by JENNIFER BIUNDO
First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt famously shared her words of wisdom to fellow political spouses: “Always be on time. Do as little talking as humanly possible. Lean back in the parade car so everybody can see the President.”
Punctual, yes. But all told, Andrea White was one-for-three on Roosevelt’s advice as she rolled through Kyle last week stumping for her husband, Democratic gubernatorial candidate and former Houston Mayor Bill White. It was her 21st whistle stop in the last 35 days, and with the Nov. 2 election day just a few short weeks away, things showed no signs of slowing.
What’s her secret?
“I just like to get 8 hours of sleep,” White said with a laugh. “That’s a luxury my husband rarely gets.”
White recently published, “PS: Passionate Supporter and Political Spouse,” a wryly funny, at times touching look at life on the campaign trail and beyond, for a politician’s better half.
“It’s somewhat like being a pastor’s spouse,” White said. “It’s a job that’s too big for one person to do.”
She intersperses recollections of Houston’s humanitarian aid during Hurricane Katrina and school dropout prevention programs with snippets of advice: Keep your speeches short when you’re the only thing standing between the audience and the open bar. If your kid has brought a cold home from school, don’t feel bad about telling people you can’t shake their hand. And be prepared to have dear friends get seriously mad at you about the traffic.
The Hays Free Press caught up with White and asked her to share her advice to other political spouses on the campaign trail.
“Just keep your sense of humor,” White said. “It’s your life, so figure out how to enjoy it. You’re doing things perhaps outside of your comfort zone. You may not like it in every aspect, but you’re going to grow. And at the end of the day you’re going to look back on it and say, ‘that was great.’”
That seemed like good advice to Hays County residents supporting their spouses in a bid for public office.
Kerri Jones, wife of GOP Pct. 2 commissioners court candidate and current Hays CISD school board trustee Mark Jones, said the campaign experience has been positive so far.
“I love being in groups of people, and I really love seeing all sides of the parties, Republicans and Democrats, working together,” Jones said.
For many of the families on the campaign trail, one of the biggest pressures is simply the time crunch. Every week brings a seemingly endless string of events, fundraisers and ribbon cuttings to attend, in between block-walking, making calls and mundane details like the jobs that pay the mortgage.
And while a municipal election may require a significant time commitment, the larger constituencies and land mass of a county level race can only up the ante.
Sandra Bryant, wife of Pct. 2 commissioner’s candidate and former Kyle Councilmember Ray Bryant, said the family knew the county race would be more challenging.
“How do I balance things? Very carefully,” Bryant said. “As women we wear many hats.”
In addition to working as a legal assistant in the UT systems, Bryant is taking six hours of college credit toward a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice. The couple use text messaging and Facebook to keep up with their three teenagers, as well as sit-down family dinners as often as possible.
Nowadays, a political spouse can easily be a husband or a wife, and either one is likely to have their own professional commitments. In addition to having three children, one still living at home, Jones is a teacher at Kyle Elementary School and serves on numerous committees.
“We did sit down and talk about it,” Jones said. “I said that I would be able to support him and help him, but I also have my job. I’m not going to be the wife that can be at every event and every party. He would have to go without me sometimes because of our busy lives.”
It’s crucial to have a support system in place, Bryant said, and also take breaks to remember that there is a life outside of politics. Still, the political race brings a new social network.
“It’s very eye-opening,” Bryant said. “You get to meet so many people, and I’m a people person. That’s what keeps me going.”
For families, the hardest part can be the mudslinging that often accompanies a hard-fought race. Their Pct. 2 race has been easier, Jones said, because it’s stayed civil.
“It’s really been very positive between the candidates,” Jones said. “I talked to Ray’s wife and we’re cordial. Mark feels like he’s qualified for the job and he would really like to be able to serve the county. That doesn’t mean that Ray is not qualified or we have to tear each other down.”
Mary Etheredge, the wife of former Hays County Judge Eddy Etheredge, agreed that negative campaigning can be one of the biggest challenges for a political spouse.
“The bad part of it, of course, is listening to people tell lies about somebody you care about,” Etheredge said. “And that probably happens to everybody.”
From the 1970s through the 1990s, Mary Etheredge supported her husband through two city council elections and four races, two successful, for Hays County judge.
“It’s kind of a funny quirky thing to watch. You learn about people from it, some good and some bad,” Etheredge said. “Just don’t take it all too seriously. It’s all going to be over pretty soon. Just try to stay afloat while you’re there.”
