DeLay endorses Bledsoe in 3rd District runoff election

Gunner DeLay said Thursday (May 20) he is throwing his support and energy behind Sen. Cecile Bledsoe in the GOP primary runoff election for the 3rd Congressional District seat.

Bledsoe, of Rogers, finished second in the May 18 GOP primary with 13.3% of the vote, a considerable distance behind Rogers Mayor Steve Womack who captured 31.2% of the vote. DeLay finished third with 13% of the votes — just 158 points behind Bledsoe.

As to a possible recount, DeLay said Wednesday he might wait to see how the results change when about 270 military and provisional ballots in the District were counted. DeLay said by late Wednesday it became clear “Bledsoe really earned the second position.”

The runoff election is June 8.

Bledsoe joined DeLay in Fort Smith at the Sebastian County Republican Headquarters for a 3:30 p.m. press conference. Their talking points focused on a belief that Womack is not a true conservative.

DeLay said Womack is the kind of Republican the Washington D.C. establishment likes.

“They are counting on soft Republicans going to Washington and not having the stomach for the fight” against Obamacare, federal deficits and illegal immigration. DeLay

Bledsoe said Womack has been “soft” on his answers relating to the new federal health care law and illegal immigration. She said Womack has not supported the idea of repealing the new federal health care bill.

However, during a Wednesday morning interview with The City Wire that aired on KWHN AM 1320, Womack said his first goal with Obamacare would be to repeal it. If that failed, he said Congress should try to defund it.

Bledsoe and DeLay said they have been talking to the other five candidates — there were eight candidates in the GOP primary for the 3rd District — to encourage them to support Bledsoe against Womack. Bledsoe teased of the potential for endorsements to soon come from other candidates.

As to financial support for Bledsoe, DeLay said that won’t happen.

“There are no leftovers. There is nothing to donate,” DeLay said when asked if his campaign would give any remaining funds to Bledsoe.

This was DeLay’s second attempt at the 3rd District seat. He lost a close race in 2001 to John Boozman, who is now the 3rd District Congressman and the recent Republican nominee for the U.S. Senate race in November.

Womack scoffed at his conservative credentials being questioned by a legislator who voted to raise the tobacco tax and a legislator who tried to push pro-union legislation. He was referring to Bledsoe being one of the few Republicans in the Arkansas General Assembly to support the 2009 tobacco tax increase to fund health care initiatives in the state. He was also referring to DeLay’s attempt as an Arkansas Senator in 2001 to push for pro-union legislation. DeLay said earlier this year he was wrong to push the bills.

“If there is a better record for conservative governance I want to see it,” Womack said. “I presided over a city that has an enhanced quality of life and I didn’t raise taxes to do it. That’s what people want Washington to do.”

As to his record on immigration, Womack said Rogers was one of the first cities in the state to apply for and be accepted to a federal program — commonly referred to as 287G — that allowed local police officers to seek documentation of legal citizenship status. He said more than 1,000 illegal aliens have been caught under the program.

“I’m the guy that jumped out on the 287G proposal and, if you remember, at the time, took a lot of heat for it. … But I didn’t have any legislators then advocating for me or supporting me,” Womack said.

Womack cited his “endorsements” of May 18 as proof of how the public views his conservative credentials.

“The endorsement I’m most honored to have are the almost 20,000 votes that were cast for me on May 18th. And if you do the math, it was more than 3,000 votes than Cecile and Gunner combined.”