Ex-Rep. Shelley Sekula Gibbs has taken to the radio airwaves in Texas’ 22nd district as she seeks to distance herself from the field in the crowded Republican primary.

The 22nd district leans Republican, and the GOP believes that the party’s nominee will be well-positioned to oust Rep. Nick Lampson (D) in November. The Republican primary is scheduled for March 4.

Sekula Gibbs’ 60-second ad focuses on her anti- abortion-rights credentials.

“As a physician, I’ve heard plenty about the supposed conflict between science and religion,” her spot opens. “But I’ve found that if you wait long enough, science eventually catches up to what Christians have been saying all along. Look at the issue of life.”

Lampson defeated Sekula Gibbs there in the previous cycle, although she was forced to run as a write-in candidate when the Texas Republican Party was barred by the courts from appointing a ballot replacement to former Rep. Tom DeLay (R). DeLay withdrew his name from the 2006 general election ballot after winning the GOP primary earlier that year.

In a race in which she was on the ballot but Lampson was not, Sekula Gibbs did win a special election to finish out the remainder of DeLay’s term. She served a stormy three weeks in Congress following a victory in that contest, which was held on the same day as the November general election.

— David M. Drucker

McCaul Officially Starts Bid for Third House Term

Rep. Mike McCaul (R) has filed to run for re-election to his 10th district House seat.

“The folks up in Washington continue to need a dose of Texas common sense,” McCaul said in a statement. “The voters of the Texas Tenth know me, my family, values and priorities. I promise to continue working for them, their interests and needs.”

McCaul is seeking a third term in the Republican-leaning 10th district, which stretches from Austin to suburban Houston.

Attorney and television personality Larry Joe Doherty has announced his intention to seek the Democratic nomination and the right to challenge McCaul in the general election.

— D.M.D.