January 23, 2014 2:47 PM

A FOUR-WAY SCRAMBLE IN THE MOST DIVERSE STATE HOUSE DISTRICT IN TEXAS

Rep. Stefani Carter's majority-minority Dallas area district has a range of options for its next representative

DALLAS - A field of four Republican candidates about as diverse as they could be are now battling it out in North Texas for a chance to represent what has become, by many metrics, the most diverse Texas House district in the state. House District 102 takes in parts of North Dallas, Richardson, and Garland and is ethnically and socioeconomically diverse in a way that makes representing it nearly impossible for candidates to campaign based on bumper-sticker slogans.

The differences in the candidates were on full display Thursday morning as they sparred during a forum hosted by the Richardson and North Dallas Chambers of Commerce. Rep. Stefani Carter, the incumbent who flirted with running for Railroad Commission last year, returned to her reelection race only to find that the other candidates were not going to back down just because she changed her mind. Largely because of her abandoned statewide run, Carter is head and shoulders above her three opponents in fundraising, mostly thanks to oil and gas money.

By Scott Braddock