Running for office isn’t easy, and even a well-liked candidate can’t expect everyone they’ve ever met to support his or her campaign. But Republican Stafani Carter, running in what Texas House Republicans insist is a prime pickup opportunity, found out last week that even her own bosses are supporting the Democratic incumbent.

Gromer Jeffers, Jr. at the Dallas Morning News has the story:

Republican Stefani Carter, a lawyer at the Sayles Werbner law firm in Dallas, won't have the support of her bosses in the District 102 House race.

The firm's co-founders, Richard "Dick" Sayles and Mark Werbner, have endorsed Democrat and incumbent Carol Kent for the seat. They have also given Kent campaign donations.

"Carol Kent is one of the most effective voices that North Texans have in Austin," Sayles said in a news release from the Kent campaign.

[hat-tip Burnt Orange Report]

Ouch.

Of course, Carter is the most recent GOP candidate to be caught padding her resume and copying one of President Obama’s most famous speeches (despite running on an anti-Obama platform), so it’s no surprise that she’s failed to inspire the confidence of her employers.

But consider this: having a member of their team elected to the legislature would be a source of great prestige for any law firm. And they’re risking their spurned employee’s wrath if she should pull the upset and wind up in the legislature. Yet despite these enormous incentives to support Carter, her employers simply couldn’t bring themselves to do it.

So here’s the bottom line for voters in the Dallas-area 102nd district. If the people you’d expect to support a candidate won’t – those who know her best and have seen her perform in the workplace – how can anyone?

The Democratic candidate is State Representative Carol Kent.