Kirk Wins Texas Senate Showdown

Democratic Party favorite Ron Kirk defeated schoolteacher Victor Morales Tuesday in a sizzling Senate runoff to decide who battles the Goliath GOP nominee in the fall.

With virtually all of the votes counted, Kirk had about 370,000 votes to 250,000 for Morales. Kirk captured 60 percent of the vote.

In the end, Kirk's money, party support and backing from several high-profile Hispanic leaders hoisted him to victory over Morales, a part-time campaigner who was grossly underfunded.

Kirk, the former mayor of Dallas, is the first black nominated in Texas for a U.S. Senate seat.

"I feel great, absolutely relieved and exhausted," Kirk said after learning of his win.

Without conceding defeat, Morales told supporters at an Austin Mexican restaurant that he was glad he ran and had no regrets.

"In terms of feeling down or sad, you're going to have to look someplace else," Morales said, as he continued to bash the Democrats who backed Kirk. "I thoroughly, completely distrust the Democrat Party leadership."

Kirk was hand-picked by Democratic leaders to round out a diverse statewide ticket. Party leaders believe Kirk's nomination will bring national attention and money to the race against GOP nominee Texas Attorney General John Cornyn, while Morales' underfunded, part-time campaign would have been grossly overmatched.

Still, Kirk had to battle hard in the neck-and-neck race against Morales, who reached celebrity status in 1996 by crisscrossing the state in his pickup truck in a bid to unseat Republican Sen. Phil Gramm, who is retiring.

Kirk now faces a grueling battle against Cornyn, who boasts President Bush's backing, a deep war chest and the advantage of being a Republican in a state where Republicans hold every statewide office.

"I look forward to a vigorous and civil debate on the issues with Mr. Kirk in the fall," Cornyn said through spokesman Dave Beckwith. "I want to congratulate Ron Kirk on his hard-fought victory and compliment Victor Morales for raising important issues in a strong effort."

Cornyn and Kirk will vie to replace Gramm, who is retiring. Since the Democrats hold a one-seat edge in the U.S. Senate, every close race this year is potentially pivotal.

Although Kirk said he planned to run a "strong, positive campaign" against Cornyn, he said he expected Republicans to launch a negative campaign against him.

After remaining neutral for months, Texas Democratic Party chairwoman Molly Beth Malcolm attended Kirk's party and said she felt confident Kirk would be a "uniter" in the U.S. Senate.

"I think Ron Kirk is our best shot at beating John Cornyn," she said.

Turnout was projected to be about 6 percent of the state's 12.2 million registered voters, meaning about 732,000 votes would be cast. That would be consistent with primary runoffs of the past decade in which a statewide race was contested.

Regional results showed Kirk with about 38 percent of the vote in South Texas, where early voting was heavy and Morales was expected to fare best. Kirk was leading in every other region except West Texas.

A last-minute endorsement from Hispanic gubernatorial nominee Tony Sanchez gave Kirk a lift, after Morales' South Texas strongholds reported heavy early voting turnout and a poll showed the schoolteacher leading. Kirk's support from other Hispanic leaders such as former San Antonio Mayor Henry Cisneros also helped Kirk draw Hispanic support in the Rio Grande Valley.

Kirk has touted his bipartisan, bridge-building record at Dallas City Hall throughout the campaign, while Morales relied on his everyman appeal and his ability to relate to average folks.