Front yards and rights of way in Waxahachie and Ennis and Midlothian are dotted with campaign signs for Ellis County sheriff, county and district clerk, judges and constables.

But rare in the 6th Congressional District — a mix of southern Arlington and rural Ellis and Navarro counties — is a sign for a congressional candidate in what has long been Joe Barton country.

Eleven Republicans and five Democrats are running to replace Barton, a Republican representative for 33 years. And Barton said no matter how hard the candidates work, they will have a tough time gaining traction before the March 6 primary. Incumbents can take years to build up organizations, donors, supporters — and enemies — and name identification.

"It's hard to replicate that in two months," Barton said. "In fact, it's impossible."

An 18th term had looked all but assured for Barton as late as November. But he decided to retire from Congress, not long before the filing deadline, after a lewd image and text messages that he had sent to an ex-lover circulated on the Internet.

Republicans in the running

The front-runner in the Republican primary appears to be former Tarrant County Tax Assessor Ron Wright, whose name will be familiar to Arlington voters, at least. Countywide, Wright outperformed President Donald Trump in 2016. Wright had previously served as Barton's chief of staff. He also made waves and news in 2015 when he dramatically canceled his office's United Way drive for fear that some money given to the charity could end up at Planned Parenthood.

Attempts to reach Wright, who skipped a meeting with the The Dallas Morning News editorial board, were unsuccessful. The other candidates say they haven't seen much of him either.

Jake Ellzey — a former Navy pilot, unsuccessful Texas House candidate and current Texas Veterans commissioner — outpaced the Republican field in fundraising through December.

Also in the race are Deborah Gagliardi, who runs an engineering and architecture firm; air compressor manufacturer "Big" Troy Ratterree; political newcomer and former defense contractor Shannon Dubberly; Army veteran Shawn Dandridge; Mel Hassell; Thomas Dillingham; licensed doctor and lawyer Monte Mark Mitchell; pastor Kevin Harrison; and Ken Cope, a retired aerospace executive and Army veteran.

The candidates are mostly distancing themselves from Barton. Gagliardi says she's long been an outspoken critic of Barton. Others say he wasn't tough enough on immigration and didn't do enough in Congress. A few, such as Dubberly, trumpet their family values whenever they can. Many candidates, both in the Republican and Democratic primary, say Barton was in Washington too long and pledge to term-limit themselves.

But philosophically, there isn't much daylight between the Republican candidates.

They have latched on to opposition to a proposed high-speed rail line between Dallas and Houston, saying they want to protect rural landowners from eminent domain.

Most oppose paths to citizenship for unauthorized immigrants. Many have some nuance about allowing some people and their children to stay in some form. And they all want more border security and lament drug and human trafficking.

They toe the Republican line against Obamacare. They're for entitlement program changes and budget cuts. But almost all of them believe the recent tax cuts will stimulate enough economic growth to mitigate the swelling deficits, despite the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office's projections to the contrary. Harrison, however, is adamant that he wouldn't vote for anything that raises the debt.

A few, such as Dubberly and Ratterree, have tied themselves to Trump's agenda. Others, such as Ellzey, also assert their independence from any person or caucus.

"I will work with anybody who will work with me to ensure our country is safer and more secure," Ellzey said.

The group mostly differentiates themselves by their varied experiences. Ratterree, who battled the Energy Department over regulations, has made getting government out of the way of people and businesses his calling card. Still, he said, it's tough to differentiate himself with such a large field.

"No matter what you say, somebody agrees with you," Ratterree said.

The Democrats

On the Democratic side, Jana Lynne Sanchez, a former journalist, raised more money than anyone else, Republican or Democrat, through December. But Sanchez will have to overcome the 2016 Democratic congressional nominee, Ruby Faye Woolridge, as well as former Bernie Sanders delegate Justin Snider, Navy veteran Levii R. Shocklee and John W. Duncan, who works at an HIV/AIDS services nonprofit.

Trump's election was part of what prompted Sanchez to enter the race, and she makes clear that she doesn't like the direction of the country.

But Sanchez has positioned herself as a gun-carrying, fiscally conservative Democrat who supports a strong national defense. She is concerned about high-speed rail. She said she'd have no problem getting along with Republicans and Democrats alike, as long as their motivations are pure.

"It's hard to work with white nationalists, but it's very easy to work with a true conservative," Sanchez said.

But Sanchez does have some left-leaning positions. She supported the Affordable Care Act and believes working families in her district are hurting from the cost of health care. Sanchez said her immigration proposal that includes legalization and a guest worker program has led some to call her an "open borders wacko." But her plan also requires unauthorized immigrants to pay up first.

"We need the workers, and we also don't want to rip families apart," Sanchez said.

Duncan has been running for about a year and came in third in the party in fundraising in 2017. He and Snider label themselves as progressives and support a single-payer universal health care system and campaign finance reform. Woolridge has positioned herself as a pragmatic moderate who is willing to compromise if it benefits her district.

"I've been a Democrat since I was a child. I'm not willing to give that up," she said. "But I'm also not a fool."

Woolridge said people in the partially rural district "are hurting and crying and pleading their voices that have not been heard." But she's still making up her mind on the high-speed rail issue, even though she believes there is "probably more upside than downside" to the rail.

Whoever wins the Democratic nomination will ultimately have an uphill battle in November in a district generally seen as Republican. Democrats are banking on a national shift and changing local demographics to flip the district.

Barton, too, believes the race will be more competitive now, although he says it's likely the Republican will have the advantage and will prevail anyway.

But he doesn't believe either party will have its nominee in March. On the Republican side, he said the 11-candidate field might be a bit unwieldy for voters.

"You're basically going to vote and you don't know who you're going to vote for," Barton said.