In terms of their candidacy the two are pretty evenly matched. Both are attorneys. Shapleigh held a fundraiser for Ortega, Dee Margo held on for Lopez.
Lopez has a Cesar Blanco quality about him. Smart, very likable, dynamic good-looking guy that will do well on a doorstep. I should say does well on the door step because he's been walking.
In terms of personality, he's just more likable than Ortega. I've met her three times now, she never remembers which is kinda funny to me, but is also likable. But she's not dynamic. You almost get the sense that she's reluctant about running.
Besides Forma stablemate Chente Quintanilla is older than Ortega by quite a bit. I think he's 70 and he's running against an incumbent in her early 30's so its somewhat of a gamble for Forma to have even created the ad in the first place. But the cinematography of the ad is pretty chingon.
This race is going to come down to which of the two candidates ends up with the most money from their respective teams. The Texas Trial Lawyers Association (TTLA) are going in pretty big for Ortega from what I hear from my Austin sources. One would assume that the Texas for Lawsuit Reform (TLR) or the Texans for Education Reform (TER) are going to go in for Lopez.
Here's what I find most interesting about their race.
I think who ever loses that race is perfectly positioned to run for City Rep Larry Romero's seat. Its really difficult to see how Romero stays on council long enough to finish his term and impossible to see this guy getting re-elected to the seat.
But either two of the candidates in the HD 77 race would make good city reps.
Speaking of Romero, later this morning...dissecting Rep Romero's comments to KVIA and the El Paso Times...