The Evening Brief: Nov. 2, 2012

New in The Texas Tribune:

•   Interactive: Candidates' Eight-Day Campaign Finance Report Totals: "On Oct. 29, state candidates filed their eight-day reports, the last campaign finance reports before the general election. Use our interactive to view the contribution, expenditure, cash on hand and outstanding loan totals for each candidate."

•   UT/TT Poll: Weighing Scientists vs. Politicians: "Ask Texans if they have more confidence in the scientists or the policymakers and their answers depend on the issue at hand, according to the University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll."

•   Democrat Has Reputation for Political Brawling: "The outnumbered Texas House Democrats have plenty of leaders, insists state Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer, of San Antonio. But that hasn’t stopped the chairman of the Mexican American Legislative Caucus from taking center stage."

•   With Toolkits and Robots, Schools Teach Kids About Water Conservation: "Texas schools have gotten creative about water education, sometimes even giving students low-flow shower heads and other water-saving devices to install at home. But funding is a perpetual challenge."

•   Woman Released on Parole Seeks Exoneration in Child Sex Assault: "Amid questions about whether she and three other San Antonio were wrongfully convicted of sexually assaulting two young girls, Anna Vasquez will be released on parole Friday. Vasquez, who maintains her innocence, has been in prison since 2000."

Culled:

•   State NAACP urges Texans to report voter intimidation (The Dallas Morning News): "Texas NAACP officials said the number of reports of voter intimidation have gone up since the 2008 election and are offering suggestions to combat it. State NAACP President Gary Bledsoe outlined the laws some voters may be unaware of or find confusing, such as the language on the back of the voter registration certificate, which reads that the 2011 Texas Legislature passed a law requiring photo identification. While true, a federal court in August blocked enforcement of the law after registration cards were sent out."

•   After early voting incident, Charlie Gonzalez demands Texas enforce current ID rules (Houston Chronicle): "'With less than one week to go before Election Day, it is disconcerting that there have been reports of poll workers incorrectly advising voters on the requirements to vote,' said Rep. Charlie Gonzalez, the San Antonio Democrat who heads the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. After reading Slater’s column, Gonzalez wrote a letter to Texas Secretary of State Hope Andrade demanding that she protect the voting rights of all Texans."

•   Judge orders that some Watergate records sought by Texas professor be unsealed (The Associated Press): "Some documents sealed in the 1970s as part of the court case against seven men involved in the Watergate burglary must be released, a federal judge in Washington says."