Valinda Bolton Credit: Photo by John Anderson

In picking up a slew of local law-enforcement and emergency-service union endorsements, Rep. Valinda Bolton, D-Austin, has scored a pre-election coup in her effort to defend her House seat against Republican challenger Donna Keel. The endorsement list includes the Austin Police Association, Austin Firefighters Association, and the Texas Municipal Police Association. But it’s the endorsement from the Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas, the state’s largest police officers’ organization, that’s giving some Bolton supporters a sense of schadenfreude. The union’s affiliated locals include the Travis County Sheriff’s Officers Association. Before he became parliamentarian to Speaker Tom Craddick, Keel’s brother-in-law Terry Keel held the same House District seat that Bolton now holds. His last job before entering the House? Travis County sheriff.


This article appears in September 19 • 2008.

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The Chronicle's first Culture Desk editor, Richard has reported on Austin's growing film production and appreciation scene for over a decade. A graduate of the universities of York, Stirling, and UT-Austin, a Rotten Tomatoes certified critic, and eight-time Best of Austin winner, he's currently at work on two books and a play.