{"id":157448,"date":"2026-02-09T21:49:51","date_gmt":"2026-02-09T21:49:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/157448\/"},"modified":"2026-02-09T21:49:51","modified_gmt":"2026-02-09T21:49:51","slug":"analysis-frontrunners-emerge-in-bexar-county-da-primary-sort-of","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/157448\/","title":{"rendered":"Analysis: Frontrunners emerge in Bexar County DA primary \u2014 sort of"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"Eight candidates were on stage at the Democratic Bexar County District Attorney debate on Tuesday. Credit: Michael Karlis<\/p>\n

With the start of early voting little more than a week away, the Democratic primary race to become Bexar County\u2019s next District Attorney remains among the most, ahem, unconventional local elections this cycle.<\/p>\n

Among the eight Dems running to replace retiring Bexar County DA Joe Gonzales, two kind of, sort of, appear likely to make it to a runoff, according to political insiders. Those are criminal defense attorney Shannon Locke,\u00a0best known to many as an internet personality,\u00a0and Luz Elena Chapa, a former judge with no prosecutorial experience whose debate performances have many observers scratching their heads.<\/p>\n

The Democratic primary is the one to watch at this point, because its victor is likely to take the spoils in deep blue Bexar County\u2019s general election. <\/p>\n

\u200b\u201cIt\u2019s an important position, but Lord help us,\u201d UT-San Antonio political science professor Jon Taylor told the Current of the county\u2019s open DA\u2019s seat.<\/p>\n

Indeed, Chapa\u2019s last debate performance, Tuesday, Feb. 3, was exceptionally rough. Two local political operatives separately expressed concern about the viability of Chapa\u2019s candidacy after her halting delivery. Both operatives asked not to be named since they\u2019re not directly involved in the race. <\/p>\n

Even so, Chapa leads the pack in fundraising. But it\u2019s also worth noting that $200,000 of her war chest comes from a personal loan and the Chapa Law Group.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it may just be simply a case of waiting to see who makes the runoff based on name identification alone,\u201d Taylor said of the lack of money funneling into the race. \u201cAll due respect to these candidates, but there\u2019s not high name recognition here \u2014 and that\u2019s a problem.\u201d<\/p>\n

During the debate hosted by the Greater San Antonio Chamber, Chapa, halfway through an answer, seemed to forget the question and asked the moderator, San Antonio Report journalist Andrea Drusch, to repeat it.<\/p>\n

In another instance, Chapa tried to frame the other candidates on stage, the majority of whom are currently working either inside the DA\u2019s office or county courthouse, as incompetent. Not exactly an easy sale to voters given their professional experience. <\/p>\n

Chapa\u2019s lackluster performance came weeks after another discouraging showing during a debate at Our Lady of the Lake. During that forum, her awkwardly long pauses led attorney Jason Wolff, who is running in the DA\u2019s race as an independent, to question in a recent TikTok whether she was \u201chaving a stroke.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u200b\u201cI don\u2019t understand why she decided to run for DA rather than staying on the Court of Appeals,\u201d Taylor said. \u201cI\u2019m surprised she didn\u2019t run for judge or justice again.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u200bChapa served on the Texas Fourth Court of Appeals for decades, running unopposed until Republican challenger Lori Massey Brisette took her seat in 2024.<\/p>\n

In the end, Chapa\u2019s debate performances up to this point aren\u2019t likely to affect her chances of making the runoff, Taylor said. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt will have an impact on people who have a nuanced understanding of the race,\u201d he said. \u201cBut, I gotta be honest, the average voter is not going to have a tremendous amount of information on these candidates.\u201d<\/p>\n

Democratic political consultant Bert Santiba\u00f1ez said Locke has emerged as the favorite, particularly among the party\u2019s progressive wing, due to his recent calls to prosecute ICE officers who break the law.<\/p>\n

Chapa\u2019s chances of making the runoff are less certain, the consultant added. <\/p>\n

Still, Santiba\u00f1ez gets the sense Locke\u2019s challenger will be a woman \u2014 whether Chapa, Meredith Chacon or Meli Powers \u2014 if he makes the runoff.<\/p>\n

\u200b\u201cWhen it comes to Democratic primaries, women do outvote men two to one,\u201d Santiba\u00f1ez said. \u201cSo with that, you typically see women dominate county-wide primaries, especially in the Democratic nomination.\u201d<\/p>\n

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