not who Texans are,” Davis told the watch party crowd. “Regardless if you’re a Republican or Democrat, we’re Texans and we care about each other. We just want some common sense governance. If we continue to elect leaders who want to focus on very fringe issues, this party — my party — is going to continue to suffer losses.”
District 134 covers West University Place, Southside Place, Bellaire, Rice University and the Texas Medical Center. Most of its voters are well-off and highly educated, and during the campaign, many indicated they would split their votes between Democratic and Republican candidates.
Davis supporters at a Republican watch party at the Hotel ZaZa grew anxious as early returns showed the incumbent leading by a slim margin. Some said they took comfort in the district’s history of focusing on candidates more than parties.
John Michael Austin, a Rice University senior, noted that Democrat Hillary Clinton carried the district in the 2016 presidential race while Republican Mitt Romney carried it in 2012.
“I would say voters in Davis’ district are well informed, and considering her record, I’m sure they’ll support her again,” Austin said.
Davis’ Republican primary opponent, Susanna Dokupil, a conservative businesswoman, argued that some of Davis’ views, such as her support for abortion rights, showed that she was insufficiently conservative. Dokupil lost by 12 percentage points despite the assistance of Gov. Greg Abbott, who said Davis was “absolutely hostile” to the governor’s conservative agenda. Abbott spent more than $223,000 running campaign ads against Davis.
Sawyer took the opposite tack in the general election, attacking Davis from the left. Sawyer was particularly critical of the incumbent’s co-sponsorship of Senate Bill 4, which authorizes police to inquire about the immigration status of people they detain.
Sawyer called the law “racist” and said support for it was inappropriate for a legislator from a city as diverse as Houston.
The Davis-Sawyer contest drew widespread interest because Davis is regarded as the most centrist Republican in an increasingly conservative Texas House of Representatives.