White Man Hints He's Black to Win Houston Vote

To win over voters in a largely black Democratic district, conservative white Republican Dave Wilson opted for misleading tactics: The candidate for the Houston Community College Board of Trustees never showed his face on election materials, instead decorating them with African-American faces he'd pulled from the Internet, he acknowledges. The caption: "Please vote for our friend and neighbor Dave Wilson."

On top of that, he said he was "endorsed by Ron Wilson," the name of a former state representative who is black. In fact, the Ron Wilson that the candidate was referring to was his cousin in Iowa. "Ron Wilson and Dave Wilson are cousins," the campaign material said in smaller print. Wilson won the race by 26 votes over a 24-year incumbent, Bruce Austin, who wants a recount, KHOU reports. Wilson is an electrician who was best known for opposing LGBT rights, per the Raw Story. Wilson's take: "Every time a politician talks, he's out there deceiving voters." (More Houston stories.)