District 22 Texas Senator Brian Birdwell has refuted Democratic Party claims that he is ineligible to run for this seat in the November election. Paperwork was filed Thursday in the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in Dallas.
Birdwell is running for the seat previously held by Kip Averitt who gave up his seat and his position on the ballot earlier this year for health reasons. Birdwell was elected to serve the remainder of his term in an election earlier this year.
Democrats charge that he was not legally a resident of Texas and that he in fact was a resident of Virginia when he voted there in 2006. Birdwell says he was temporarily in Virginia undergoing lengthy treatment for injuries sustained in the 9/11 attack on the Pentagon.
Birdwell first claims that the Democrats have named the wrong person as a respondent in the court action since State Republican Chair Steve Munissteri did not nominate him. He also claims any evidence the Democrats have does not conclusively prove he is not eligible.
Birdwell also points to previous Supreme Court rulings that intent must be considered in determining residency and points out that he has owned property in Texas almost twelve years and his current property five years.
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