On March 2, 1836, Texas declared its independence from Mexico, and two months later, on May 14, ad interim President David G. Burnet called an election for Sept-ember to ratify the Constitu-tion and elect the members of the new Republic’s Congress.

In 1836, about 20,000 people lived in Texas. It was a huge area, and barely half of it was settled. West Texas was unorganized territory.

It is to those early Texans’ credit that in spite of great distances and no up-to-the-minute news bulletins, they found out about the election. They ratified the new Constitu-tion and chose 14 senators and 29 representatives to send to Congress.

This year, I encourage my fellow Texans not only to observe our great state’s Independence Day on Sunday, but to honor it further by voting in the primary election on Tuesday.

In Texas and many other states, redistricting has so impacted voting that the most important ballot you can cast is often in the primary election in March rather than the general election in November.

Leaving the redistricting of Congressional and legislative districts in the hands of those whose jobs depend on the outcome, the men and women who represent you in Austin and in Washington, D.C., has resulted in district lines drawn to protect incumbents, regardless of whether Republicans or Democrats are in power.

As a result, many Texas voters will go to the polls in November and see either races that have candidates with no opposition or, if there is opposition, many candidates running in districts drawn so overwhelmingly in favor of one political party or the other that it is obvious which candidate will emerge the winner.

To quote from the Nov. 3, 2006, issue of the Dallas Morning News, “When the majority party is entrusted with the task of redistricting, incumbents win and voters lose.”

Except for presidential and statewide candidates, such as those for governor and U.S. senators, the decision about which candidate will win in November’s general election is determined at the primary election in March. U.S. Congressmen, state senators and state representatives plus many judges are chosen in the March primary in battles that feature Republicans v. Republicans and Democrats v. Democrats.

Unfortunately, twice as many Texans vote in Novem-ber as do in March because they believe their votes will “really count” when the undeniable fact is that their votes count much more in March.

I have battled against this partisan redistricting in legislative session after legislative session. I believe strongly that redistricting should be placed in the hands of a bipartisan citizens’ redistricting commission, and I will once again file a bill to that effect when the Legislature convenes next year.

In the meantime, I urge you to go to the polls this coming Tuesday and cast your ballot when your vote will really make a difference, in the primary election.

Take a lesson from the early Texans. They knew the value of voting because it was a privilege that had been taken away from them, and they were willing to die to take it back.

State Sen. Jeff Wentworth (R-San Antonio) represents District 25, which includes part of Bexar County. He can be reached via e-mail at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it