Red State Women Supporting Abbott
The group, Red State Women, is working to help Abbott keep that pledge. Through social media and women’s testimonials, it is countering efforts by a coalition working with Annie’s List.
“We’re very interested in finding out what moves women to the polls,” said Cari Christman, Red State Women’s executive director.
“We found out that has a lot to do with independence and strength. So messages that relate to women going back to school on their own, getting a job, being successful independently outside of government,” Christman said.
Women make up a slightly larger share of the state’s voters.
Jim Henson, director of the Texas Politics Project at the University of Texas, says that’s one reason they’re getting special attention.
Another may be something Henson saw in polling data. Between 2010 and 2013, the number of suburban women in Texas who describe themselves as Republican dropped from 50 percent to 38 percent.