美联社
文件——在这张2020年11月14日的文件照片中，德克萨斯州共和党主席艾伦·韦斯特(右)对支持者说...
德克萨斯州奥斯汀——共和党人艾伦·韦斯特，前者佛罗里达州10年前乘茶党浪潮上台的国会议员和煽动者周日表示，他将竞选德克萨斯州州长，试图再次抓住来自右翼的无尽愤怒。
这一次他的胜算要大得多:共和党州长格雷格·艾伯特(Greg Abbott)已经锁定了对他的支持，他正在竞选第三个任期，也可能着眼于2024年的总统竞选。唐纳德·特朗普谁的选民需要在德克萨斯州赢得共和党初选。
障碍不止于此。艾伯特是美国州长中最大的资金筹集者，今年年初已经积累了近4000万美元，韦斯特在他自己的政党中被权力经纪人避开。上个月，韦斯特辞去了德克萨斯州共和党主席的职务，此前他花了一年时间利用这个平台与艾伯特和其他他认为不够保守的共和党人对抗。
尽管如此，韦斯特在美国众议院好斗的一届任期中留下的草根名人使他成为自2015年成为州长以来雅培面临的最突出的主要挑战。已经有迹象表明，艾伯特正在采取行动保护他的右翼，在德克萨斯州通过了他以前从未支持过的越来越宽松的枪支法律，并在美墨边境继承了特朗普的移民衣钵。
“让我们为上帝、为国家、为德克萨斯州而战，”韦斯特周日在达拉斯郊区卡罗尔顿的索杰恩教堂对那些聚集在一起的人说，他在那里发表了他的声明。
他后来在推特上发布了这项服务的视频。
民主党人继续将德克萨斯州视为一个崭露头角的战场，尽管他们的连败仍在继续，但他们尚未在2022年向艾伯特提出挑战，尽管前国会议员贝托·奥洛克不排除这种可能性。
韦斯特在2010年赢得了佛罗里达州的众议院席位，并迅速成为茶党的宠儿和避雷针，一度指责民主党在众议院核心小组中有多达80名共产党人。他未能在2012年赢得连任。
他后来搬到了德克萨斯州，在去年竞选州共和党主席之前，他基本上没有受到关注。赢得这份工作后，韦斯特不仅批评民主党人，还批评共和党人，称德克萨斯州众议院的共和党议长为“叛徒”，因为他在过道对面工作，并在雅培大厦外领导了一场关于冠状病毒限制的抗议活动。
今年5月，韦斯特在达拉斯的一次活动中发表了讲话，该活动由卡农阴谋的追随者组织，包括前特朗普律师西德尼·鲍威尔(Sidney Powell)。
艾伯特在过去几年里只吸引了象征性的主要挑战者，现在他面临着两位以前任职过的候选人。前共和党参议员唐·赫芬斯也在竞选。
Allen West will challenge Texas Gov. Abbott in GOP primary
AUSTIN, Texas -- Republican Allen West, the formerFloridacongressman and firebrand who rode into office on the tea party wave a decade ago, said Sunday that he will run for governor of Texas in a bid to again seize on restless anger from the right.
His odds are far longer this time around: Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, who is up for a third term and may also be eyeing a 2024 presidential bid, has already locked up the endorsement ofDonald Trump— whose voters West would need to have any shot at winning a GOP primary in Texas.
The hurdles don't stop there. Abbott is the most prodigious fundraiser of any governor in America, having started the year with nearly $40 million already socked away, and West is shunned by powerbrokers in his own party. Last month, West stepped down as chairman of the Texas GOP after spending a year using the platform to antagonize Abbott and other Republicans who he deemed insufficiently conservative.
Still, West's celebrity in the grassroots that lingers from a combative one term in the U.S. House makes him the most prominent primary challenge Abbott has faced since becoming governor in 2015. Already there have been signs of Abbott moving to protect his right flank, passing ever-looser gun laws in Texas that he never previously endorsed and picking up Trump's immigration mantle along the U.S.-Mexico border.
“Let's stand up for God, for country and for Texas,” West told those gathered Sunday at Sojourn Church in the Dallas suburb of Carrollton, where he made his announcement.
He later tweeted video of the service.
Democrats, who continue to see Texas as a budding battleground even as their losing streak continues, have yet to put up a challenger to Abbott in 2022 although former congressman Beto O'Rourke isn't ruling it out.
West won a House seat in Florida in 2010 and quickly became a tea party favorite and lightning rod, at one point accusing Democrats of having as many as 80 communists in their House caucus. He failed to win reelection in 2012.
He later moved to Texas and largely stayed out of the spotlight until running for chairman of the state GOP party last year. After winning the job, West went about criticizing Republicans as much as Democrats, calling the GOP speaker of the Texas House a “traitor” for working across the aisle and leading a protest outside Abbott's mansion over coronavirus restrictions.
In May, West spoke at an event in Dallas that was organized by adherents of the QAnon conspiracy and included former Trump lawyer Sidney Powell.
Abbott, who in previous years drew only token primary challengers, now faces two candidates who have previously held office. Former GOP state Sen. Don Huffines is also running.
