A Hard One to Lose

The only real question about the special election for Texas' Tenth District congressional seat, once occupied by Lyndon Johnson, was how soundly the Democratic conservative would beat the Republican conservative. The answer, last week, was: soundly enough.

Running were Democrat J. J. ("Jake") Pickle, 49, a onetime Johnson congressional staffer and campaign aide, making his first try for office, and Republican James Dobbs, 38, a Goldwater enthusiast who resigned as announcer for a right-wing radio program sponsored by Texas Oilman H. L. Hunt to seek the seat for a second time. Last year Dobbs was the first Republican ever to run for the seat, ended up being clobbered by Incumbent Democrat Homer Thornberry, 42,000 to 25,000. This election came about because Thornberry, who had held the job since Johnson gave it up in 1948, had resigned to accept a Kennedy appointment to the federal bench.

Dobbs ran mostly against Kennedy, with some sideswipes at Johnson; his campaign signs urged voters to "scratch Lyndon's boy Jake." After Kennedy's assassination and Johnson's succession as President, the wind went completely out of Dobbs's sails. He lost to Pickle 27,000 to 16,000, proving only that in traditional Democratic territory like the Texas Tenth, a Democrat who has the backing of the first Texas Democratic President would have a tough time losing.

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